Courtesy of Alan McGuckin – Dynamic Sponsorships

Cole Sands and Conner DiMauro had three consecutive days of bass fishing that 95% of those who will ever pick up a baitcasting rod and reel will never experience en route to victory at the 2020 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series Championship on Florida’s Harris Chain of Lakes.

The two experienced young anglers from East Tennessee’s Bryan College weighed-in 28, 27 and 29 pound 5-bass limits Thursday, Friday and Saturday to not only win a college championship, but also forever notch their names in B.A.S.S. record books, and the dream-like experience all took place on one 250-yard stretch of aquatic vegetation.

“We caught the majority of the fish we weighed-in on a Carolina Rig in about 9-feet of water on the edge of the weedline. Old school green pumpkin Senkos caught the majority of our weight, and redbug colored plastics were really good too,” says Sands.

When asked what the biggest key to their success was, they cited staring at Humminbird sonar screens and very little fishing in practice. “Conner is actually from here and he came down here and spent three days looking for the right kind of stuff. And then during official practice days this week, we only set the hook one time on what he found, and it was a 6-pounder. So, we knew he’d found the juice,” says Sands who has now competed in four consecutive Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championships.

Ironically, even though DiMauro grew up in Central Florida, Bryan College in Dayton, TN was the only school to offer him a college bass fishing tuition scholarship, so he headed nine hours north, to then return home with Sands to claim a national championship.

“God definitely had a plan for me,” says DiMauro. And Sands thinks good sandwiches played a big role too. “Conner’s grandpa made us the best Italian subs I’ve ever eaten in my life, and I’m not sure we could have pulled off this win without those subs,” he grins.