SPO Frog Flash: Modifications to Match the Forage

with Mark Daniels Jr.

By Jody Only 5/31/2015

Topwater season is upon us and if the tracks through the Delta cheese are any indication, frogs are definitely on the menu.

As always, anglers are excitedly waiting for the ever-popular, original, frog tournament - the Snag Proof Open - the "frog only" bass battle that has hopped on to the Delta for the past 14 years running.

To jump into the Snag Proof spirit, WesternBass has enlisted several of the Snag Proof pros to share their tips to maximize froggin' success.

One of the newest pros to join the Snag Proof frog family is Mark Daniels Jr. In this installment of SPO Frog Flash, we learn how Daniels adds a little flavor to Fred.

FROG FLASH #1 - Frog Mods

"Although you can open a Snag Proof frog and fish it straight out of the package, there are times when I like to customize mine to match the hatch even more closely to a frog or a bird or anything that fish are feeding on," said Daniels.

To increase the resemblance to many of the frogs that are common to the California Delta, Daniels begins with a Bobby's Perfect Frog or an Ish's Phat Frog in the color Fred.

"Fred is a super-duper, awesome color for a frog imitating bait and the frogs are abundant and really active during the summer, especially in the warmer part of the summer, when the Snag Proof Open is," he continued. "I have found that two things make Fred look even more like the Delta frogs."

1. Using a black Sharpie, add markings to the underbelly.

2. With dye, add coloration to the underside of the mouth area.

"The black lines are like broken, squiggly lines that parallel the frog," he explained. "After that, I take a little bit of chartreuse Spike-IT Dip-N-Glow on a Q-Tip and do a couple of light, natural strokes under the chin, right where the orange kind of fades out. I use a Q-Tip, so that I can handle the dye like an ink pen. In my opinion, this looks identical to the belly of a bullfrog."