Top 25 – Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia
A Look at 15th thru 11th Rankings
San Antonio, TX – The 15th Annual BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops is right around the corner. In June, hundreds of the top collegiate bass fishing anglers in the nation will descend upon Florence, Alabama and Pickwick Lake to compete for the title of National Champions. This is the most prestigious collegiate event of the year, and leading up to this, the Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) will be highlighting each individual team currently ranked in the Top 25 for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. This week, we’re taking a look at the teams in 15th through 11th places.
15th Place – Campbellsville University
“It means a lot,” said Jake Thornbury, a member of the Campbellsville University Bass Fishing team. “Our whole team has worked so hard over the years to get where we are now, and we plan to keep the ball rolling.”
Campbellsville currently sits in 15th place with 6,015 points. The Kentucky based team gained a lot of momentum early last fall at the 2019 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley on Kentucky Lake. Campbellsville sent well over 20 anglers to Paris, TN, and Henry Country for that event. They proved that strength in numbers is a true advantage as they earned 1,820 points out of a maximum 1,995 available to the highest two finishing teams. The Big Bass Bash set Campbellsville up for a great run and kept them inside of the Top 10 for a large part of the season.
READ MORE – Campbellsville University
14th Place – Sam Houston State University
The top-ranked team from the state of Texas in the chase for 2020 Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia is Sam Houston State University. “It’s an awesome feeling to see our team acting on its potential,” noted Jace Garrison, President of the Sam Houston State Bass Fishing Club.
The Bearkat Bass Team is ranked 14th in the nation with 6,195 points. Skimming through the school’s season results to this point, one interesting note jumped out at me. Sam Houston State has earned points at only seven events this year. For comparison, almost every other team in the Top 15 in the standings has fished a minimum of 10 events. Of those seven events, the Bearkats earned more than 700 points at six of them. That is the definition of consistency.
READ MORE – Sam Houston State University
13th Place – University of Alabama
The University of Alabama won the School of the Year title in 2016, and they are looking to finish the 2019-2020 season in the highest spot possible. This season, the anglers from Tuscaloosa are in 13th place with 6,445 points.
“It means a lot. It’s awesome to see our team being successful this year, as we have in the past. We’re really proud of how our guys have competed this year,” said Jon Kilpatrick, a junior at Alabama.
The University of Alabama knows a thing or two about winning at the highest level in a given sport. From college football to collegiate bass fishing, the Crimson Tide know how to fill up a trophy case. Alabama is one of the most storied teams in the history of college fishing, and they have continued that tradition through the 2019-2020 season.
READ MORE – University of Alabama
12th Place – University of Louisiana at Monroe
The University of Louisiana-Monroe is currently ranked 12th with 6,670 points. ULM won the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia in 2013, the second year of the SOY program. This is a very competitive team with a storied history.
“For us to be in the Top 25 means a lot to us,” said Jacob Andrews, an angler at ULM. “Our team has been historically great in the past, and it’s great to see we’re turning it around in the right direction.”
The University of Louisiana-Monroe is a perennial powerhouse in college fishing. Though there are new names in the game like McKendree University and Adrian College who are in the Top 5 of the standings on an annual basis, ULM has a long track record of success. In the eight-year history of the School of the Year program, the club has never finished outside of the Top 15. This statistic speaks to the strength of the team and the quality of anglers that attend the university.
READ MORE – University of Louisiana at Monroe
11th Place – Blue Mountain College
Located in northeast Mississippi, Blue Mountain is in its third full season as a bass fishing team. Coming off a 5th place finish in last season’s School of the Year race, Blue Mountain is currently in 11th for the 2019-2020 Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia with 7,425 points.
“As a third-year team, it gives us a great sense of accomplishment,” said Shane Cox, Coach at Blue Mountain College. “Our team members set high goals early and have worked hard to achieve the status of being a respected name in collegiate competition. I’m extremely proud of them.”
In their infancy as a program, Blue Mountain College has burst onto the college fishing scene. During their first full year of competition, Ty Cox finished in 2nd place at the 2018 Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley on Kentucky Lake. Later that same year, Rudy Worley & John David Nowlin won the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open on Lake Dardanelle. That victory signified the first major win for Blue Mountain College at this level. And during the 2019-2020 season, Taylor Owens earned a Top 5 finish at the 2019 Big Bass Bash.
READ MORE – Blue Mountain College
