Rod

What would be a good rod to pair up with 5000c reel for catfish?

Hi. Not sure what all you're trying to cover here weight wise(small 2-10lb cats or large 30lb+ cats) but that reel is a heavy duty reel so can def handle bigger fish. Bass pro has a "King Kat" line that is like $30 a rod with several length/action models to choose from so you could get one or 2 to try and see what handles best.

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/bass-pro-shops-king-kat-casting-rod

Not really sure what to use it for. Never had one before. Live about 15 minutes from Lake Texoma.

I use Ugly Stiks with my 6500s. I normally use the medium 10 -20, but you could move it up to heavy (10 to 25) for big cats.

Thank you!

You can't beat an Ugly Stik for non-finesse applications.