Auburn landed another national championship, this one courtesy of Hayden Marbut and Tucker Smith.
The pair clinched the 2023 Bassmaster College Championship at Pickwick Lake in Tennessee last weekend. Over a three-day period, they outperformed 131 other teams, with a total of over 53 pounds. Their final round haul totaled an 18-pound aggregate from just 5 fish.
But this wasn’t their first rodeo.
Smith and Marbut first won in 2020 at the Bassmaster High School National Championship at Kentucky Lake. After that, they set their sights on the college championship.
“For it to actually happen and our dreams to come true this week, it is unbelievable,” Marbut said.
Smith had won three high school championship titles, the 2021 Bassmaster College Team of the Year title alongside Logan Parks, and won at the Bass Pro Shops U.S. Open on Table Rock Lake.
While Smith and Parks had challenges with the College Series Championship, this year at Pickwick felt different for Smith, who described the experience as “special.”
After amassing 12 pounds by midday, the duo shifted to an even better spot. This decision paid off with Smith recounting the magical moment when “a ton of fish” multiplied their total.
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The top three teams qualified for the College Classic Bracket presented by Lew’s. From there, the champions will compete in the 2024 Academy Sports + Outdoors Bassmaster Classic in Tulsa, Okla.
The award also includes entry into the 2024 St. Croix Bassmaster Open, complete with a Nitro Boat and Toyota Tundra.
Grayson Everett is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @Grayson270
