ANDERSON, S.C. — Staying mobile and maximizing their peak period allowed Parker Guy and Tyler Campbell to amass a two-day total of 31 pounds, 8 ounces to lead Day 2 of the Strike King Bassmaster College National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Lake Hartwell.
Placing second on Day 1 with a limit of 16-6, Guy and Campbell entered the second round 10 ounces off the lead. Adding a Day 2 limit of 15-2, the recent Emmanuel University graduates surged into the top spot and head into Championship Saturday with a lead of 2-12 over Lane Clark and Tallis Morrison of Erskine College.
“The key is hitting as many spots as possible — typical herring fishing,” Campbell said, in reference to the fast-paced nature of bass fixated on the lake’s nomadic blueback herring. “Once you get that school to fire, whether you catch one or not, that spot is done.
“So, once we caught one, we were cranking up and going to the next spot.”
Guy and Campbell fished from Green Pond Landing to the lake’s lower end and then back again. They targeted brushpiles and cane piles with a variety of topwater presentations, including a Berkley Krej waking bait and unweighted Texas-rigged Zoom Super Flukes.
Noting that he and his partner hit approximately 200 spots, Campbell, who guides on Hartwell, said the first couple of hours delivered their greatest opportunity.
“The morning bite is absolutely critical to our success,” Campbell said. “I don’t think we boated a keeper after 11. We caught seven and culled twice.”
Campbell said he and Guy had their limit by 9 a.m. and made their last cull around 11. Day 1 offered a faster start, which delivered their total bag by 8 a.m.
As Campbell explained, the first morning’s cloud cover kept the fish active longer. Day 2 brought sunnier skies, so they had to work a little harder to round up their fish.
“Because the lake is in a drought condition, the (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) is not generating much power until later in the day,” Campbell said of this Savannah River reservoir. “There’s a big lull from about 9 to 1, and then there’s an afternoon bite when that current increases, but we’re missing that afternoon bite because we’re checking in before it starts.”
The leaders weighed three spotted bass and two largemouth. Their biggest, a 4 1/2-pound largemouth, bit around daylight at their first stop.
“We actually hung around that area for a while because we knew what quality was there,” Campbell said. “We caught another good one there before leaving.”
Hartwell’s water level sits about 4.69 feet below the full pool mark of 660. Guy said this had them fishing shallower than they normally would prefer.
“Some of our spots are in 15 feet, but the majority of the ones with the bigger fish are 20 and deeper,” Guy said. “We’re running around a lot, but we do have some better spots, so when we get to one of those, we’re sitting there longer.”
Considering the success they’ve experienced thus far, Guy said he and Campbell do not foresee any changes to their game plan.
“On Day 3, we’re going to do the same thing we’ve been doing,” Guy said. “We’re going to put our bait in front of as many fish as we can.”
Clark and Morrison are second place with 28-12. They have turned in daily limits of 13-11 and 15-1.
Garrett Smith and Andrew Blanton of Lander University are in third place with 28-07. Their daily weights were 12-06 and 16-01.
Bryson O’Steen and Seth Jones of Florida Gateway College are in the lead for big bass honors with their 6-5. O’Steen and Jones placed seventh.
After two days of full-field competition, the Top 12 teams compete on Championship Saturday.
Saturday’s takeoff is scheduled for 6:30 a.m. ET at Green Pond Landing and Event Center. The weigh-in will be held at the same location at 2:30 p.m.
The tournament is being hosted by Visit Anderson.
