Reel Chat with BRANDON MCMILLAN

McMillan discusses his first Tour win, tips for co-anglers, how he approaches bed-fish, and much more

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Welcome to FLW Live Reel Chat. Today we’re joined by bass pro Brandon McMillan of Belle Glade, Fla., who is fresh off of winning the FLW Tour 2011 opener on Lake Okeechobee.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Fishing in the very first FLW Tour event of his career, McMillan shook off some rookie jitters to capture the tournament title on the Big O. For his efforts, McMillan walked away with biggest payday of his lifetime – winning a first-place prize award of $125,000.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
McMillan, a resident of Belle Glade, Fla., began his FLW Outdoors career in 2004 as a competitor in the Walmart Bass Fishing League. By 2009, McMillan was holding his own in EverStart Series competition, finishing 39th overall in the Southeast Division during his rookie season and 15th overall in 2010.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Today, Brandon McMillan is here to take questions from you, the fans. So, without further delay, let’s get started.

Q: Congratulations on your big win, Brandon! How many bed-fish did you weigh in during the four days that you caught sight-fishing?
— Ben (Mauston, Wis.)
A: None. I probably caught two the first day and two the second day that were better-quality fish that filled out a limit. But I didn’t end up weighing them.

Q: Which shades do you recommend for sight-fishing in florida?
— JBassin (Valrico, Fla.)
A: I’d say amber for color — always amber. I like Costa Del Mar’s 580 lenses. They seem to work the best for the tea-colored stained water we have down here.

Q: Why did you choose the Intruder and the Cricket? When you’re flipping thick stuff like that, do baits really matter, or would any creature bait work?
— Chris (Fayetteville, N.C.)
A: The reason I picked the Gambler Cricket is mainly because it’s a small, compact bait. It truthfully probably doesn’t matter when they eat it on the initial drop. But I went with the Intruder because it’s new to the market and it’s not like the craw, where they’ve already seen it a bunch of times.

Q: Do you ever guide on Lake Okeechobee, and if so, how can clients reach you? If not, who would you recommend?
— Luke C. (Naperville, Ill.)
A: I don’t personally guide anybody. I don’t have a license to do it. About the best is my buddy Bryan Honnerlaw. They can contact him via Facebook; I think it’s called Lake Okeechobee Outfitters. He’s my team partner, and he knows everything I know. He guides out of Lakeport.

Q: Brandon: You are the CUTEST bass fisherman ever ! Are you single?
— CC (Stuart, Fla.)
A: Yes, I am single. (laughs) I love the fame stuff. Tell her I’m available. I really don’t know what else to say; I didn’t expect these types of questions. (laughs)

Q: Was there any temptation to start on the sweet spot in your best stretch? I find it amazing that neither you or Randall ever changed the program. And did you start on the east side or the west side?
— George H. (Montgomery, Ala.)
A: I started every day on the west end of it, and Tharp started on the east end. No, it never really did cross my mind to go right to it. I felt like that was kind of wrong. He gave me enough respect not to do it to me, so I gave him that mutual respect back. That’s really rare in fishing. I didn’t want to win by being a jerk, so to speak. We each did our own thing, and may the best fisherman win. We even became friends after the tournament; I think the world of him and his wife.

Q: What happened to your dad during the tournament? I picked him to win on Fantasy Fishing.
— Steven Rath (Springdale, Ark.)
A: He had enough bites the first day to be way up the leaderboard. He lost two real good fish that cost him a 30-pound bag. And he broke down the second day and had to come in and get another boat. That delay probably cost him half the day, and he was still able to catch 17 pounds.

Q: What advice can he give a 26-year-old co-angler who fishes the BFLs?
— Matt Brawner (Carrollton, Ky.)
A: Learn everything you can from your partner — whether they are on fish or not. Try and soak up as much as you can: how they go about their day, what techniques they are using, just everything. I fished as a non-boater for years on the BFL, and I fished as a boater just this Saturday. I sucked it up as a matter of fact — finished 60-something. Back to reality.

Q: Do you ever catch any mud fish?
— Leroyoy (Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: Oh yeah. I must have caught six or eight during the week of the tournament. They don’t really pull like a bass — they just wallow around in the water. I caught one on the first day. Rob Newell (FLWOutdoors.com on-the-water reporter) pulled up, and immediately I got a bite. I turned and set the hook, and it was a big, old mudfish. I couldn’t even get my five-fish limit.

Q: Brandon, you are a class act for sure — you and your family — just wanted to say hello and great job!!
— Harlan (Clewiston, Fla.)
A: I appreciate it, and I’ll be seeing him pretty soon. I think, as a matter of fact, he has a package today. (Editor’s note: Brandon is a driver for UPS).

Q: Congratulations on taming the Big O in such a big event. Who or what inspired you to want to make the jump from bass fishing for fun to tournaments?
— Dill (Meridian, Miss.)
A: My dad used to always take me out when I was a kid. And it just kind of grew from there. Watching his success made me really want to get out there and experience it for myself. Believe it or not, I fished team tournaments when I was as little as 6 years old. He would drag me out there if it was raining, windy, cold — he didn’t have much mercy on me.

Q: What’s next? Are you going to fish full time going forward? Was this the break-out tournament?
— Clayton (North Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: I’m going to for sure start looking for sponsors. I’m really kind of undecided as to what my future holds. I don’t really know what the future holds to be honest. I don’t know if this was my break-out tournament; it was certainly a great week, and it got my name out there. In my opinion, it will at least get my foot in the door.

Q: What are your favorite bass-fishing lakes outside of Florida and why?
— Aaron (Plattsburgh, N.Y.)
A: Probably my favorite would have to be Lake Seminole, but it’s still partly in the state of Florida. It fishes similarly to Okeechobee. I guess my next favorite would have to be Santee Cooper.

Q: Were the huge weights at the FLW event a product of perfect timing, or is Okeechobee that good right now?
— Frank (Savage, Minn.)
A: I’ve got to say that it’s really that good. It hasn’t always been that way. But it always seems like when the tournament comes to town, it’s always the worst week. We always say you should have been a week earlier or a month later. But we hit it right this time, and it’s great that Okeechobee gets the recognition it deserves as being one of the best lakes in the country. And the best months on the lake are typically March and April — it will be interesting to see how much better it can get.

Q: Do these Florida bed-fish usually bite on the first pitch? Do you use any special tricks to get them to commit? Do you let the bait sit in the nest or move it around a lot and make repeated casts?
— Nick M. (Huntington, W.Va.)
A: The ones that I caught were pretty tough to catch. I’d spot them, drop a bobber and then back off and make repeated casts to her. If I couldn’t get her to bite, then I’d check to see if she was stlll there. I feel like sometimes they are more apt to bite if they see you and you see her. You can kind of aggravate them to bite, but a lot of times you only get one chance that way. You want to present the bait right in front of them and hop it up. If she still won’t commit, you can actually hit her with it. That’s the last-ditch effort, and she’ll either bite or run off the nest.

Q: When is your next tournament?
— Pat (Palm City, Fla.)
A: I leave Saturday and am going to Lake Guntersville in northern Alabama for an EverStart event.

Q: How many days a week do you fish the Big O when you are not traveling for other tournaments?
— Dustin (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)
A: I usually fish it about twice a week — just whenever I have time. I’m there just about every weekend and any other days I can manage.

Q: What size weight did you use, and was it pegged? Did you use a rattle?
— Jackson (Jacksonville, Fla.)
A: I used two weights: an ounce and an ounce and a half. I did not peg the ounce and a half, and I did not use a rattle on either set-up. You have to really pay attention that your bait and your weight really fall at the same time. I’ve had times where my weight would fall, but the crawdad would be hung up on the mat. And they’d swim off with the weight, and there would be no way to get a hook in them.

Q: Roughly how far away from the bed do you fish?
— Sam Steen (Jacksonville, Fla.)
A: I always give her 10 minutes to rest after finding one. Then I’ll start as far away as possible, where I can just see the rim of the bed — probably about 10 or 15 feet away on our lake.

Q: It seems like the BB Cricket does well early in the year in Florida, but you don’t hear much about it later in the year. Are there still times you use it later in the spring or summer, or is there another bait you prefer?
— Nate (Spring Lake, Mich.)
A: I use it solely for two reasons. They tend to like a smaller-profile bait when the water is colder. And I use it year-round if there is anything hard to get through. Just from the way that bait is designed, it goes through anything. But in general, we use bigger baits in warmer water.

Q: Who do you think is the best overall bass pro fishing today? Of all time?
— Ronnie (Montgomery, Ala.)
A: I’d have to say Kevin Van Dam to answer both of them. That’s a pretty easy question right there.

Q: With 164.11 pounds in seven days, that’s over 23 pounds a day. What do you think of Okeechobee Flipping King for a new name?
— Jimmy (Belle Glade, Fla.)
A: Ha ha. I don’t know, man — those are pretty big shoes to fill. We’ll have to see. (Editor’s note: Jimmy is Brandon’s father.)

Q: Lake Okeechobee is producing lots of trophy bass right now. Please share with us your experience relative to big-bass behavior and how it differs from common-size bass, during spawn and other times of the year.
— Karlis (Stuart, Fla.)
A: Big bass don’t get to be 8 or 9 pounds by being easy to catch. Obviously the little ones are more aggressive. But when the big waves come in on Okeechobee, they aren’t too hard to catch. It’s probably the best time of the year to catch a really big one. This time of year is about as stupid as they are going to be.

Q: Did you fish the same area last weekend in the BFL where you won the Tour?
— Dustin (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)
A: Yes I did — along with about 75 other people (laughs).

Q: Did you consider using any topwater bait like a gold Rapala size F13 or the Devil’s Horse with an orange belly, silver sides and black top?
— Sam Steen (Jacksonville, Fla.)
A: I did. I had a big Zara Spook tied on that I had been catching some quality fish on during practice. For me, it’s not a high-percentage bait with all the grass we have. I was really impressed to see Scroggins and Kreiger catch them like that.

Q: What kind of hooks do you use while flipping?
— Dustin (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.)
A: I use 4-aught Gambler KO hooks. It’s a straight-shank, wide-gap hook.

Q: What did winning the FLW Tour event on Lake Okeechobee do for your overall confidence level?
— Jon Stebbins (San Diego, Calif.)
A: It gave me enough confidence to think I can compete with those guys. It definitely has given me the confidence I didn’t have before, but I’m still not sure how I would do against Tharp and Morgan on a lake where I didn’t have so much experience.

Q: Brandon, you are an awesome fisherman! Congrats on your win! You inspire us all! I look forward to your continued success. You will no doubt be everyone’s favorite fisherman with your great personality. Again, great job at Okeechobee.
— Frank (Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: I appreciate it. We’re going to continue to work hard and hopefully have more success in the future. And I would just like to say thank you to all my friends and family — especially my aunt and my cousin. And thanks to everybody for coming out and seeing me at the weigh-in. Lastly, I’d like to wish Randall Tharp good luck this week at the Bassmaster Classic. Randall’s a great guy, and his time is coming.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Unfortunately, that’s all the time we have to chat with Brandon today. Thanks once again to all the fans who tuned in and participated in today’s Reel Chat. And a special thanks to Brandon McMillan, the recent FLW Tour winner on Lake Okeechobee, for giving us his time and insights into bass fishing. Check back shortly for a complete transcript of today’s FLW Live Reel Chat.