~~The Alabama Northeast division rolled in to Gadsden, Alabama for the third event of the 2018 season. Neely Henry Lake, and impoundment on the Coosa river was our destination for the weekend. With the wildly shifting weather patterns that we have had lately, nobody really knew what to expect from the fish. Anglers reported mixed results in practice, but expectations were high by the time we arrived at the Friday night meeting.

The fine people from the North Glencoe Baptist Church Welcomed us in to their spacious facility with open arms. They provided a delicious meal of fried catfish, baked beans, coleslaw, and cornbread. A variety of desserts tempted everyone’s taste buds as well. Following the meal, Max Grizzard, pastor of family life, shared the message with us. Max shared many instances of how God used fish and fisherman throughout the Scriptures. Then he encouraged us all to make certain that we knew Jesus and that we were fishers of men for Him.

Saturday morning dawned clear and unseasonably cold. With temperatures in the 30s, everyone was bundled up for blast off. Fortunately, the sunshine brought warmth by midday and temperatures at weigh-in time were in the mid 70’s.

29 of the 34 teams that competed were able to bring in a five fish limit to the scales. The bags were mixed with about half of the bass being largemouths and half being Coosa River spots. Fish were caught on a variety of lures. Anglers reported running all the way up into the upper reaches of the river as well as down into the main lake.

Best thing the field with a five fish limit weighing 16.02 pounds was the team of Greg Diggs and Brown. Diggs and Brown used spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and jigs to land they’re winning stringer. Diggs and Brown reported that they fished the upper reaches of the river near Weiss dam. Their big day concluded with a solid payday of $1,730.50 which included first place in the Bonus Bucks.

Coming in a close second with 15.61 pounds of bass was the team of George Crain and Allan Glasgow. Crain and Glasgow stayed within 5 miles of the tournament site at Coosa Landing, fishing both up and downstream from there. Crain stated that they caught most of their fish using swim jigs and senkos while throwing them on Stren line. He also believed that their biggest fish was a blessing from the Lord as he blindly casted a Strike King frog to a patch of grass where it was inhaled by their heaviest fish. Including their Bonus Bucks, they earned  $780.50 for their efforts.

Finishing third and taking over the lead in the points championship for the season was the father/son team of Mike and Chad Hazel. They overcame engine difficulties and were forced to stay close to the launch site and still managed to bag 14.11 pounds. They used chatterbaits around weed beds for most of their bites, but caught their kicker fish off the bed. They made $555.00 on the day.

Garry Burns and Kevin Stephens finished fourth with 12.94 pounds. They caught their fish using a Zara Spook early and then catching the remainder of their limit on shaky head worms and Carolina rigged creature baits. Gary Horne and Mark Junior landed the lunker of the tournament. Their 4.94 pound bass fell to a brush hog in just a foot of water.

Come join us at Wheeler on May 12th!

Fishers of Men would like to thank all of our fine sponsors; BassCat Boats, Mercury, Berkley, Abu Garcia, Spiderwire, Shakespeare, Strike King Lure Company, Kings Home, Power-Pole, Raymarine, Duckett Fishing, BassBoat Technologies, ORCA Coolers, Buckeye Lures, T&H Marine, Gator Guards, Kistler Rods, HydroWave,  Costa, Jacobs Glass, Rayjus Sportswear
 

Please support our local sponsors that help the Alabama Northeast Division:
 

Coon Creek Custom Baits, @cooncreekcustombaits on Facebook
Fishidy, search “Fishidy” at the App Store on your smartphone
L&M Custom Bass Snacks, (606) 875-0724
MVD Motor Vibration Dampers, www.bowjax.com

Place	Team	Members	# Fish	Big Fish	Gross	Penalty	Net Wt	Points
1	8640	Greg Diggs Adam Brown	5	0	16.02	0	16.02	150
2	19037	George Crain Allan Glasgow	5	0	15.61	0	15.61	199
3	3808	Mike Hazel Chad Hazel	5	0	14.11	0	14.11	198
4	10608	Garry Burns Kevin Stephens	5	3.55	12.94	0	12.94	197
5	21221	Chris Baldus Josh Faile	5	3.85	12.72	0	12.72	196
6	19033	Cliff Williams Jamie Loyd	5	0	12.39	0	12.39	145
7	14540	Billy Lawson Barbara Lawson	5	0	12	0	12	194
8	8528	Mark Junior Gary Horne	5	4.94	11.97	0	11.97	193
9	22640	Alan Davis Todd Davis	5	4.5	11.97	0	11.97	192
10	11893	Albert Lovvorn Randy Gravett	5	4.05	11.43	0	11.43	191
11	19030	Waylon Hill	5	0	11.39	0.25	11.14	190
12	19013	Kelly Huffstutler Tim Harbison	5	0	10.92	0	10.92	189
13	21020	Shane Bryson Brandon Johnson	5	0	10.76	0	10.76	138
14	23041	Kade Kitchens David Wesson	5	4.13	10.75	0	10.75	187
15	22644	Kenneth Bean Alvin Parrish	5	0	10.66	0	10.66	186
16	11889	Ron Holler Elaine Holler	5	4.6	10.38	0	10.38	185
17	21765	Billy Brooks Chad Fenton	5	4.59	10.14	0	10.14	184
18	22591	Cody Benton Harris Housley	5	3.36	9.99	0	9.99	183
19	22590	Johnny Barrow Karl Stephens	5	0	9.62	0	9.62	182
20	18913	Brad Carroll Edward Looper Jr	5	0	9.54	0	9.54	181
21	22796	Brian King David King	5	0	9.47	0	9.47	180
22	22639	Chris Blackwood Sean Terrell	5	0	9.14	0	9.14	179
23	22642	Larry Melvin Hank Winks	5	0	8.63	0	8.63	178
24	22593	Rodney Floyd Tim Moore	5	0	7.79	0	7.79	177
25	6287	Greg Norris Jay Bucki	5	0	7.41	0	7.41	176
26	22862	Tim Van Polen Clay Wilcox	5	0	7.31	0	7.31	175
27	22648	Chet Borden Shannon Rich	5	0	6.88	0	6.88	174
28	10604	Barry Johnson Dale Greer	5	0	6.52	0	6.52	173
29	16275	Robert McEarchern Richard McEarchern	5	0	6.49	0	6.49	172
30	22641	Donna Lynn Spenser Lynn	4	0	5.89	0	5.89	171
31	22592	Dennis Horne Mike Watson	3	3.98	5.88	0	5.88	170
32	21781	Mark Scott Ross Williams	4	0	5.4	0	5.4	119
33	21260	Andy Laurance Robert Slaton	3	0	4.63	0	4.63	118
34	22647	Mark Lovvorn Warren Lovvorn	1	4	4	0	4	167
Brown and Diggs - 16.02 lbs Director Joel Franks and Allan Glasgow with Crain & Glasgow's 15.61 lb. limit Hazel & Hazel - 14.11 lbs. Burns & Stevens - 12.94 lbs. Horne & Junior - 4.94 big bass