Meet the Warhawks

University of Louisiana-Monroe teammates Paul Clark, Brett Preuett share their thoughts on qualifying for the 2013 FLW College Fishing National Championship

Paul Clark and Brett Preuett of the University of Lousiana-Monroe hold up their 15-pound, 15-ounce limit to sit them in fourth with 27-7 as a total. Photo by Kyle Wood. Anglers: Brett Preuett, Paul Clark.

April 3, 2013 • Gary Mortenson • Abu Garcia College Fishing

(Editor’s note: Leading up to the 2013 FLW College Fishing National Championship – slated for April 19-21 on Beaver Lake in Rodgers, Ark. – CollegeFishing.com will publish weekly, in-depth features stories of each of the 25 national championship team qualifiers. At stake in the tournament is a first-place prize package that includes $30,000 in cash, a brand new, Ranger Z-117 bass boat and an automatic berth in the 2013 Forrest Wood Cup.)

Name: Paul Clark

Class: Senior

Major: Construction Management

Hometown: Monroe,La.

Other interests: I am a diehard fisherman until duck season gets here. And then I practically quit fishing and duck hunt every day I can until season is over. I also deer hunt.

Name: Brett Preuett

Class: Alumnus

Major: Management

Hometown: Colfax, La.

Other interests: My interests include hunting, being outdoors, getting together with friends and having a good time.

Club Web site:

ULM Fishing on Facebook

Q&A

CollegeFishing.com: How were you introduced to fishing?

Paul Clark: I was introduced to fishing by my dad and both of my grandpas. In my family everybody fishes – even my memaw fished in the Bassin’ Gals back several years ago!

Brett Preuett: Ever since I was 3 years old I can remember my dad and grandpa taking me out fishing.

CollegeFishing.com: What style/method of fishing are you most comfortable with?

Paul Clark: My two favorite styles of fishing are throwing crankbaits and flipping jigs into heavy cover. Whether it’s timber, rocks or grass, I’m fishing as long as there is heavy cover as it is my most productive way of fishing.

Brett Preuett: I’m comfortable power fishing in shallow water – flipping jigs, punching, frogs, etc.

CollegeFishing.com: What did it feel like to qualify for the 2013 FLW College Fishing National Championship? How do you plan to prepare for the big event?

Paul Clark: It felt great to qualify for the FLW College National Championship especially because my partner and I are both seniors and it is our last year to be able to compete in FLW. We qualified in second place in the conference championship and had ample opportunities to win, but we just didn’t make it happen. But hey, that’s fishing.

Brett Preuett: It felt great to qualify for the National Championship. It’s something I set a goal to do since I started college fishing. To prepare for the event I’m just going to keep calm and do a little research on the lake. I’m going to tell myself that I can win and just believe in my abilities.

CollegeFishing.com: Tell us something interesting about yourself that most people wouldn’t know.

Paul Clark: I have made some friends for life just through fishing like Brett, my partner on the fishing team. If it weren’t for the fishing team I would have never known him and I believe we will be lifelong friends.

Brett Preuett: I use to be a big-time baseball player growing up and through high school. I had a plan to play college baseball but the day after I graduated high school I got elbowed in my right eye and now I am blind in it. Ever since then I started tournament fishing.