Saturday Updates 2014 Bassmaster Classic
12:00 Kermit is in the house. Dean Rojas just set down his flippin' stick and reached into the rod locker for another stick. As he unwrapped the line and made his first cast with it, the assembled spectators let out a collective, "oooooooooooh," as they realized Rojas had broken out the frog.
11:55 We're back on Dean Rojas, and he tells me he hasn't upgraded in a while. He's working closer to the rip rap bank, much to the delight of the land-based spectators.
We're about to leave Rojas so Jerry Cunnungham can get more photos of other anglers. Rojas just said he's "married to this area." He's not leaving it today. There's a lot less wind today and the sun is bright and climbing higher, two factors that Rojas says will make his spot turn on in a big way. We'll probably be back with him a little later today, but for now we're on the move again.
Dean Rojas has a limit in the boat. It's not the kind of limit he needs to stay in contention or win this thing, but it's a good start. We watched Rojas fish this area yesterday, and he mostly stayed close to the rip rap bank that separates this pocket from the rest of the lake. But today he's expanding into other parts of this roughly 6 or 7 acre area.
Dean Rojas has a limit in the boat. It's not the kind of limit he needs to stay in contention or win this thing, but it's a good start. We watched Rojas fish this area yesterday, and he mostly stayed close to the rip rap bank that separates this pocket from the rest of the lake. But today he's expanding into other parts of this roughly 6 or 7 acre area.
2nd: Letdown for Rojas
Photo: B.A.S.S./Seigo Saito > Day 4: 1, 4-06 (16, 42-12) It’s hard to be upset with a runner-up finish on a tough fishery to open the season, but after holding the lead after days 1 and 3, Rojas was bummed he couldn’t close out his third Elite Series win.
“I really felt with the clouds coming in and the wind that they were going to bite really good,” he said. “I felt like I was ready to go and just didn’t get it done today.”
His lone fish was a 4-pounder and once he swung it into the boat, he thought he’d be able to get on a roll.
“I thought I was going to wreck ‘em,” he said. “I caught a big one yesterday about the same time I caught that big one today. The tide was getting high and the water was moving and it was the time of day when it was warm and I thought it was going to be the deal.” Read More
What was the biggest key to success this week on the Sabine River?
“I thought that this weather was going to really help me out and key me in on what I needed to do, but they just didn’t bite today. I really don’t know what happened. It could have been the fishing pressure and the result of unsportsmanlike conduct by one other angler.
“That one area was all that I had going, so I did the best that I could do to manage the area. I did the right thing; I just didn’t get the bites today.”
What was your primary pattern throughout the week?
“I had a 50/50 deal going on all week. I was catching some fish pitching a Big Bite Baits Fighting Frog in and around the wood, and I was also catching them on a squarebill crankbait.
“I got the quality bites on the squarebill. That’s one thing that the other guys weren’t throwing in the area, and that was what separated me. The fish that I caught on that bait were good ones. You could catch a lot of 14-inchers on a worm or soft plastic, but I wanted to win, so I thought that the crankbait was what I needed to be throwing.”
What were your primary baits and tactics?
“I was using a Big Bite Baits Fighting Frog in Sapphire Blue. I Texas-rigged the Fighting Frog on a 4/0 Gamakatsu SuperLine hook, 20-pound-test Sunline, and a medium/heavy Quantum Exo rod and Quantum Exo reel. I also caught some of my better ones on a squarebill crankbait.” Read More
