Professional bass anglers are bad about sandbagging before a tournament. The 43rd Bassmaster Classic has been no exception. The usual poor-mouthing has been made all the easier by frigid weather conditions.

But the anglers have been catching some quality bass in practice. And these are northern strain fish that don’t mind the cold as much as do the fishermen.

“It’s still going to take 18 or 19 pounds a day to win,” said Mike Iaconelli.

Fifteen pounds a day will put an angler near the top, but he will likely need more than that if he wants to hoist the trophy on Sunday.

Jerkbaits have been the the subject of much discussion this week. A handful of pros said today they hope to catch fish on other lures this week. Therefore, we put together a video today titled “This is NOT a jerkbait!” I tried to post it tonight but the internet signal was too weak. I will keep trying. I may have to wait until the media center opens tomorrow, but I will share the anglers’ fun responses with y’all ASAP.

The temperature at blastoff tomorrow is expected to be 23 degrees, but thanks to the wind chill factor, it will feel like 13. That’s before the anglers drop the hammer and run 70 mph across the water.

Everyone here is buzzing about the big warm up this weekend when Sunday’s high might peak at 58 degrees.

Look for those jerkbaits to play a role, along with various types of jigs, crankbaits, Chatterbaits, even Rat-L-Trap type lures.

And look for some weight to hit the scale at the BOK Center in Tulsa Oklahoma!