Entry 243-5

Looking at the Classic through College Eyes with Rusty Jones

Editor’s Note: At the 2008 Bassmaster Classic, members of the University of Alabama’s bass-fishing team paid to attend the Classic and work for and with their sponsors. They were in the Strike King booth all three days of the Classic, showing new products and talking fishing with all who would listen. These young men are setting a new standard as college fishing pros, and they’re becoming tournament pros the right way through working with sponsors and honing their fishing skills, at a very young age. This week, you’ll meet Rusty Jones of Helena, Alabama, who has his education and fishing act together and uses his college courses to help further his fishing career.

Part 5: A Well Thought-Out Plan

Question: Rusty, you’re doing something most young people coming out of high school never consider. You’ve got a well thought-out game plan for becoming a tournament angler and/or working in the fishing industry. How does your time on the water as a competitive fisherman and working with companies like Strike King mesh into your academic career?

Jones: There are a lot of similarities in college and in fishing. I approach tournament fishing the same way I approach studying for a major chemistry exam. I have to do a lot of studying and research, reflect on the things I’ve learned and anticipate what will be on the test. I also have to have a backup plan for a test or a fishing tournament, if things aren’t the way I expect them to be.

Question: Are you learning anything in competitive fishing and/or working with sponsors that you’re actually using in the classroom?

Jones: In one of my marketing classes, one of our assignments is role playing. We have to actually try to sell products to our professor. I used Strike King’s lures for my presentation. I explained to my professor why they were the best lures on the market, what the advantages of each product was, and why his money would be well spent if he bought Strike King products instead of another company’s products. I had to explain all of that in a way the professor could understand it and convince him to make a buying decision. So, yes, I’m using a lot of things I’ve learned as a collegiate bass fisherman in the classroom.

I also find many similarities in bass fishing and in college. I’ve learned that if I do badly in a tournament and don’t fish as well as I should, I have to put that behind me and use that failure to make me work harder for the next tournament. In school, if I don’t do as well on a test as I think I should, I don’t worry about that test. I just use that poor performance to motivate myself to study harder and make better grades on the next test.

Question: What would you tell a high school student who says, “I’m not going to waste my time going to college; I’m going to jump right into tournament bass fishing; I believe I’m good enough to get out on that professional circuit and beat some of those big guys”?

Jones: I’d tell that young person to get their education first. Fish while you’re in college, and learn all you can about what those pro fishermen do. Then when you’re ready to compete and try to be a pro, you’ll not only have your time on the water, you’ll also have a degree that will make you more attractive to sponsors and fishing companies. I’ve learned that pro fishermen who are the most successful and make the most money operate their tournament fishing as though it’s a business. These guys are highly-skilled businessmen, as well as some of the best fishermen in the world. If you don’t make it as a tournament pro, you can fall back on your education. At the end of my college career, I’ll already have 3 years of experience working with fishing-tackle companies that have sponsored our fishing club here at the University of Alabama.

I already will have spent time with the Strike King pros and learned what they do and how they do it. I will have worked three Bassmaster Classics for our sponsors and done several in-store promotions. I’ll have a really-strong resume to offer to the fishing industry once I graduate from the University of Alabama. When I walk out of college, someone won’t have to teach me how to work a Bassmaster Classic, sell product, act as a tournament pro or deal with the public. I’ll have 3 years of experience performing those duties. I’ll know how to talk to sponsors, if I’m working as a tournament pro. I’ll know what the sponsors expect out of me, if they decide to sponsor me. My name will already be out in the fishing industry as a person who knows how to work for and with sponsors and tournament pros.

Strike King is such a big company, and it has some of the best pros in all of bass fishing. To be able to put on my resume that I’ve worked for and with Strike King for 3 years while I’ve been in college will give me a huge advantage in the job market. Strike King is very professional in everything it does. Hopefully, I’ve learned to be as professional as they are, and I’ll be able to offer that to a potential employer.

Looking at the Classic through College Eyes with Rusty Jones

Part 5: A Well Thought-Out Plan

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