Reel Chat: FLW College Fishing edition, Part 2

Questions answered about National Guard FLW College Fishing

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Welcome to FLW Live Reel Chat. One month ago, we were joined by FLW Outdoors CEO Charlie Evans and FLW College Fishing Tournament Director Kevin Hunt, who answered questions about the impending inaugural season of National Guard FLW College Fishing. So many people participated and there was such a tremendous volume of questions, they couldn’t answer them all. Now they are back for more.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
With the kickoff of the season now less than a week away, Evans and Hunt are with us again today to answer your questions. If you want to know how the circuit will operate, what it means for the future of the sport of bass fishing or anything else related to FLW College Fishing, now is your chance to ask the experts. Without further delay, let’s get started.

Q: Are there 40 different schools signed up for any events in the Central Division? If not, how many are signed up for each event thus far?
— S. (Springfield, Ill.)
A: At this point, none of the Central Division events have 40 unique schools signed up for any given event. Each qualifier has more than 20 individual schools confirmed, however, plus a waiting list for schools that want to enter multiple teams. If there ends up being fewer than 40 unique schools, each with a single registered team, signed up for an event, then other club teams on the waiting list will be confirmed to compete.

Q: How many schools have signed up so far for the Souther Division event in Florida?
— Dennis Parker (Auburn, Ala.)
A: The list of registered teams for any event in any division can now be viewed at CollegeFishing.com. Click on “Schedule,” then click on any event, and finally click on the “View Registered Teams” link near the top of the page.

Q: There has to be some type of liability for using another person’s boat. What if, somehow, I am using the boat owner’s trolling motor and run up on a submerged tree and bend the shaft of the motor? Who is responsible?
— Joe (Derwood, Md.)
A: There is no liability for the student anglers, so don’t worry. However, we ask that you respect the pro’s equipment and treat it as your own.

Q (MODERATOR): Can our Stren pro assist us in finding fish, or is that against the rules?
A: That would be against the rules. The Stren pro is there to provide the transportation and make sure everyone is safe and obiding by the rules. He cannot help them find fish. But, the “pro adviser tips” section on the Web site is full of information about water temperature, lake levels and patterns. After reading those, you should be fishing with great confidence.

Q: Can you explain how the boating rule works with the pro? Do we need to pull our boat to the event?
— Justin Mott (Troy, Ala.)
A: The boats are furnished. There is no need to bring the boat. The college teams determine the waters to be fished, and they operate the trolling motor. The pro will operate the main engine and drive the boat during qualifying events. Once you get to the regionals and nationals, you are welcome to drive the boats that Ranger is providing if you feel comfortable.

Q: What do we get if we win a qualifier?
— Scott M. (Trinity, Texas)
A: You get $10,000. That’s $5,000 for your club and $5,000 for your school. Plus, there are trophies for the top five teams.

Q: I understand that you can’t fish the Stren tournament that coincides with the college tournament. But can I fish a different Stren division? For example, we are planning to fish the Southeast Division of the college circuit. But could we fish the Stren Central Division? There would be no off-limits issues.
— Nick B. (Lexington, Tenn.)
A: Absolutely, and we’d love to have you participate. It is a great opportunity to hone your craft, fish with some greats and maybe win some money. By signing up for college fishing, you are a Gold Advantage member. You fish the BFLs, and you’re also a Player’s Advantage member of FLW Fantasy Fishing. In that game, you can win $1 million also. Go to fantasyfishing.com for all the details.

Q: When we register for the tournaments, how do we sign up our school’s teams in the right order so that No. 1 team starts first and No. 2 is registered as second, and so on? Does the order have to be the same for all four qualifying events?
— Oliver Tschirschwitz (Arkadelphia, Ark.)
A: They should register in the order they want their teams to be selected. The first team that registers is confirmed immediately, so priority matters. You can change your order for every tournament.

Q: Is there any way to find out if we are fishing the tournament we are signed up for earlier than the two weeks prior to the tournament? Many of us have obligations such as field school and internships that we have to schedule around and ask for time off for the tourneys, so it would be very helpful to know a little bit ahead of time to prepare.
— Jonathan Byrn (Murray, Ky.)
A: On the Web site, the registered teams are divided into two sections. If they are on the top list, they are in. If they are the bottom list, they are waiting to be confirmed. By looking at the number of unique schools, you should be able to get a pretty good idea of what their chances are.

Q: Most college sports have restrictions on having participants that have competed professionally. Since you’re inviting the national champion to the Cup, would I be correct in assuming you don’t have such restrictions?
— Jared (Boise, Idaho)
A: That would be correct. Every full-time student at a four-year university that has a sanctioned club is eligible to compete.

Q: If you have your own boat, can you use it and have the observer ride with you?
— Brandon Cobb (Greenwood, S.C.)
A: No. FLW pros will furnish boats for these events. Do not bring a boat.

Q: How much space will be available on the boat?
— Cara Delcamp (Galveston, Texas)
A: Every angler can bring five rods and reels, and there will plenty of room for your tackle and clothing.

Q: Do you think the SEC will dominate in college fishing like they dominate college football? Go Gators!
— Michael (Lake City, Fla.)
A: We expect the fishing to be competitive from north to south and from coast to coast. We can’t wait to see who comes out on top.

Q: Once you pay your membership fees, how long should it take to receive your membership package?
— Jared (Boise, Idaho)
A: They should receive everything within two weeks.

Q: The weigh-in procedure is still unclear to me. Please explain the limit per angler.
— David Roland (Troy , Ala.)
A: Each angler can have five fish in their possession. At the end of the tournament day, each angler can bring three live fish to the weigh-in, and all others in the boat should be released at that time.

Q: What if the driver refuses to go somewhere we want to go?
— Neil (Alexandria, La.)
A: The only way that would happen would be if it is unsafe to go there. The Stren pro is responsible for the safety of the boat just like a pilot is responsible for the safety of a plane.

Q: Is there a reason Gulp baits are not legal to use?
— Thomas (Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: Gulp baits are legal and can be used. But they should be illegal; they are that effective at catching bass!

Q: The College Fishing intro video says something about our day of fishing being filmed and the college anglers receiving that film at the end of the day to keep. Can you go into more depth about this?
— Chris (Shepherdstown, W.Va.)
A: We’ll have a video camera on every boat, operated by the pro. We’ll upload the footage to the college fishing Web site, and college anglers can take it and use it as they see fit. The tournaments are on Saturday, and the videos should be up in a matter of days. Also, make sure you tune to FLW Live, where everyone can view the weigh-ins live in their entirety.

Q: What kind of fishing electronics will be allowed on the boat?
— Cara Delcamp (Galveston, Texas)
A: College anglers are allowed to bring their own hand-held units, and every boat will also be equipped with the pro’s standard electronics. Lastly, if you’re looking for more information about Falcon Lake, tune in to “FLW Outdoors” TV on FSN next Sunday (Jan. 18) at 11 a.m. Eastern time for the FLW Series East-West Fish-Off. The Fish-Off took place on Falcon Lake, which is the first college qualifier. By watching, you’ll get some insider tips.

Q: If my club has a graduating senior, and he is taking just under the amount of classes that would make him considered full-time, can he still fish since he doesn’t need any more classes?
— Brent (Orlando, Fla.)
A: Unfortunately, FLW College Fishing is available only to full-time undergraduate students at four-year universities.

Q: Let’s say you qualify in one of the first tournaments and then qualify again. Does the sixth-place team from that tournament then take the spot for the regional tournament?
— Richard Dunham (Carbondale, Ill.)
A: Yes. When you’re in, you’re in. If you qualify again, the sixth-place team would qualify.

Q: How are the payments and all the details for the hotel rooms worked out?
— Cara Delcamp (Galveston, Texas)
A: You are responsible for your own expenses, but FLW Outdoors will provide a travel allowance, based on the distance from your school to the tournament site. For qualifiers, the average allowance is $100 per team. For regionals, the average is $200 per team. And for the national championship, the average is $1,000 per team.

Q: How many schools nationwide are currently registered with FLW College Fishing?
— Alex (Jackson, Mo.)
A: Go to the Web site at CollegeFishing.com, click on “schedule,” then click “view full schedule,” and then from there click on “view registered teams.” From there, you’d have to look at each specific event, but there are approximately 175 schools registered, and we’re hoping for more.

Q: What if a boat were to break down?
— Kyle (Newport News, Va.)
A: Call Tournament Director Kevin Hunt at (270) 205-5155. You are allowed to bring your fish and ride in with another competitor.

Q: For the takeoff, if we have more than one team, can we choose what team goes first at the takeoff? LSU has five teams.
— Travis (Gonzales, La.)
A: The boats take off in the same order that they registered in. The team with the highest priority will take off first.

Q: Is there a rule about both anglers fishing from the front of the boat?
— Philip (Monticello, Ark.)
A: No. Anglers can fish from anywhere on the boat they feel comfortable. They are competing as a team.

Q: I can understand only five rods, but can an angler bring more than five reels?
— Dennis Parker (Auburn, Ala.)
A: Five rods and five reels: That is the rule.

Q: Is Lake Oroville going to be tournament-ready on Jan. 24? I’ve heard a lot of rumors of another possible schedule change.
— Jeremy (Tempe, Ariz.)
A: They are having some weather and lake-level problems. Stren Series Tournament Director Chris Jones is on-site in California today, surveying the situation. We expect the tournament to go as scheduled, but if anything changes, we will notify everyone.

Q: Will the off-limits boundaries be marked on the lake with flags, buoys or something like that?
— Carter Troughton (Eugene, Ore.)
A: The off-limits boundaries are marked on the map that is at CollegeFishing.com. In addition, the fish-release area will be marked with signs.

Q: Does the Stren pro have the option to say “no, that is too far” if we ask him to move to a specific location?
— Joe (Derwood, Md.)
A: Again, only if it is unsafe. Otherwise, the Stren pros will take you anywhere there that it is legal.

Q: Can we use our cell phones to call our other teammates that are on a different spot to see how they are doing at that particular spot?
— Travis (Gonzales, La.)
A: Cell phone use is allowed with no restrictions.

Q: What do we do if we are fishing the Potomac and we catch a snakehead?
— Wil Dieffenbauch (Hundred, W.Va.)
A: That’s a great question, and we’ll have more information posted on that before the Potomac event. We’ll do what is recommended by the Maryland and Virginia DNRs. Conservation is important to all of us.

Q: Is there a reason Gulp baits are not legal to use?
— Thomas (Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: Again, Gulp baits are legal to use and are a great bait. Go to Walmart and buy all you can get.

Q: Are these one-day tournaments?
— Tyler (Radford, Va.)
A: All qualifiers are one-day tournaments. The regional and national championships are three-day events.

Q: Since each angler is supposed to fish for five fish, say one angler catches his five and catches a sixth fish that would help his partner’s bag. Can he give that fish to his partner?
— Dennis Parker (Auburn, Ala.)
A: No, everyone must catch their own fish.

Q: We have six members signed up, so we have three teams. Do the same two people have to fish together in each event? Or if someone can’t go to a tournament, can we switch teammates up?
— Craig (Toledo, Ohio)
A: You can switch teammates at every qualifying event. For the regionals and national championship, you must fish with the person you qualified with.

Q: You can receive info within a month, correct? You can just not hire a guide or pay for info, is this correct?
— Thomas (Fort Myers, Fla.)
A: Purchasing of, or bartering for, information, or the hiring of services, will not be permitted within 15 days of any tournament. This is rule No. 3.

Q: What is a good reel for starters?
— Trey Doom (Avon, S.D.)
A: The Abu Garcia Revo baitcasting and Abu Garcia Cardinal spinning are affordable and dependable reels. I would start by looking at those two.

Q: Would an 8-foot, 6-inch rod be considered legal?
— David Roland (Troy, Ala.)
A: Yes. There are no length restrictions on rods.

Q: Say we win some money in any of the tournaments, and it says the club and the school get portions of the money. Now, does the school keep that money, or is that distributed at their discretion?
— Philip (Monticello, Ark.)
A: Half of the money you win goes to the school without discretion. They can use it as they please.

Q: Why would you keep 10 fish and only weigh six?
— David Roland (Troy, Ala.)
A: It is an advantage for the anglers. You are allowed to keep five, so that if one dies, you can still bring only live fish to the scale. Again, bring in your three biggest live fish.

Q: How are we supposed to decide who is paired with whom in the club? I’m assuming that is up to the club to decide. Do you have any suggestions?
— Wil Dieffenbauch (Hundred, W.Va.)
A: It is determined by the club, so it is at your discretion. I would want to fish with somebody I feel comfortable with. If all else fails, draw out of a hat at your club meeting.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Before we go, Kevin and Charlie wanted to say good luck to all those anglers participating at the first event of the season next week on Falcon Lake. For those not competing, make sure to watch the weigh-in as it unfolds on FLW Live. The weigh-in starts at 3 p.m. Central time on Jan. 17.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
College anglers and bass-fishing fans, unfortunately that’s all the time we have for a Q&A session as of right now. We appreciate your interest in the upcoming National Guard FLW College Fishing season and the sport of bass fishing. The transcript of this Reel Chat will be posted to FLWOutdoors.com shortly, including a link to last month’s FLW College Fishing chat, which answered many questions not covered today.

– MODERATOR COMMENT –
Again, thanks to Charlie Evans and Kevin Hunt for giving us their valuable time. And a very special thanks to all of those who participated in today’s Reel Chat program on FLWOutdoors.com. Be sure to check back at CollegeFishing.com and FLWOutdoors.com frequently for all your tournament and recreational fishing news and features.