Entry 176-2

Catching Smallmouth with Roger Stegall in the Fall

Part 2: Do It With a Quad

Editor’s Note: Roger Stegall of Iuka, Mississippi, a tournament bass fisherman who owns and operates Roger Stegall’s Professional Guide Service at Pickwick Lake on the Alabama/Tennessee/Mississippi line, has scouted and fished for big smallmouth for more than 30 years. At this time of year, smallmouth fishing really heats up on the Tennessee River and especially on Pickwick Lake. This week, we’ll learn how Stegall is catching big smallmouth that weigh 8 pounds or more.

Question: What other bait do you like at this time of the year?

Stegall: I really like the Strike King Quad Shad spinner bait with a silver-and-white skirt and silver blades. I think the Quad Shad looks like a small isolated school of shad moving through the water.

Question: You didn’t like the Quad Shad when it first came out, did you?

Stegall: No, I didn’t. It was originally known as the George Cochran Quad Shad. I know George is a great fisherman, and that he’d put a lot of time into developing this bait. But, to be honest, I thought that a four-bladed spinner bait was just a gimmick bait to add something new to a spinner bait. I didn’t have any faith in it. I decided the Quad Shad wasn’t going to catch any bass. However, after having that lure in my box for about 6 months and not fishing it, I decided to give it a try one day. I couldn’t believe the 5- and 6-pound largemouth I was catching on that goofy bait. I guarantee I was the most-surprised fisherman who had ever fished the Quad Shad.

I’ve learned since the days of my skepticism that the Quad Shad isn’t only a great bait for catching plenty of largemouth and smallmouth bass, it’s a great bait for catching really-big bass. I don’t know for sure what a bass thinks, but I believe that when a fish sees all those blades turning, that old bass may think, “I’ll bet if I attack hard and fast, I can eat that whole school of shad in one bite.”

Question: What kind of retrieve do you use with the Quad Shad?

Stegall: I just fish it on a steady retrieve, not actually slow-rolling it, but not burning it either. I retrieve it just out of sight and keep the Quad Shad coming to the boat about 3-feet deep. My favorite color is white shad.

Question: Where are you fishing the Quad Shad?

Stegall: I’m fishing around cover, and right now, some of the grass here at Pickwick is beginning to die off because of the cool weather. So, I can run the Quad Shad right over the top of that grass. Any fields, old road beds and any type structure where you’re fishing the spinner bait, the Quad Shad will pay off too.

Question: What do you catch besides smallmouth on the Quad Shad?

Stegall: I catch largemouth, big smallmouth that weigh 5 pounds or more and even white bass and hybrids.

Question: How do you decide if you’re going to fish the Quad Shad or the Diamond Shad for smallmouth?

Stegall: I let the smallmouth tell me which bait they want. If I have 6 fishermen in the boat, at least one of them will be fishing the Quad Shad, and the others will be fishing Diamond Shads. Whichever bait catches the most bass the quickest is the one we’ll all start using.

Question: On what pound-test line are you fishing the Quad Shad?

Stegall: I’m fishing 12-pound-test Shakespeare Supreme Super Tough Line on a slow-retrieve reel. I’m using a Pfluger Trion LP Crankin’ Reel with a 5.2:1 gear ratio on a 785-medium-heavy action All Star Rod.

Question: What kind of fish are you going to catch in a day of fishing the Quad Shad?

Stegall: You can catch as small as a 10- or an 11-inch largemouth to as big as a 6 pound or more smallmouth. Recently, we caught 50 bass on it, including some 3- and 4-pound smallmouth. Catching 50 bass a day on the Diamond Shad and the Quad Shad is common right now on Pickwick. The most I’ve ever caught in one day of fishing with these two lures is somewhere between 100 and 150 bass. That’s with three anglers fishing.

Check out Roger Stegall’s Guide Service for more information.

Catching Smallmouth with Roger Stegall in the Fall

Part 2: Do It With a Quad

Next: Crank Up the Smallmouth

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