San Antonio, TX – Last weekend, the Association of Collegiate Anglers contested its first major event of the season to count towards the 2023-24 Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. The long running Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley at Kentucky Lake saw close to 600 anglers competing to catch one big bass per session that could help them claim their share of over $40,000 in prizes, to include a top prize worth over $5,000, and 1,750 points towards the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia standings. As an ACA double points event, schools were eligible to earn points for each of their two biggest bass inside of the Top 150 of the final overall tournament standings.
In the latest update to the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia, two-time title winner (2019, 2020) McKendree University is in first place with 8,220 points. Murray State University moves up from 9th place and is now ranked second in the nation with 7,640 points, and coming off of its third-straight title (2021, 2022, 2023) the University of Montevallo takes over the third place slot.
McKendree University surged up the National Rankings from fourth in the last update to take over the first place spot in the nation. At the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley, McKendree placed two anglers in the Top 25 at Kentucky Lake to earn a total of 3,180 points. Tomas Matual finished in ninth with a bass weighing 5.32 pounds, and Harmon Marien took 25th with 4.67 pounds.
The Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley will prove to be a key event in shaping the race for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. Close to 600 anglers competing out of 248 boats, representing 50 different schools earned a total of 151,420 points. The maximum number of points a school could earn at Kentucky Lake last weekend was 3,490. Murray State placed its two biggest fish in first and third overall, earning the school 3,480 points. A total of seven schools earned over 3,000 points at the first ACA double points event of the current season.
Here is a look at several of the notable schools that moved up in the Top 25:
2) Murray State University – Previously Ranked 9th
4) Carson-Newman University – Previously Ranked 11th
7) University of North Alabama – Previously Ranked 19th
8) Auburn University – Previously Ranked 14th
10) Bethel University – Previously Ranked 17th
A total of 11 teams improved their ranking inside of the Top 25 from the previous update to this one. 22 of the current Top 25 teams in the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia competed at Kentucky Lake for the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley.
Here is a look at teams that moved into the Top 25 after being ranked on the outside looking in previously:
16) University of Tennessee – Previously Ranked 37th
17) Southwestern Michigan College – Previously Ranked 33rd
18) Dallas Baptist University – Previously Ranked T-34th
19) Wabash Valley College – Previously Ranked 29th
23) Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville – Previously Ranked T-65th
T-24) Troy University – Previously Ranked T-44th
SIU-Edwardsville made the biggest move up into the Top 25 of any team in the latest update to the standings. The team from Illinois earned 2,910 points at the Bass Pro Shops Big Bass Bash presented by Berkley to move up over 40 places.
The next ACA double points event will be the AFTCO Collegiate Bass Open at Lake Dardanelle in Russellville, AR on October 14-15. Register for the event here.
View the complete schedule of current points eligible events.
About the Association of Collegiate Anglers
The Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) is a division of CarecoTV that was created to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing, with emphasis on competitive events nationwide. The ACA created the original BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Series 18 seasons ago. That single event has evolved into the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, which is now recognized as the longest-running consecutive collegiate bass fishing series in existence.
The ACA owns the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, Bass Pro Shops School of Year presented by Abu Garcia program, and associated assets. The ACA lineup of major college fishing events includes a variety of tournaments nationwide that are multi-day tournaments, all of which are televised on several networks, as well as streamed on a variety of connected platforms. The ACA also provides support to numerous schools operating regional events nationwide which helps to grow the exposure and awareness of college fishing.
Thanks in part to the large diversity of media exposure the ACA provides, the series boasts the largest amount of televised and streaming coverage of any collegiate fishing series. This includes a dedicated television series on numerous television networks and streaming platforms, as well as additional coverage of select events inside other programs. This combination includes coverage from Discovery Channel, CBS Sports, Pursuit Channel, as well as other regional and national networks. You can also find coverage online at any time of past events thanks to coverage on OutdoorActionTV.com and PursuitUp.com
