UWA Tiger Bass Club ties with OU in Carhartt Bassmaster College Classic
Published 5:23 pm Monday, February 24, 2014
UWA students Andrew Warbington and Mitch Brumbeloe are proud to hold the trophy they brought back to Livingston after Sunday’s Carhartt Bassmaster College Classic. The UWA Tiger Bass Club is coached by UWA staff member Doyle Truelove (right).
The University of West Alabama Tiger Bass Club will share a title with the University of Oklahoma in the first-ever winner’s tie at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Classic.
Moments before the official weigh in, Kevin VanDam, a professional bass fisherman, held UWA’s and OU’s bag of fish up and said, “This is going to be a close one.”
“When the number one angler in the world knows it’s going to be a close call, then it is definitely going to be,” UWA Tiger Bass Club Angler Mitch Brumbeloe said. “At that point, reality set in for me, and I got really nervous.”
UWA Tiger Bass Club anglers Mitch Brumbeloe and Andrew Warbington brought 16 pounds to the scales at Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex on Sunday, Feb. 23, which matched Caleb Masters and Landon Dixon’s weight from the University of Oklahoma.
“We were the last ones to weigh, the University of Oklahoma had it wrapped up again for the second consecutive year unless we outweighed them,” said UWA Tiger Bass Club Coach Doyle Truelove. “Mitch and Andrew went to the stage, and 17,000 people went completely silent. When they announced the tie, the crowd went wild. I was ecstatic to say the least,”
“The moment they announced us as champions, Andrew and I looked at each other and said, ‘We did it,” Brumbeloe said.
“We were so drained after the weigh in. It really didn’t hit me until this morning about how big this really is and what it’s going to do for our club,” Andrew Warbington said. “We’ve even had a pros contact us and congratulate us—its so unreal.”
Brumbeloe and Warbington caught their fish in Paint Creek and in the pockets off Lake Lay near Birmingham. The Tiger anglers targeted sloping banks and caught their fish on Strike King 1.5 squarebill crankbaits in about 1 to 3 feet deep.
The win means both teams get a trip to the 2015 Bassmaster Classic at Greenville, S.C. to defend their, shared, title.
“This is only the second collegiate tournament that the UWA Tiger Bass Club has fished in, and this is incredible and wonderful recognition for the school. Hopefully this recognition will help our club grow,” Truelove said.
For more information, contact UWA Tiger Bass Club advisor Doyle Truelove at drt@uwa.edu.
