Saturday, October 14 – 6:30 PM
This will conclude Day 1 live blog coverage presented by Bass Pro Shops. Read a complete recap from Day 1 of tournament competition at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open here.
Live blog coverage will resume again tomorrow morning, along with final day takeoff being streamed on the ACA Facebook page.
Saturday, October 14 – 6:20 PM
The complete Day 1 standings are available on the ACA website. View the standings here.
Saturday, October 14 – 6:00 PM
Day 1 of tournament competition is complete at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, AR. Archer & Jackson from 3rd ranked Murray State University take the Day 1 lead with 14.74 pounds.
Saturday, October 14 – 2:15 PM
Tackle storage is a key component to an angler’s success that may often get overlooked. Knowing exactly where the right bait is in your tackle box, or accessing a new hook swiftly, can save valuable time that may allow you to catch the winning fish.
Gamakatsu offers an extensive lineup of G-Box Utility Cases designed to fit a variety of needs. Whether you’re looking to story split ring pliers, hooks, or your favorite crankbait…there’s a G-Box just for you! Read more about these storage solutions here.
Saturday, October 14 – 1:15 PM
Ben & Nathan from Top 25 ranked University of North Alabama check in with one of the biggest bass we’ve seen reported so far today. That’s a quality Lake Dardanelle bass that will help to bump up the team’s Day 1 weight.
Saturday, October 14 – 12:50 PM
In just over two hours, at 3:00 PM, the first flight will be due back in to Lake Dardanelle State Park. With that first flight returning, the live stream of weigh-in will begin at that time. Weigh-in can be streamed live via this link.
Saturday, October 14 – 12:15 PM
SOLAR ECLIPSE! The eclipse was visible here in Russellville, with there being about 75% coverage.
The weather conditions are remaining stable here in Russellville, AR at Lake Dardanelle. High temperatures will reach into the mid-60’s with winds and a decent amount of clouds.
This is very typical for fall fishing here at Lake Dardanelle this time of year. Who can crack the code and bring in a big limit of bass? We’ll find out in just over two hours.
Saturday, October 14 – 11:10 AM
Conservation and fish care are extremely key components to successful tournament bass fishing. Keeping fish alive and maintaining a high live release rate ensures that the resource is protected for future generations.
T-H Marine offers an extensive line of fish care items designed for tournament anglers. The fish care process starts with G-Juice. Adding the livewell treatment formula to the water promotes the live release of fish by adding valuable electrolytes and replacing the slime coat.
The G-Force Conservation Cull System is another great tool for tournament anglers. The non-puncture cull system allows anglers to place fish in the livewell and cull without leaving a hole in the mouth of the fish. This helps to relieve stress and preserve the pristine condition of the bass.
Saturday, October 14 – 10:30 AM
In recent years, electronics have become a key piece of equipment for recreational and tournament anglers. Along with the valuable electronics, quality mounts are also extremely important for securing graphs, as well as offering adjustability to limit glare on the screen.
“For me, it is extremely important to have a quality mount at the front. There is a lot of time and money dedicated to those two graphs up front and to lose one would be detrimental,” said Matthew Hall with Arkansas State University. “In saying that, I have full confidence in the mount and have ran with it extended and never been worried about losing a graph.”
Matthew Hall, an angler from Arkansas State University, runs the BeatDown Outdoors Ultimate Double Stack at the front of his boat. Attached to those mounts are two Garmin chartplotters.
“My favorite thing about it is definitely the adjustability, as well as not having to bend my neck near as much when looking at LiveScope,” added Hall. “This mount has been a great investment and it has stood up to the test of time as I have been in some seriously rough water with it and it has yet to give me a reason to not trust it.”
BeatDown Outdoors offers college anglers with a 15% off discount program. Apply for a code here.
Saturday, October 14 – 9:55 AM
ACA series partners support collegiate anglers in a variety of ways, including through discount and contingency programs. Through its partnership with 13 Fishing, the ACA is excited to announce the 13 Fishing Scholar Angler Award.
As student anglers, college fishermen and women put in a lot of hard work on the water and in the classroom, as well as amongst the community. The ACA and 13 Fishing would like to acknowledge and recognize anglers throughout the school year for their efforts. Anglers can apply or be nominated by coaches, peers, amongst others at this link.
Throughout the 2023-24 school year, nominees will be selected based upon the criteria listed below. Anglers that are chosen to receive the 13 Fishing Scholar Angler Award will receive a 13 Fishing prize pack.
Find out more information about the program here.
Saturday, October 14 – 9:40 AM
Check out these new weigh-bags from Rapala/Crush City! Anglers will be weighing in their fish this afternoon in these awesome bags branded with the Rapala/Crush City logo.
Special thanks to Rapala/Crush City for providing these weigh-bags for anglers to use at various ACA events!
Saturday, October 14 – 9:25 AM
Harmon from McKendree University checks in with a keeper bass. McKendree University enters this event ranked first in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. The team from Illinois has won the title twice (2019, 2020). If they are able to finish the year ranked number one this season, they would join Montevallo as one of just two programs to win the prestigious title three times.
Saturday, October 14 – 9:15 AM
Here are some photos from takeoff this morning. Over 240 boats went through the official takeoff at Lake Dardanelle State Park. 21 of the Top 25 ranked teams in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia are on-hand to compete this weekend.
Saturday, October 14 – 8:30 AM
Blair & Brennan from 2nd ranked University of Montevallo have made it to their starting spot. The pair has landed a keeper for about 2.25 pounds.
The anglers are being greeted with little to no cloud cover this morning, as well as steady winds. Lake Dardanelle is a diverse fishery that offers anglers plenty of great high percentage areas to target, regardless of conditions.
If the conditions continue on the trajectory at which they’ve started, teams will likely need to downsize their presentations. Finesse tactics both offshore, near docks, and around shallow cover will likely be the ticket to filling out a quality limit. Pitching and flipping to bass holding tight to cover could be a player as well.
A little bit of wind could change things up drastically. It’s the fall of the year, which means bass are feeding up on shad, and Lake Dardanelle offers an abundance of rock and wood cover for anglers to target with moving baits. Topwaters, crankbaits, and spinnerbaits fished around shallow cover will be very effective if a slight chop develops on the top of the water.
Saturday, October 14 – 8:15 AM
The full field of anglers is now out on Lake Dardanelle for Day 1 of tournament competition at the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open. The first flight of boats is due back in at 3:00 PM this afternoon. As soon as we have updates from out on the water, we will post those here promptly!
Saturday, October 14 – 6:20 AM
Anglers and teams are making their way in to Lake Dardanelle State Park for Day 1 takeoff. Over 230 of the top teams in all of collegiate bass fishing will compete today and tomorrow on Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, AR. Stay tuned for updates from on the water later this morning!
Saturday, October 14 – 5:30 AM
Good Saturday morning from Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, AR for Day 1 of the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open! This is the second stop of the 2023-24 season for the Association of Collegiate Anglers on the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series.
Over 450 anglers are set to begin tournament competition this morning, with official takeoff happening from Lake Dardanelle State Park. Takeoff will be streamed live on the Collegiate Bass Fishing Series Facebook page.
CarecoTV camera crew members will start the day with the Top 3 teams in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia; 1) McKendree University, 2) University of Montevallo, and 3) Murray State University.
Stay tuned to today’s live blog presented by Bass Pro Shops to keep up with all of the Day 1 tournament action here at Lake Dardanelle.
