Hayden Marbut and Tucker Smith of Auburn University are leading after Day 1 of the Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship at Pickwick Lake presented by Bass Pro Shops with 20 pounds, 8 ounces. 

Photo by Chase Sansom/B.A.S.S.

August 10, 2023

COUNCE, Tenn. — Taking advantage of the increase in current generation, the Auburn University duo of Tucker Smith and Hayden Marbut claimed the Day 1 lead at the 2023 Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship at Pickwick Lake presented by Bass Pro Shops by catching a limit of largemouth weighing 20 pounds, 8 ounces.

They hold a 9-ounce lead over Missouri State’s Aric Szambelan and Tyler Flacke, who fell just an ounce shy of breaking the 20-pound mark. Hayden Pirman and Luke Chaddock of West Virginia University are third with 19-9.

In 2020, Smith and Marbut were crowned Bassmaster High School National Champions on Kentucky Lake, leading that event from start to finish. Now, they have teamed up again at Auburn and continue to show they are a winning combination.

“It would be really cool to win both,” Marbut said. “We still have a lot of fishing left to do. We have two more days.”

So far, Pickwick has fished better than many teams had expected. Five bags over 19 pounds hit the scales on the opening day, and if the Top 12 cut was made today, Carson-Newman’s Dylan May and Carson Palmer would be the final team in with 16-15.

The improved numbers likely have a lot to do with the influx of rain from heavy thunderstorms that have moved through the area the last few days.

“(The Tennessee Valley Authority) was pulling about 30,000 (cubic feet per second) all week and they are pulling 50,000 today and are supposed to pull 55,000 tomorrow,” Marbut commented.

While it looked good on paper, there were plenty of lulls throughout the day for the Auburn team. Of the 30 areas they fished, only three produced bites. Still, Smith said the duo landed the majority of their weight by 9 a.m.

“We bounced around and hit a bunch of places, but it was tough during the midday,” Smith said. “We made one stop at the end of the day and caught a big one.”

Fishing mainly offshore ledges, the duo has found schools in about 12 feet of water all the way out to 20 feet of water. Of those schools, they said three are better than the rest, one in shallow water and the other two deep.

To catch their bass, they have been rotating through the standard ledge-fishing arsenal, baits like deeper-diving crankbaits, swimbaits and jigs.

“We have some that not everyone found,” Marbut said. “We scanned the whole practice and looked for some sneakier stuff that not everyone would be on.”

Using forward-facing sonar, Marbut and Smith have noticed most of their bass have been relating to the bottom of the ledge. Many of their spots don’t have baitfish around — and when a ball of shad does show up, it scatters the bass.

“We’ll see some bait come over the top of them and the bass will start chasing them. It kind of pulls them off the place, so it’s not really the best,” Smith said.

It was a slow start for Szambelan and Flacke. But when showers moved out of the area around midday, the bass began to bite and the Missouri State duo was able to take advantage.

“We stayed calm, kept our heads up and kept fishing,” Flacke said. “We had our final bag around 1.”

Similar to Smith and Marbut, Szambelan and Flacke are focusing on offshore ledges, finding more bass in the 12- to 15-foot range. A couple of baits, including a drop shot and small swimbait, produced most of their weight.

“We have a handful of spots, but they are all getting pressured by a bunch of different guys,” Szambelan said. “We found seven schools in practice. They were pretty good when we found them, but we were only able to hit one or two today.”

Forward-facing sonar has helped them pick off some of the bass that are suspended or roaming. Szambelan said it has been about 50/50 as to whether the bass were set up on the bottom or suspended.

While it didn’t go exactly as they planned, Pirman and Chaddock caught their 19-9 Day 1 limit in areas where they found success during practice.

After a lull, the West Virginia duo discovered a new pattern and was able to make a couple of key culls. They switched between deep and shallow areas and power fished with a couple of baits.

With more sun in the forecast Friday, they hope the secondary pattern will hold up.

Cole and Clay Taylor from Lander University in South Carolina caught a 7-12 largemouth to take Big Bass of the Day honors.

The full field will take off from Pickwick Landing State Park at 6 a.m. CT and return at 2 p.m. for weigh-in. The field will be cut to the Top 12 after the Day 2 weigh-in. Full coverage will be available on Bassmaster.com.

2023 Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship at Pickwick Lake
presented by Bass Pro Shops 8/10-8/12
Pickwick Lake, Counce  TN.
(BOATER) Standings Day 1

Angler                                       Club/School                       Pts

1.  Hayden Marbut – Tucker Smith                 Auburn University                   250
Day 1: 5   20-08   Total:   5  20-08
2.  Aric Szambelan – Tyler Flacke                Missouri State University           249
Day 1: 5   19-15   Total:   5  19-15
3.  Hayden Pirman – Luke Chaddock                West Virginia University            248
Day 1: 5   19-09   Total:   5  19-09
4.  Kyle Zainitzer – Avery Whitwell              University of North Alabama         247
Day 1: 5   19-08   Total:   5  19-08
5.  Chris Baker – Elijah Kelley                  Kentucky Christian University       246
Day 1: 5   19-07   Total:   5  19-07
6.  Cole Taylor – Clay Taylor                    Lander University                   245
Day 1: 4   18-12   Total:   4  18-12
7.  Matthew Cummings – Levi Mullins              Bethel University                   244
Day 1: 5   18-05   Total:   5  18-05
7.  Easton Fothergill – Nick Dumke               University of Montevallo            244
Day 1: 5   18-05   Total:   5  18-05
9.  Tyler Campbell – Parker Guy                  Emmanuel University                 242
Day 1: 5   17-13   Total:   5  17-13
10. Joey Bissing – Jackson Paden                 University of Tennessee             241
Day 1: 5   17-12   Total:   5  17-12
11. Brody Robison – Jack Alexander               University of Montevallo            240
Day 1: 5   17-08   Total:   5  17-08
12. Dylan May – Carson Palmer                    Carson-Newman University            239
Day 1: 5   16-15   Total:   5  16-15
13. Brandon Martin – Cole Holloway               Emmanuel University                 238
Day 1: 5   16-07   Total:   5  16-07
14. TJ McKenzie – Seth Jenkins                   Emmanuel University                 237
Day 1: 5   16-05   Total:   5  16-05
14. Hunter Suchsland – Cade Ludwig               University of Nebraska-Lincoln      237
Day 1: 5   16-05   Total:   5  16-05
16. Dalton DeFelice – Connor Tonkel              Southwestern Michigan College       235
Day 1: 5   16-02   Total:   5  16-02
17. Will Oberman – Wil Rigdon                    Campbellsville University           234
Day 1: 5   16-00   Total:   5  16-00
18. Mike Pierlott – Max Pierlott                 UNC Charlotte                       233
Day 1: 5   15-10   Total:   5  15-10
19. James Willoughby – Jacob Pfundt              University of Montevallo            232
Day 1: 5   15-09   Total:   5  15-09
20. Kaleb Brown – Cole Moulton                   Lander University                   231
Day 1: 5   15-04   Total:   5  15-04
21. Dalton Eury – Zeb Roberts                    Catawba Valley Community College    230
Day 1: 5   15-03   Total:   5  15-03
22. Tim Herrmann – Justin Botts                  Bryan College                       229
Day 1: 5   15-02   Total:   5  15-02
23. Tyler Hudson – Evan Mcnaughton               Western Kentucky University         228
Day 1: 5   15-01   Total:   5  15-01
24. Braylon Eggerding –                          Adrian College                      227
Day 1: 4   15-00   Total:   4  15-00
25. Nathan Reynolds – Banks Shaw                 University of North Alabama         226
Day 1: 5   14-12   Total:   5  14-12
26. Zachary Ward – Easton Bouma                  Drury University                    225
Day 1: 5   14-11   Total:   5  14-11
27. Hudson Choquette –                           University of Montevallo            224
Day 1: 5   14-10   Total:   5  14-10
28. Tripp Bowman – Matthew Nesbit                LSU – Shreveport                    223
Day 1: 5   14-09   Total:   5  14-09
29. Drake Hemby – Ewing Minor                    Carson-Newman University            222
Day 1: 5   14-09   Total:   5  14-09
30. Jacob Butts – Mark Kershaw-Klara             USC Union                           221
Day 1: 5   14-07   Total:   5  14-07
30. Trey Schroeder – Lane Stephens               McKendree University                221
Day 1: 5   14-07   Total:   5  14-07
32. Seth Slanker – Jackson Swisher               Florida Gateway College             219
Day 1: 5   14-07   Total:   5  14-07
33. Adrian Urso – Cole Hadlock                   Murray State University             218
Day 1: 5   14-06   Total:   5  14-06
34. Beau Browning – Drake Sturgill               University of Montevallo            217
Day 1: 5   14-04   Total:   5  14-04
35. Jared Hubbard – Riley Hendricks              Lander University                   216
Day 1: 5   14-04   Total:   5  14-04
36. Blake Bullock – John Mark Berry              Blue Mountain Christian Universi    215
Day 1: 5   14-01   Total:   5  14-01
37. Szymon Piton – Gavin Clevenger               Carson-Newman University            214
Day 1: 5   14-00   Total:   5  14-00
38. Merrick Diaz – Cade Hayford                  Campbellsville University           213
Day 1: 5   13-14   Total:   5  13-14
38. Grant Williams – Nathan MacDonald            Mississippi State University        213
Day 1: 5   13-14   Total:   5  13-14
40. Lane Clark – Adam Seagle                     Erskine College                     211
Day 1: 5   13-12   Total:   5  13-12
40. Noah Trant – Evan Howe                       Northwestern State University       211
Day 1: 5   13-12   Total:   5  13-12
42. Andrew Ready – Harley Collins                Webber International University     209
Day 1: 5   13-09   Total:   5  13-09
43. Mason Hoke – Jayce Garrison                  Sam Houston State University        208
Day 1: 5   13-08   Total:   5  13-08
44. Smith McGregor – Ben Ivey                    University of North Alabama         207
Day 1: 5   13-01   Total:   5  13-01
45. Jordan Brewer – Sam Harvey                   Auburn University                   206
Day 1: 5   12-15   Total:   5  12-15
45. Sam Hanggi – Sam Hoesley                     Auburn University                   206
Day 1: 5   12-15   Total:   5  12-15
47. Ben Brockwell –                              Kentucky Christian University       204
Day 1: 5   12-14   Total:   5  12-14
47. Reese Walters – Garrett Walters              University of Alabama               204
Day 1: 5   12-14   Total:   5  12-14
49. Tallis Morrison – Jonathan Hanna             Erskine College                     202
Day 1: 5   12-10   Total:   5  12-10
50. Aaron Jagdfeld – Elliot Wielgopolski         Adrian College                      201
Day 1: 4   12-08   Total:   4  12-08
51. Dylan Nutt – Carter Nutt                     University of North Alabama         200
Day 1: 5   12-01   Total:   5  12-01
51. Austin Parr – Hunter White                   Erskine College                     200
Day 1: 5   12-01   Total:   5  12-01
53. Evan Sutton – Grant Olsen                    McKendree University                198
Day 1: 5   11-11   Total:   5  11-11
54. Will Ahnen – Caleb Knoll                     University of Wisconsin-La Cross    197
Day 1: 5   11-10   Total:   5  11-10
54. Dylan Fogarty – Hunter Fillmore              Bethel University                   197
Day 1: 5   11-10   Total:   5  11-10
56. Henry Mcpherson – Matthew German             University of Alabama               195
Day 1: 4   11-05   Total:   4  11-05
57. Nate Triplett – Cy Lambert                   University of North Alabama         194
Day 1: 5   11-04   Total:   5  11-04
58. Jaxson Freeman – Maxwell Trotter             McKendree University                193
Day 1: 5   11-03   Total:   5  11-03
59. Noah Vanderwall – Daniel Borrousch           Purdue University                   192
Day 1: 5   10-14   Total:   5  10-14
60. Braden Cox – Joel Berelsman                  Ohio State University               191
Day 1: 5   10-13   Total:   5  10-13
61. Hunter Townsend – Jonathan Wehner Jr         James Madison University            190
Day 1: 5   10-10   Total:   5  10-10
62. Merritt Arnold – Chance Schwartz             University of Montevallo            189
Day 1: 3   10-10   Total:   3  10-10
63. William Tew – Brayden Nichols                LSU – Shreveport                    188
Day 1: 5   10-08   Total:   5  10-08
64. Kyle Workman – Evan Barker                   Campbellsville University           187
Day 1: 4   10-08   Total:   4  10-08
65. Anderson Jones – Max Muzones                 Lander University                   186
Day 1: 4   10-06   Total:   4  10-06
66. Kaden Proffitt – Cason Ragsdale              East Texas Baptist University       185
Day 1: 4   10-05   Total:   4  10-05
67. Jeremy Monda – Bryson O’steen                Florida Gateway College             184
Day 1: 5   10-04   Total:   5  10-04
68. Turner Hart – Summer Dees                    Bryan College                       183
Day 1: 4   10-02   Total:   4  10-02
69. Sam Smith – Connor Jacob                     Auburn University                   182
Day 1: 4   09-14   Total:   4  09-14
70. Corey Yaden – Caleb Barrow                   Brewton-Parker College              181
Day 1: 3   09-12   Total:   3  09-12
71. Riley Faulkner – Cole Rankin                 Carson-Newman University            180
Day 1: 3   09-11   Total:   3  09-11
72. Stevie Mills – Brady Duncan                  Carson-Newman University            179
Day 1: 4   09-08   Total:   4  09-08
72. Jackson Smith – Sawyer Williams              Bethel University                   179
Day 1: 4   09-08   Total:   4  09-08
74. Andrew Blanton – Jamison Bagwell             Lander University                   177
Day 1: 4   09-07   Total:   4  09-07
75. Ryan Park – Sam Niemeyer                     Murray State University             176
Day 1: 4   09-06   Total:   4  09-06
76. Tommy Dunaway – Seth Jones                   Florida Gateway College             175
Day 1: 5   09-05   Total:   5  09-05
77. TJ Edwards Jr –                              Blue Mountain Christian Universi    174
Day 1: 2   09-05   Total:   2  09-05
78. Bryant Martin – Luke Batts                   LSU – Shreveport                    173
Day 1: 4   09-02   Total:   4  09-02
79. Hayden Gaddis – Ben Cully                    Carson-Newman University            172
Day 1: 4   09-01   Total:   4  09-01
79. James Gillis – Blake Richards                Clarkson University                 172
Day 1: 4   09-01   Total:   4  09-01
81. Dylan Akins – Chase Carey                    Emmanuel University                 170
Day 1: 4   09-00   Total:   4  09-00
82. Chase Hubble – Brent May                     University of Florida               169
Day 1: 3   07-11   Total:   3  07-11
83. Evan Fields –                                Campbellsville University           168
Day 1: 3   07-10   Total:   3  07-10
84. Peyton Harris – Dalton Head                  University of Montevallo            167
Day 1: 3   07-08   Total:   3  07-08
85. Tyler Cory – Scott Sledge                    University of Montevallo            166
Day 1: 4   07-05   Total:   4  07-05
86. Connor Cartmell – Andrew Vereen              Coastal Carolina University         165
Day 1: 2   07-02   Total:   2  07-02
87. Colby Carrier – Justin Frey                  Bethel University                   164
Day 1: 3   06-15   Total:   3  06-15
88. Nicholas Holtgrave – Colsyn Head             McKendree University                163
Day 1: 2   06-13   Total:   2  06-13
89. Caleb Dachenhaus – Sam Shoemaker             Adrian College                      162
Day 1: 3   06-10   Total:   3  06-10
90. Jake Thornbury – Morgan Miracle              Campbellsville University           161
Day 1: 2   06-06   Total:   2  06-06
91. Braden Fairbanks –                           Kentucky Christian University       160
Day 1: 2   06-03   Total:   2  06-03
92. Jonah Potts – Drew Fromm                     Wabash Valley College               159
Day 1: 3   06-01   Total:   3  06-01
93. Nate Kimberling – Matt Kavanaugh             University of Idaho                 158
Day 1: 3   05-13   Total:   3  05-13
94. Hunter McClaskey – Landon Lawson             King University                     157
Day 1: 2   05-13   Total:   2  05-13
95. Bennett Slinkard – Carty Shoen               Auburn University                   156
Day 1: 2   05-12   Total:   2  05-12
96. Brenton Godwin – Hunter Odom                 University of Montevallo            155
Day 1: 2   05-11   Total:   2  05-11
96. Cabe Mackey – William Hammond                Catawba Valley Community College    155
Day 1: 2   05-11   Total:   2  05-11
96. Gus McLarry – Jared West                     Texas A&M Commerce                  155
Day 1: 2   05-11   Total:   2  05-11
99. Levi Thibodaux – Chance Shelby               LSU – Shreveport                    152
Day 1: 2   05-05   Total:   2  05-05
100. Luke Glasgow – Logan Barrett                 Mississippi State University        151
Day 1: 2   05-04   Total:   2  05-04
101. Ryan Lachniet – Clay Oberman                 Campbellsville University           150
Day 1: 2   05-00   Total:   2  05-00
102. Seth Elkins – Dale Hansard                   Jacksonville State University       149
Day 1: 2   04-15   Total:   2  04-15
102. Nick Redlin – Benjamin Redlin                University of Wisconsin-Plattevil   149
Day 1: 2   04-15   Total:   2  04-15
104. Owen Januszewski – Matt Mosby                Adrian College                      147
Day 1: 2   04-12   Total:   2  04-12
105. Landon Surrett – Hampton Shull               Lander University                   146
Day 1: 2   04-09   Total:   2  04-09
106. Nathan Lee – Chase Bolden                    University of Wisconsin-Plattevi    145
Day 1: 2   04-02   Total:   2  04-02
107. Cole Dodson – Tyler Cain                     University of Montevallo            144
Day 1: 2   04-01   Total:   2  04-01
108. Jake Monti – Samuel Dunson                   UNC Charlotte                       143
Day 1: 1   04-00   Total:   1  04-00
109. Blake Milligan – Matthew Parrish             Auburn University                   142
Day 1: 2   03-12   Total:   2  03-12
110. Brooks Anderson – Max Heaton                 Emmanuel University                 141
Day 1: 1   03-09   Total:   1  03-09
110. Garrett Thompson – Ethan Perry               West Virginia University            141
Day 1: 1   03-09   Total:   1  03-09
112. Christian Turner – John Gray                 Coastal Carolina University         139
Day 1: 1   03-03   Total:   1  03-03
113. Hayden Scott – Jerry Brumbaugh Jr.           Adrian College                      138
Day 1: 1   03-01   Total:   1  03-01
114. Colton Hill – Tomas Matual                   McKendree University                137
Day 1: 2   02-15   Total:   2  02-15
115. Kyle Simmons – Brett Halstead                Kansas State University             136
Day 1: 1   02-10   Total:   1  02-10
116. Eric Wawrzyniak – Dylan Crystaloski          Penn State University               135
Day 1: 1   02-06   Total:   1  02-06
117. Garrett Warren – Jake Peck                   Auburn University                   134
Day 1: 1   02-05   Total:   1  02-05
118. Fisher Hill – Paris Mccullers                Murray State College                133
Day 1: 1   02-04   Total:   1  02-04
119. Jacob Silver –                               Western Carolina University         132
Day 1: 1   02-03   Total:   1  02-03
120. Clayton Easter – Trevor Easter               Tarleton State University           131
Day 1: 1   02-02   Total:   1  02-02
121. Tyson Verkaik – Carson Kamien                University of Florida               130
Day 1: 1   02-01   Total:   1  02-01
122. Jordan Pennington – Andrew Oswalt            University of Montevallo            129
Day 1: 1   02-00   Total:   1  02-00
123. Corey Morris – Brayden Mercer                East Texas Baptist University       128
Day 1: 1   01-14   Total:   1  01-14
124. Logan Plueger – Charlie Wright               University of Montevallo            127
Day 1: 1   01-11   Total:   1  01-11
125. Wes Bailey – Lake Norsworthy                 Blue Mountain Christian Universi      0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Cal Culpepper – Ryan Thomas                  University of Montevallo              0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Mitch Johnson – Gunner Whitaker              Kentucky Christian University         0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Braydon Kelley – Trey McMeen                 East Texas Baptist University         0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Giancarlo Russo –                            Florida Gateway College               0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Myles Steward – Trey Zagrzebski              University of Wisconsin-Stevens       0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
125. Zachary Verbrugge –                          Mohave Community College              0
Day 1: 0   00-00   Total:   0  00-00
———————————————————————–
Totals
Day   #Limits    #Fish      Weight
1        60       459      1290-14
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60       459      1290-14