Day on the lake: Stetson Blaylock

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The winter of 2019 will go down as arguably the most suckworthy in recent memory. Much of America suffered through massive flooding, mudslides, sub-zero temperatures, blizzards — it even snowed in Phoenix and Los Angeles — and constant, oppressive cloud cover that cast gloom across the land. Yet now the calendar says spring is on the way, meaning bass should be getting active. When you finally venture forth to cast a line, will the fish cooperate? For some late-winter wisdom, join Bassmaster pro Stetson Blaylock as he strives to “get bit” on a brutally nasty late winter day. <p> <b>6:48 a.m.</b> It’s foggy and misting rain when Blaylock and I arrive at Lake T’s launch area. He unloads an arsenal of 13 Fishing rods and reels from storage. “This could be a real challenge today,” Blaylock says as he arranges his tackle. “This region has had near-record rainfall this winter, making for muddy water conditions, and to add to the mix, a huge cold front is approaching. I’m betting it’s still too early for bass to be moving up shallow. Along with murky water, we have extreme low-light conditions, which normally calls for hard-throbbing lures like crankbaits and spinnerbaits in craw and bright colors. It may be a grind today, but it’ll be interesting!”<br> <p> <b>7 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>7:10 a.m.</b> We launch the Nitro. Blaylock checks the water temp: 49 degrees. “It’s murky, but thankfully not super muddy. I should be able to throw a wide range of baits, including a jerkbait.” <br> <b>7:30 a.m.</b> Blaylock has spent 20 minutes preparing tackle and idling around the launch area, eyeballing his electronics. “I’m not one to get in a mad rush at the start of a fishing day, especially in cold weather. I like to remain calm, assess conditions and ease into it.” Blaylock is seeing tons of fish offshore on his graphs, but are they bass? “This weather is miserable! If I wasn’t doing this article or competing in a tournament, there’s no way I’d go fishing today.”
The winter of 2019 will go down as arguably the most suckworthy in recent memory. Much of America suffered through massive flooding, mudslides, sub-zero temperatures, blizzards — it even snowed in Phoenix and Los Angeles — and constant, oppressive cloud cover that cast gloom across the land. Yet now the calendar says spring is on the way, meaning bass should be getting active. When you finally venture forth to cast a line, will the fish cooperate? For some late-winter wisdom, join Bassmaster pro Stetson Blaylock as he strives to “get bit” on a brutally nasty late winter day.

6:48 a.m. It’s foggy and misting rain when Blaylock and I arrive at Lake T’s launch area. He unloads an arsenal of 13 Fishing rods and reels from storage. “This could be a real challenge today,” Blaylock says as he arranges his tackle. “This region has had near-record rainfall this winter, making for muddy water conditions, and to add to the mix, a huge cold front is approaching. I’m betting it’s still too early for bass to be moving up shallow. Along with murky water, we have extreme low-light conditions, which normally calls for hard-throbbing lures like crankbaits and spinnerbaits in craw and bright colors. It may be a grind today, but it’ll be interesting!”
7 HOURS LEFT7:10 a.m. We launch the Nitro. Blaylock checks the water temp: 49 degrees. “It’s murky, but thankfully not super muddy. I should be able to throw a wide range of baits, including a jerkbait.” 7:30 a.m. Blaylock has spent 20 minutes preparing tackle and idling around the launch area, eyeballing his electronics. “I’m not one to get in a mad rush at the start of a fishing day, especially in cold weather. I like to remain calm, assess conditions and ease into it.” Blaylock is seeing tons of fish offshore on his graphs, but are they bass? “This weather is miserable! If I wasn’t doing this article or competing in a tournament, there’s no way I’d go fishing today.”

<b>7:35 a.m.</b> Blaylock enters a shallow cove and makes his first casts of the day to shoreline rocks with a 3/­8-ounce War Eagle spinnerbait, chartreuse and white with two Colorado blades; the smaller blade is hot orange. <br> <b>7:42 a.m.</b> Blaylock probes a ­10-foot ridge at the cove’s mouth with a dark green ­5-inch Yum Dinger worm on a 3/­16-ounce shaky head. “I’m betting the bass will be bunched up tight in these conditions rather than roaming around. I’d much rather catch a bunch of fish off one spot than run around the lake in this cold rain!” <br> <b>7:50 a.m.</b> He tries a 1/2-ounce brown craw Booyah football jig with a Yum craw chunk on the ridge. <br> <b>7:54 a.m.</b> Blaylock casts the spinnerbait to a seawall. “I like that little orange blade in cold, murky water. Choosing the right lure color in low-light conditions is tricky; you want ’em to see it, but you don’t want it to look totally unnatural.”
7:35 a.m. Blaylock enters a shallow cove and makes his first casts of the day to shoreline rocks with a 3/­8-ounce War Eagle spinnerbait, chartreuse and white with two Colorado blades; the smaller blade is hot orange. 7:42 a.m. Blaylock probes a ­10-foot ridge at the cove’s mouth with a dark green ­5-inch Yum Dinger worm on a 3/­16-ounce shaky head. “I’m betting the bass will be bunched up tight in these conditions rather than roaming around. I’d much rather catch a bunch of fish off one spot than run around the lake in this cold rain!” 7:50 a.m. He tries a 1/2-ounce brown craw Booyah football jig with a Yum craw chunk on the ridge. 7:54 a.m. Blaylock casts the spinnerbait to a seawall. “I like that little orange blade in cold, murky water. Choosing the right lure color in low-light conditions is tricky; you want ’em to see it, but you don’t want it to look totally unnatural.”
<b>8:01 a.m.</b> Blaylock runs to Lake T’s dam and casts a craw-colored Bandit 300 crankbait to riprap. “Bass feed heavily on crawfish in winter, and rock is prime craw habitat.”
8:01 a.m. Blaylock runs to Lake T’s dam and casts a craw-colored Bandit 300 crankbait to riprap. “Bass feed heavily on crawfish in winter, and rock is prime craw habitat.”
<b>8:04 a.m.</b> Blaylock bags his first keeper largemouth of the day off the riprap; it weighs 1 pound, 2 ounces. “That fish was pretty shallow. I only cranked the Bandit a couple of turns when he hit it.” <p> <b>6 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>8:10 a.m.</b> Blaylock tries a shad-pattern Smithwick Elite 8 jerkbait on the dam. “These aren’t ideal conditions for a jerkbait, but I’m seeing so much stuff suspended, I need to try it awhile. I’ve caught plenty of fish in surprisingly muddy water on jerkbaits; you just need to adjust your color and retrieve for low-visibility conditions.” To prove his point, he catches a nonkeeper on his first cast with the minnow mimic. <br> <b>8:17 a.m.</b> Still jerkbaiting the dam. The wind has picked up out of the north; it feels like 20 degrees. “That cold front wasn’t due here until late afternoon, but it’s already blowing in. I’d love to get on some good fish quickly because conditions are only going to get tougher.” <br> <b>8:22 a.m.</b> Blaylock tries a 1/2-ounce red craw Booyah One Knocker lipless crankbait on the dam. <br> <b>8:26 a.m.</b> Upon reaching the end of the dam, Blaylock casts the jerkbait and the One Knocker. <br> <b>8:31 a.m.</b> Blaylock runs to a nearby cove and pitches a homemade 1/2-ounce black and blue jig with a matching Yum trailer to a dock. “There may not be any bass in here, but it sure feels good to get out of that cold wind!” <br> <b>8:35 a.m.</b> Blaylock has spotted a submerged brushpile with a wad of fish around it on his graph, and tries the jerkbait. No takers. <br> <b>8:40 a.m.</b> Blaylock drags a pink Yum finesse worm on a drop-shot rig around the brushpile. A fish nips the lure; Blaylock sets the hook and swings a tiny bass aboard. “That’s probably the size fish I’m seeing around that brushpile on my electronics.” <br> <b>8:47 a.m.</b> Blaylock moves off the brushpile and begins circling the cove with the spinnerbait and homemade jig. “It gets shallow back here in a hurry. I’ll have better luck closer to deep water.” <br> <b>8:54 a.m.</b> He hits several docks near the cove’s mouth with the shaky head worm, jerkbait and drop shot. <p> <b>5 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>9:10 a.m.</b> Blaylock is back on the main lake, where he’s spent several minutes rummaging through his tackle stash. “Better zip up your rain jacket because we’re running uplake. Hopefully, it’s not a lot muddier up there.” <br> <b>9:21 a.m.</b> After a bone-chilling run, Blaylock arrives at a secondary point in the middle of a cove, where he casts the One Knocker. “The channel runs in close to here, and it’s not overly muddy.”
8:04 a.m. Blaylock bags his first keeper largemouth of the day off the riprap; it weighs 1 pound, 2 ounces. “That fish was pretty shallow. I only cranked the Bandit a couple of turns when he hit it.”

6 HOURS LEFT8:10 a.m. Blaylock tries a shad-pattern Smithwick Elite 8 jerkbait on the dam. “These aren’t ideal conditions for a jerkbait, but I’m seeing so much stuff suspended, I need to try it awhile. I’ve caught plenty of fish in surprisingly muddy water on jerkbaits; you just need to adjust your color and retrieve for low-visibility conditions.” To prove his point, he catches a nonkeeper on his first cast with the minnow mimic. 8:17 a.m. Still jerkbaiting the dam. The wind has picked up out of the north; it feels like 20 degrees. “That cold front wasn’t due here until late afternoon, but it’s already blowing in. I’d love to get on some good fish quickly because conditions are only going to get tougher.” 8:22 a.m. Blaylock tries a 1/2-ounce red craw Booyah One Knocker lipless crankbait on the dam. 8:26 a.m. Upon reaching the end of the dam, Blaylock casts the jerkbait and the One Knocker. 8:31 a.m. Blaylock runs to a nearby cove and pitches a homemade 1/2-ounce black and blue jig with a matching Yum trailer to a dock. “There may not be any bass in here, but it sure feels good to get out of that cold wind!” 8:35 a.m. Blaylock has spotted a submerged brushpile with a wad of fish around it on his graph, and tries the jerkbait. No takers. 8:40 a.m. Blaylock drags a pink Yum finesse worm on a drop-shot rig around the brushpile. A fish nips the lure; Blaylock sets the hook and swings a tiny bass aboard. “That’s probably the size fish I’m seeing around that brushpile on my electronics.” 8:47 a.m. Blaylock moves off the brushpile and begins circling the cove with the spinnerbait and homemade jig. “It gets shallow back here in a hurry. I’ll have better luck closer to deep water.” 8:54 a.m. He hits several docks near the cove’s mouth with the shaky head worm, jerkbait and drop shot.

5 HOURS LEFT9:10 a.m. Blaylock is back on the main lake, where he’s spent several minutes rummaging through his tackle stash. “Better zip up your rain jacket because we’re running uplake. Hopefully, it’s not a lot muddier up there.” 9:21 a.m. After a bone-chilling run, Blaylock arrives at a secondary point in the middle of a cove, where he casts the One Knocker. “The channel runs in close to here, and it’s not overly muddy.”

<b>9:31 a.m.</b> Blaylock moves along a clay channel bank, casting the One Knocker and spinnerbait. “I’m pretty sure those groups of fish I was seeing downlake were either tiny bass or crappie. Hopefully, I’ll get on something bigger up here.” A miniature bass hits the One Knocker at boatside. “Where’s your mama, little guy?”
9:31 a.m. Blaylock moves along a clay channel bank, casting the One Knocker and spinnerbait. “I’m pretty sure those groups of fish I was seeing downlake were either tiny bass or crappie. Hopefully, I’ll get on something bigger up here.” A miniature bass hits the One Knocker at boatside. “Where’s your mama, little guy?”
<b>9:37 a.m.</b> Blaylock shoots a cast toward the channel bank, and his One Knocker ends up tangled in a tree branch. “What, you mean bass don’t live in trees?!” He moves to the bank to retrieve the lure. <br> <b>9:40 a.m.</b> Blaylock catches an orange-bellied perch on the lipless crank. “Wow, this shows me something, because bass love to eat perch!” He locates a gold and orange Smithwick Rogue jerkbait, adds a couple of Storm SuspenDots (weighted tape) to the lure to get it slightly deeper and casts it to the channel bank. “They ought to crush this perch-colored Rogue.” <br> <b>9:46 a.m.</b> No takers yet on the perch jerk, so Blaylock tries a shad-color 3.5-inch Yum Pulse swimbait on a short clay point. “This cold front has these fish in a real tentative mood; I can see them following the lure, then turning away from it on my electronics.” <br> <b>9:57 a.m.</b> Blaylock is moving downlake, casting the One Knocker to the bank. <p> <b>4 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>10:11 a.m.</b> Blaylock hits a main-lake point with the perch Rogue and swimbait.<br> <b>10:14 a.m.</b> He moves into a cove and tries the jerkbait on a seawall. <br> <b>10:18 a.m.</b> Blaylock ties on a 1/2-ounce brown and chartreuse homemade jig with a matching Yum trailer and pitches it to a dock. “There’s a beaver dam under the walkway to this dock. Should be a bass there if it’s deep enough.” <br> <b>10:22 a.m.</b> Blaylock gets two bites on consecutive casts off the beaver dam but no hookups. “Felt like a bluegill.” <br> <b>10:28 a.m.</b> Blaylock vacates the cove and reassesses his options. What’s his take on the day so far? “With the amount of rain they’ve had in this area lately, the intense cloud cover and the incoming cold front, I’m not surprised the bite has been really slow. We’re experiencing the perfect storm of bad conditions, and it’s got these fish knocked for a loop. If I can get a few good bites, I should be able to figure out a pattern and run with it, but until I get better feedback from the fish, I’ll have to keep trying different lures and places. This lake has a lot of shallow flats and coves, and I need to focus on areas in or close to deeper water.” <br> <b>10:36 a.m.</b> Blaylock continues downlake, probing a series of seawalls and docks with the lipless crankbait. <br> <b>10:42 a.m.</b> Waves are slapping against the seawall as Blaylock tries the brown and chartreuse jig. “Man that wind is cold! I can’t even feel my fingers.”
9:37 a.m. Blaylock shoots a cast toward the channel bank, and his One Knocker ends up tangled in a tree branch. “What, you mean bass don’t live in trees?!” He moves to the bank to retrieve the lure. 9:40 a.m. Blaylock catches an orange-bellied perch on the lipless crank. “Wow, this shows me something, because bass love to eat perch!” He locates a gold and orange Smithwick Rogue jerkbait, adds a couple of Storm SuspenDots (weighted tape) to the lure to get it slightly deeper and casts it to the channel bank. “They ought to crush this perch-colored Rogue.” 9:46 a.m. No takers yet on the perch jerk, so Blaylock tries a shad-color 3.5-inch Yum Pulse swimbait on a short clay point. “This cold front has these fish in a real tentative mood; I can see them following the lure, then turning away from it on my electronics.” 9:57 a.m. Blaylock is moving downlake, casting the One Knocker to the bank.

4 HOURS LEFT10:11 a.m. Blaylock hits a main-lake point with the perch Rogue and swimbait.10:14 a.m. He moves into a cove and tries the jerkbait on a seawall. 10:18 a.m. Blaylock ties on a 1/2-ounce brown and chartreuse homemade jig with a matching Yum trailer and pitches it to a dock. “There’s a beaver dam under the walkway to this dock. Should be a bass there if it’s deep enough.” 10:22 a.m. Blaylock gets two bites on consecutive casts off the beaver dam but no hookups. “Felt like a bluegill.” 10:28 a.m. Blaylock vacates the cove and reassesses his options. What’s his take on the day so far? “With the amount of rain they’ve had in this area lately, the intense cloud cover and the incoming cold front, I’m not surprised the bite has been really slow. We’re experiencing the perfect storm of bad conditions, and it’s got these fish knocked for a loop. If I can get a few good bites, I should be able to figure out a pattern and run with it, but until I get better feedback from the fish, I’ll have to keep trying different lures and places. This lake has a lot of shallow flats and coves, and I need to focus on areas in or close to deeper water.” 10:36 a.m. Blaylock continues downlake, probing a series of seawalls and docks with the lipless crankbait. 10:42 a.m. Waves are slapping against the seawall as Blaylock tries the brown and chartreuse jig. “Man that wind is cold! I can’t even feel my fingers.”

<b>10:48 a.m.</b> Blaylock’s cranking rod bows as a big bass slams his One Knocker near a seawall!
10:48 a.m. Blaylock’s cranking rod bows as a big bass slams his One Knocker near a seawall!
The lunker surges for deeper water; Blaylock eases it around his trolling motor, sits down on the boat’s deck and grabs his second keeper of the day, a beautiful ­5-pound, ­4-ounce largemouth.
The lunker surges for deeper water; Blaylock eases it around his trolling motor, sits down on the boat’s deck and grabs his second keeper of the day, a beautiful ­5-pound, ­4-ounce largemouth.
“That’s more like it! This fish was about 5 feet deep and absolutely smoked it!”
“That’s more like it! This fish was about 5 feet deep and absolutely smoked it!”
<b>10:54 a.m.</b> Blaylock continues downlake, alternating between the One Knocker and the Rogue. “A couple more fish like that last one would warm me up in a hurry!” <br> <b>11 a.m.</b> “They sure don’t want a jerkbait,” Blaylock says. “I just watched a cloud of fish on my graph scatter when my Rogue got near them.” <br> <p> <b>3 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>11:13 a.m.</b> Blaylock tries the One Knocker, shaky head and jerkbait around a series of docks but hauls water. “The wind is laying down a bit. That makes it more comfortable for us, but I like it to blow when I’m throwing that One Knocker.” <br> <b>11:16 a.m.</b> A bass taps his jig beneath a dock but shakes off. “Small fish.” <br> <b>11:24 a.m.</b> Blaylock has run to the extreme upper end of Lake T, where murkier water is entering the lake via a culvert. He bumps the shaky head around a submerged ditch to no avail. <br> <b>11:36 a.m.</b> Blaylock moves back downlake to a channel bank, where he’s trying the perch jerkbait. “You might think I could get a fish to hit this jerkbait, but you’d be wrong.” <br> <b>11:39 a.m.</b> Blaylock pitches the brown and chartreuse jig to a big laydown tree, then slams back his rod. “Dang it, that sucker knocked 2 feet of slack in my line, then dropped it! That was a big fish.” <br> <b>11:44 a.m.</b> Blaylock is hitting every stick of timber he comes to with the jig. <br> <b>11:45 a.m.</b> He slow rolls the spinnerbait through submerged branches. “They like my spinnerbait about as much as they like my jerkbait.” <br> <b>11:52 a.m.</b> Blaylock spots a big school of fish suspended off a point on his electronics. He tries the jerkbait and One Knocker but can’t get bit. <br> <b>12:01 p.m.</b> Blaylock tries dropping the shaky head worm through the suspending fish without success. <p> <b>2 HOURS LEFT</B><BR> <b>12:13 p.m.</b> Blaylock runs a half-mile uplake to a mud bank, which he cranks with a chartreuse and orange craw XCalibur squarebill. “This is an old-school plug that works great. They don’t make ’em anymore, but I’ve got a big stash of ’em squirreled away.” <br> <b>12:17 p.m.</b> The cold front has severely impacted an already slow bite, but Blaylock keeps plugging away with the squarebill and One Knocker. <br> <b>12:21 p.m.</b> Blaylock tries the football jig and One Knocker around a shallow point. <b>12:33 p.m.</b> The shaky head worm also fails to score a bite on the point. “A fireplace and a hot cup of coffee are sounding great right about now!” <br> <b>12:46 p.m.</b> Blaylock moves downlake to a mud point. He rigs a green pumpkin Yum Wooly Bug creature on a 3/­4-ounce wobble (jointed) jighead, then casts it across the structure. “This is a cool late winter/early spring presentation; just wind it slow and steady right off the bottom. They’ll hit it on days when they won’t touch a crankbait.” <br> <b>12:53 p.m.</b> Blaylock runs farther downlake and hits a shallow point with the One Knocker. <br> <b>1 p.m.</b> Blaylock tries the wobble-head creature on an offshore rockpile. We’re sitting in 18 feet; he’s casting to 2 feet.
10:54 a.m. Blaylock continues downlake, alternating between the One Knocker and the Rogue. “A couple more fish like that last one would warm me up in a hurry!” 11 a.m. “They sure don’t want a jerkbait,” Blaylock says. “I just watched a cloud of fish on my graph scatter when my Rogue got near them.”
3 HOURS LEFT11:13 a.m. Blaylock tries the One Knocker, shaky head and jerkbait around a series of docks but hauls water. “The wind is laying down a bit. That makes it more comfortable for us, but I like it to blow when I’m throwing that One Knocker.” 11:16 a.m. A bass taps his jig beneath a dock but shakes off. “Small fish.” 11:24 a.m. Blaylock has run to the extreme upper end of Lake T, where murkier water is entering the lake via a culvert. He bumps the shaky head around a submerged ditch to no avail. 11:36 a.m. Blaylock moves back downlake to a channel bank, where he’s trying the perch jerkbait. “You might think I could get a fish to hit this jerkbait, but you’d be wrong.” 11:39 a.m. Blaylock pitches the brown and chartreuse jig to a big laydown tree, then slams back his rod. “Dang it, that sucker knocked 2 feet of slack in my line, then dropped it! That was a big fish.” 11:44 a.m. Blaylock is hitting every stick of timber he comes to with the jig. 11:45 a.m. He slow rolls the spinnerbait through submerged branches. “They like my spinnerbait about as much as they like my jerkbait.” 11:52 a.m. Blaylock spots a big school of fish suspended off a point on his electronics. He tries the jerkbait and One Knocker but can’t get bit. 12:01 p.m. Blaylock tries dropping the shaky head worm through the suspending fish without success.

2 HOURS LEFT12:13 p.m. Blaylock runs a half-mile uplake to a mud bank, which he cranks with a chartreuse and orange craw XCalibur squarebill. “This is an old-school plug that works great. They don’t make ’em anymore, but I’ve got a big stash of ’em squirreled away.” 12:17 p.m. The cold front has severely impacted an already slow bite, but Blaylock keeps plugging away with the squarebill and One Knocker. 12:21 p.m. Blaylock tries the football jig and One Knocker around a shallow point.
12:33 p.m. The shaky head worm also fails to score a bite on the point. “A fireplace and a hot cup of coffee are sounding great right about now!” 12:46 p.m. Blaylock moves downlake to a mud point. He rigs a green pumpkin Yum Wooly Bug creature on a 3/­4-ounce wobble (jointed) jighead, then casts it across the structure. “This is a cool late winter/early spring presentation; just wind it slow and steady right off the bottom. They’ll hit it on days when they won’t touch a crankbait.” 12:53 p.m. Blaylock runs farther downlake and hits a shallow point with the One Knocker. 1 p.m. Blaylock tries the wobble-head creature on an offshore rockpile. We’re sitting in 18 feet; he’s casting to 2 feet.

<b>1 HOUR LEFT</b><br> <b>1:10 p.m.</b> Blaylock hops to a nearby point and bags his third keeper, 1 pound, 6 ounces, on the Wooly Bug. “This fish was right at the edge of an ­8-foot drop. Not big, but I’ll sure take it today!” <br> <b>1:16 p.m.</b> Blaylock moves to another nearby point; this one has scattered rocks. His Wooly Bug strikes out here. <br> <b>1:22 p.m.</b> Blaylock grinds a 3/­8-ounce red craw Bomber crankbait across the point and dredges up a wad of slimy grass. <br> <b>1:30 p.m.</b> Having hammered the point with the creature, football jig and Bomber with no takers, Blaylock races back to the dam and cranks the One Knocker across the riprap. <b>1:32 p.m.</b> A ­2-pound bass hits the lipless crank at the boat but comes unbuttoned. “Rats, I could have used that one.” <br> <b>1:44 p.m.</b> Blaylock cranks a shallow pocket adjacent to the dam, then moves to the submerged ridge he fished earlier. He drags the drop-shot worm around the structure; no luck here. <b>2:01 p.m.</b> With time running out, Blaylock pitches his homemade jig into a series of submerged branches. <br> <b>2:03 p.m.</b> Blaylock detects a tap, hammers back his rod and misses the fish. “Whoa, that was a good bass! They’re blowing the jig out the instant they suck it in.”
1 HOUR LEFT1:10 p.m. Blaylock hops to a nearby point and bags his third keeper, 1 pound, 6 ounces, on the Wooly Bug. “This fish was right at the edge of an ­8-foot drop. Not big, but I’ll sure take it today!” 1:16 p.m. Blaylock moves to another nearby point; this one has scattered rocks. His Wooly Bug strikes out here. 1:22 p.m. Blaylock grinds a 3/­8-ounce red craw Bomber crankbait across the point and dredges up a wad of slimy grass. 1:30 p.m. Having hammered the point with the creature, football jig and Bomber with no takers, Blaylock races back to the dam and cranks the One Knocker across the riprap.
1:32 p.m. A ­2-pound bass hits the lipless crank at the boat but comes unbuttoned. “Rats, I could have used that one.” 1:44 p.m. Blaylock cranks a shallow pocket adjacent to the dam, then moves to the submerged ridge he fished earlier. He drags the drop-shot worm around the structure; no luck here.
2:01 p.m. With time running out, Blaylock pitches his homemade jig into a series of submerged branches. 2:03 p.m. Blaylock detects a tap, hammers back his rod and misses the fish. “Whoa, that was a good bass! They’re blowing the jig out the instant they suck it in.”
<b>2:10 p.m.</b> Back to the boat ramp. Blaylock’s three-fish tally on Lake T, helped considerably by his ­5-4 largemouth, totals 7 pounds, 12 ounces. <p> <b>THE DAY IN PERSPECTIVE</B><BR> “The cold front’s early arrival did me in today,” Blaylock told <em>Bassmaster</em>. “I was locating groups of fish on my electronics, mostly offshore, but most of them were tiny, and they seemed strangely put off by my presentations. I had a couple of big jig bites on submerged wood, but they didn’t want to take the lure all the way. I spent considerable time trying to catch another big fish on the One Knocker, but clearly very few quality bass have moved up yet. If I were to fish here tomorrow, when it’s supposed to be cloudy and even colder, I’d spend way less time throwing the jerkbait and spinnerbait and focus more on hitting scattered wood and rock with jigs and the lipless crankbait.” <p> <b>WHERE AND WHEN STETSON BLAYLOCK CAUGHT HIS KEEPER BASS</b><br> 1 pound, 2 ounces; riprap at dam; crawfish Bandit 300 crankbait; 8:04 a.m.<br> 5 pounds, 4 ounces; main-lake seawall; red craw Booyah One Knocker lipless crankbait; 10:48 a.m.<br> 1 pound, 6 ounces; dropoff on main-lake point; green pumpkin Yum Wooly Bug creature on 3/4-ounce wobble jighead; 1:10 p.m.<br> <b>TOTAL: 7 POUNDS, 12 OUNCES</b>
2:10 p.m. Back to the boat ramp. Blaylock’s three-fish tally on Lake T, helped considerably by his ­5-4 largemouth, totals 7 pounds, 12 ounces.

THE DAY IN PERSPECTIVE
“The cold front’s early arrival did me in today,” Blaylock told Bassmaster. “I was locating groups of fish on my electronics, mostly offshore, but most of them were tiny, and they seemed strangely put off by my presentations. I had a couple of big jig bites on submerged wood, but they didn’t want to take the lure all the way. I spent considerable time trying to catch another big fish on the One Knocker, but clearly very few quality bass have moved up yet. If I were to fish here tomorrow, when it’s supposed to be cloudy and even colder, I’d spend way less time throwing the jerkbait and spinnerbait and focus more on hitting scattered wood and rock with jigs and the lipless crankbait.”

WHERE AND WHEN STETSON BLAYLOCK CAUGHT HIS KEEPER BASS
1 pound, 2 ounces; riprap at dam; crawfish Bandit 300 crankbait; 8:04 a.m.
5 pounds, 4 ounces; main-lake seawall; red craw Booyah One Knocker lipless crankbait; 10:48 a.m.
1 pound, 6 ounces; dropoff on main-lake point; green pumpkin Yum Wooly Bug creature on 3/4-ounce wobble jighead; 1:10 p.m.TOTAL: 7 POUNDS, 12 OUNCES