SAN ANTONIO, TX  -  The Texas Lunker Challenge presented by Mossy Oak Elements proved to be more than just a big bass event - this was also a battle against the elements. This past Sunday, February 11th, 200+ anglers descended upon Sam Rayburn Reservoir with temperatures in the low 40's and one goal in mind - find the biggest bass and head to the scales. Scott Ellis of the University of Tennessee-Knoxville bass team did just that and ended up with his first college fishing career win. We sat down with Ellis to get some insight on how his day unfolded.

Tell us in your words what it felt like when you set the hook onyour best fish and got it in the boat? 

"The morning started off quick, just above the 147 bridge. Within the first few casts my partner caught a fish. At approximately 7:20am I hooked into the 9.64-pound bass. When the fish hit, my rod doubled over instantly. Setting the

hook, I initially wasn't sure if I'd even hooked a fish. I held for a second with the rod still doubled over and felt the fish digging on the other end - I'll never forget the sound of my line straining. The fish had buried itself in thick vegetation. Unable to torque it out, I immediately trolled over but kept constant tension on the fish. Just when I got almost directly over the top of where the fish was hung up it pulled free. It was completely covered in grass only a few cranks from the boat. I vividly remember seeing nothing but the size of the mouth and how big around the tail was. It was so covered in grass my partner said, "that's a nice three pounder!" - he had no clue what was under the clump of grass. I didn't want to get excited and make a mistake, so I didn't even tell him how big I thought the fish was. Steadily cranking the bass to the side of the boat I bent down and lipped the giant. I didn't even have a net in the boat so netting it wasn't an option. Once I got it in the boat I was almost in shock at the size of the fish. After everything settled down, there were some high-fives and we started guessing the weight. We had a scale the whole time, but I didn't want to weigh it. I wanted to see the weight for the first time on the official tournament scales. At that point the thought of winning never even crossed our minds.  The only talk was school of the year points and how much of a difference that fish would make for the team." 
 

What gear did you use in catching your fish?  

"I was using a 7'6" heavy action rod paired with an Abu Garcia Orra SX. The reel had the same free spool of Sunline Fluorocarbon on it from the 2017 BoatUS National Championship - thanks, Sunline! The fish hit a 3/4-ounce Bill Lewis Knock-N-Trap in the Red Crawfish pattern."

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About the ACA 

The Association of Collegiate Anglers, a division of Careco TV, is a sanctioning body developed to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing. The ACA provides support to dozens of school operated regional events nationwide and owns the Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, the largest participatory collegiate tournament circuit in the country.  With dedicated collegiate fishing programming on several television networks, four nationally televised collegiate bass fishing events, and thousands of members, the ACA is the leader in competitive collegiate bass fishing.  For more information on the ACA, or the Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com. For more information on Cabela's visit Cabelas.com, for more information on CarecoTV, visit www.carecotv.com 

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