Anderson, SC – The nation’s top ranked college fishermen have gathered in Anderson, SC to compete for the title of National Champion. The Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA), and their sponsors, welcomed 400 collegiate anglers, coaches, as well as top touring professionals to Green Pond Landing, on the shores of Lake Hartwell for the first time. The 18th edition of the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship, Presented by Bass Pro Shops will kick off at 6 am Thursday, May 25, and a full field of 200 teams will fish both Thursday and Friday.
The red carpets were rolled out Wednesday night at the annual Angler & Sponsor Appreciation Banquet, thanks to the ACA and the sponsors of the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series. Anglers were treated to a great meal, courtesy of Visit Anderson, that included a pre-game pep talk from Bass Pro Shops touring pro, Andy Montgomery. Festivities also included the royal treatment from sponsors.
The Abu Garcia “Trade-in and Trade-up” program swapped out used reels, for the all new Revo Rockets, so every angler will be hitting the water with a new reel. Sunline was also on hand, spooling up any make or model and made sure no spools left empty. Anglers were also loaded up with giveaways, from AFTCO, Bajio, Bass Pro Shops, Big Bite Baits, Bob’s Machine Shop, Denali, Garmin, Power Pole Rapala/VMC/Suffix, Spro, TH Marine, Yamaha, as well as other vendors.
Although the anglers loaded up on shore Wednesday, the support doesn’t stop there. TowBoatUS will be providing on the water support for this year’s event, and the Yamaha Service Crew and the Bass Pro Shops/White River Marine Group Service Team has the anglers covered in the event of mechanical troubles during the event. In addition, anglers also have opportunities to earn additional prizes and merchandise with programs such as the AFTCO Bank Bag program, where every bag of trash collected is worth a $25 gift card for AFTCO products.
On the line this week are two of the most prestigious titles in collegiate bass fishing. A National Champion will be crowned for the BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops, and school will be named the number one team in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia.
College fishing’s longest-running National Championship will pay out the Top 40 places in the overall standings, as well as numerous exact place finishes. The total payout and merchandise awards for this no-entry-fee event will total over $30,000. Additional payout contingency awards include Bass Pro Shops, Ranger Cup, Triton Gold, Nitro Rewards, ACA, Yamaha PowerPay, as well as Garmin Tournament Rewards. Overall big bass for the tournament will also earn a new Power-Pole unit.
Tournament coverage will begin bright and early Thursday morning with the Live Blog on CollegiateBassChampionship.com starting prior to official takeoff. Official weigh-in will be covered live on the Outdoor Action TV app starting at 2:00 PM EST.
About the ACA
The Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA), a division of CarecoTV, is a tournament organization created to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing. The ACA created the original BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Series,17 seasons ago, which has evolved into the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series which is now recognized as the longest-running consecutive collegiate bass fishing series in existence. The ACA also provides support to dozens of smaller schools operating regional events nationwide which help to grow the exposure of college fishing. The ACA owns the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia Program, and associated assets. The ACA lineup of major college fishing events includes a variety of events nationwide that are multi-day events all of which are televised on several networks as well as streamed on a variety of connected platforms.
Thanks in part to the large diversity of media exposure the ACA provides the largest amount of televised and streaming coverage of any collegiate fishing series to include a dedicated television series on several television networks as well as additional coverage of select events inside other programs. This combination includes coverage from Discovery Channel, CBS Sports, Pursuit Channel, as well as other regional and national networks.
For more information on the ACA or the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com. For more information on Bass Pro Shops, visit www.BassProShops.com. For more information on CarecoTV, visit www.CarecoTV.com.
