Yesterday was the official kickoff for the 2019 NFL season, so we decided to celebrate by catching some footballs. Here's how we got 'em:

Water Temp: 92
Water Clarity: very lightly stained
Best Depth: 12-15ft
Rod: 8ft Pro Mag G Rod
Reel: Pflueger President spooled with 8lb hi-vis Wally Marshall mono
Tackle: Thump Chubbies www.constantpursuitoutfitters.com and small minnows


I had the pleasure of taking out repeat customers Mr. and Mrs. Kent for a day on Cedar Creek. They come from far west Texas and will always be welcome on my boat. We started the morning out on submerged timber, where we saw large numbers but had very few takers. After poking around for an hour or so letting my good stuff develop, we headed off to the main lake to hit the brush. Admittedly, I expected them to be a bit deeper and more sluggish than what they were, but I was very much in the wrong.



Our best spots were heavy structure (big giant logs as opposed to brush) that were either on humps or main lake points with easy access to deep water. The fish were not hammering the bait by any stretch of the imagination, but with a little coaching and some attention to detail, the Kent folks quickly picked up on the "push up" bite, and it was game on from there. After six stops, we had our fifty and went on to chase catfish and sandbass, as they booked a full day trip and it was only 11:00am. My biggest piece of advice is to fish very aggressively and confidently right now. You'll scan a spot and see 40-50 crappie, only to catch 3-5. That is very normal for CC this time of year. DO NOT sit around waiting for the other fish to get going, it is a waste of your time. Get the aggressive fish, and move on.



As far as technique goes, we were dropping our baits to the bottom, and as slowly as we possibly could, we would raise the rod tips until our presentation was only 2-3 ft off bottom. We would then pause for a good 5-10 seconds (during this time is when our line would typically go slack) and then drop slowly back to the bottom if nothing happened. I maybe had one fish all day that really thumped the jig, all the others simply pushed it up or simply just felt like a shift in weight. A higher end rod helps right now, as it really helps to feel more of what's going on under the water. When the water temps cool down, they'll go back to really hammering the jigs.




Some highlights of the day were a 14.5" personal best caught by Mrs. Kent, and five other fish over 13". Another fun moment was pulling 22 keepers off of one pile that I had never fished before. I found it on accident running a charity event with Chris Webb last week, and saved it to the memory bank for my next crappie trip.

If you can stand the heat, you can catch the meat right now. Just make sure to drink a TON of water and don't forget the new kill switch laws. If you need help finding them, I'm happy to help www.ftworthfishing.com. I will be running fishing trips until around mid November this year, and then I switch gears over to guiding for deer, ducks and hogs.



Good luck and tight lines TFF!

A Most Excellent Post Laner. Nice Job!!

Very nice! Wanting to get on some dock fish down there soon. Did good this time last year.

Very nice post and well done!

Awesome post Lane! Sounds like no livescope was needed for this haul. I'm I correct?

As always. Solid post and fish. Good job.

Thanks y'all! It was a great way to spend a Thursday. I'm sitting here watching deer as a type this. Technology is pretty cool sometimes

Pop r, you are correct. I do not have Livescope. I imagine I'll upgrade someday when my 1197 finally stops working.