Entry 176-3
Catching Smallmouth with Roger Stegall in the Fall
Part 3: Crank Up the Smallmouth
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: Roger, are you using the crankbait to catch smallmouth?
Stegall: Yes, I am. The crankbait that has been really productive for me at this time of the year is the Series 1XS crankbait, which is an extra-shallow crankbait that runs about 1-1/2-feet deep. When the smallmouth are really shallow and holding around grass or stumps, this is the go-to bait for me. If I can’t get the smallmouth to hit a Diamond Shad or a Quad Shad, my backup bait is the Series 1XS crankbait. This bait wobbles really big and has a rattle in it like the Diamond Shad.
The advantage to the Series 1XS is that you can stop the bait and let it float up. With the Diamond Shad and the Quad Shad, you pretty much have to keep the bait moving, but with the Series 1XS, you can crank the bait, drop it and give the bass a chance to attack it. This way, you can entice the bass to bite with a little more time to see the lure and decide if they want to strike it.
Question: What other type of cover are you fishing the Series 1XS around?
Stegall: I like to fish it around flats. Now, if you’ve fished around many lakes, you know you’ll often see dark spots on the bottom of the flats. These dark spots can be just a different color soil or a patch of algae, but whatever creates that dark spot, also creates an ambush point for bass. I’ve always caught more smallmouth than largemouth when my Series 1XS approaches and moves across a dark spot than when I’ve been fishing a sandy or a muddy bottom. I may be able to see the bottom all the way around those dark spots and not be able to see the bass holding on that spot, but I’ve caught plenty of 3- and 4-pound smallmouth in these types of areas.
Question: How big is the Series 1XS?
Stegall: It’s only about 1-1/2-inches long, but it catches big largemouth and smallmouth, which has amazed me so many times. The bait seems to really produce for me best when I see shad bunching-up around rocks or stumps. I think one of the reasons the little crankbait works so well is because it gives the smallmouth a different looking and size bait from the Diamond Shad or the Quad Shad. When I first put on that little crankbait, most of my customers start laughing at me. However, they usually want to borrow one of my little crankbaits when I start catching smallmouths, and they don’t.
Question: What colors do you like?
Stegall: I like the shad colors. We have one called the gray ghost. I also like pearl white, or pearl white with a gray back or with a chartreuse back. I like to fish a real slow steady retrieve or a stop-and-go type of retrieve.
Check out Roger Stegall’s Guide Service for more information.
Contents:
- Part 1: You Can’t Beat the Diamond Shad for Smallmouth
- Part 2: Do It With a Quad
- Part 3: Crank Up the Smallmouth
- Part 4: The New Custom Shop Flat Shad
- Part 5: You’re Not Going to Believe This
