LSU fishing club president Logan Mount confidently leads Tigers into the heart of Lake Verret against the University of Alabama this weekend (Credit: Collin Richie)

This weekend, the biggest fishing tournament in the world will collide with one of the biggest rivalries in college sports on Louisiana’s own Mississipi Delta.

For the second straight year, the annual Bassmaster Classic will host the College Classic. Last year’s champions, Alabama, will take on the LSU fishing club in a three-boat, six-angler battle for Louisiana lunkers and intra-conference pride.

And while the club and president Logan Mount are familiar with their opponents, there’s no doubt the rivalry will play a factor.

“We have competed against [the] Alabama team, but never in a head-to-head competition like this,” Mount said in an e-mail. “There is an understood rivalry between both schools, so we definitely want to come out on top. We have respect for the Alabama fishing team, but we want to out-fish them out there on the water.”

The Tigers will certainly have an advantage on that water. In 41 previous classics, only one Bassmaster angler has ever won the competition in his home-state, but in the College Classic, the in-state advantage for the Tigers is undeniable.

The LSU team spent hours pre-fishing Lake Verret, the site of the tournament, which lies just north of Morgan City, but Alabama was unable to do the same, lacking the time and budget for travel.

But now that the lake is off-limits to all fishers, it comes down to mental preparation for the Tigers.

“We have to rely on what we learned from the pre-fishing and our inherent knowledge of bass fishing,” Mount said. “The weather plays a very important role in what the fish will be doing, so we will be checking the weather religiously going into the event.”

Both teams will get a practice day on the 18th, and then on Sunday, Mount and the rest of the club’s top five anglers (as determined by the club’s point system from previous tournaments) will divide into pairs on three different boats to take on Alabama’s best in the one-day, combined-weight championship.

Ultimately, despite the inherent advantage for the locals, Mount knows that success boils down to who can find the fish and land them in the boat.

“I think there is always a little luck in fishing,” Mount said, “but you have to put yourself in position to have good luck. I think that our team will do just that.”

Fish or cut bait

LSU Professor John Caprio, who recently worked with Mystic Tackleworks to develop scientifically designed soft bait, visited the LSU team last week with a surprise.

Caprio brought his Attraxx with Sci-X, which preys on fish sight, smell, and taste, and Mount confirmed the team will test it out for the event.

Designed after thirty years of research on fish responses to stimuli and eating patterns, Attrax comes in nine saltwater and 21 freshwater varieties, from a 2/3-inch grub to a 10-inch ribbontail.