FLW COLLEGE WESTERN DIVISION TO HOST REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP ON FOLSOM

Sacramento State to Host College Fishing Festival

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Oct, 2010) – National Guard FLW College Fishing is headed to Folsom Lake Oct. 7-9 for the Western Regional Championship. Twenty pre-qualified collegiate teams will be competing for a top award of $50,000 to be split evenly between the school and bass fishing club.

“Folsom is a small lake with a north and south river fork,” said FLW Tour pro Cody Meyer of Grass Valley, Calif., who is hot off a second place finish at the Forrest Wood Cup and a second place finish in the 2010 Western Division Angler of the Year race. “Most of the fish are going to come off the main lake, but the river forks will play a significant role in this tournament. There is definitely a huge population of fish in those river arms. This is a marathon not a sprint, and anglers are going to have to be patient and have several areas to go to.

“There are a lot of spotted bass in the lake, but you will see some mixed bags come to the scale,” Meyer went on to say. “If anglers stay in the main lake it is going to be a deep bite; 25 – 50 feet. I would look for deeper off-shore rock piles and drop-shot. The top water bite will be good early; I would go to one of the river arms and stay 20 feet or less. I believe it will take nine to 12 pounds per day to win.”

At this time of year water releases from Folsom Lake are typical. The young anglers are going to have to pay close attention to what is happening with the releases as they can make water levels in the lake fluctuate between two and three feet per day.

“Folsom Lake can be very finicky,” said pro Zack Thompson of Orinda, Calif. “It can fish hot one day and cold the next, especially if they are making releases. I think the key is going to be watching those water releases and being able to make adjustments.”

The fish should still be in their summer pattern,” Thompson added. “Water temperatures are going to be in the mid 70s. However, water is going to be cooler in the river arms.”

Anglers will take off from Folsom Lake Marina located at 661 Green Valley Road in El Dorado Hills, Calif., at 7 a.m. each morning. Weigh-ins will be held at Sacramento State Alumni Center, Lot 8. Thursday and Friday’s weigh-ins will begin at 4 p.m. and Saturday’s final weigh-in will begin at 5 p.m. Takeoffs and weigh-ins are free and open to the public.

Sacramento State will also be hosting a College Fishing Festival throughout the three day tournament. Students and fishing fans alike will be treated to live music, the National Guard Warrior Challenge, a Ranger Boat simulator, tailgate games, a sports zone along with contests for cash and several prize give-aways. The festival will take place at Sacramento State Alumni Center, Lot 8 from 2 - 4 p.m. Thursday and Friday and 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday.

Schools that have qualified and will be competing in the tournament are:

Arizona State University – Brandon Service, Tempe, Ariz. and Ryan Miller, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Arizona State University – Joseph Jarrell, Phoenix, Ariz. and Mark Walker, Scottsdale, Ariz.
Boise State – Jared Spickelmier, Boise, Idaho and Eric Danser, Emmett, Idaho
California Polytechnic State University – Scott Hellesen, and Damian Bean both of San Luis Obispo, Calif.
California Polytechnic State University – John Zeolla, Oak Park, Calif. and Joe Gardner, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
California State, Long Beach – Dane Christensen, Long Beach, Calif. and Alfredo Gutierrez, Inglewood, Calif.
Chico State – Parker Moran and Marshal Smith both of Chico, Calif.
Chico State – Frank Vogt, Chico, Calif., and Bastian Golladay, Walnut Creek, Calif.
Chico State – Thomas White, Fountain Valley, Calif. and Allison Shaw, Chico, Calif.
Fresno State – Nicholas Thao, Clovis, Calif. and Che Yang, Fresno, Calif.
Humboldt State University – Derrick Hicks and Jen Edgar both of Eureka, Calif.
Northern Arizona University – Nicole Albright and Brent Perkins both of Phoenix, Ariz.
Sacramento State – Robert Matsuura, Sacramento, Calif. and Peter Lee, Elk Grove, Calif.
San Jose State University – Tyler Swasey and Anthony Lee both of San Jose, Calif.
Sonoma State University – Luke Haley, Sebastopol, Calif. and Alex Christianson, Cotati, Calif.
University of California, Davis – Mark White, Fairfield, Calif. and Travis Goldman, Freedom, Calif.
University of Nevada, Reno – Seth Hofland, Spring Creek, Nev. and Ricky Nielsen, San Rafael, Calif.
University of Nevada, Reno – Brandon Murphy, Boulder City, Nev. and Justin Landerman, Reno, Nev.
University of Oregon – Cody Herman, Eugene, Ore. and Nick Doring, Mill Valley, Ore.
University of Oregon – Ross Richards and Reed Frazier both of Eugene, Ore.

The top five teams from each regional advance to the national championship where the first-place team will win $100,000 with $50, 000 of that for their school and $25,000 cash and a Ranger 177TR bass boat for their fishing club.

FLW Outdoors provides boats and drivers for each competing team along with travel allowances. All participants must be registered, full-time undergraduate students at a four-year college or university and members of a fishing club recognized by their college or university.

ABOUT FLW OUTDOORS

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world offering anglers worldwide the opportunity to compete for millions over the course of 189 tournaments in 2010. FLW Outdoors has also taken fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing awarding the largest prizes in the history of fantasy sports. FLW Outdoors memberships are available featuring numerous benefits including Player’s Advantage. For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing, visit FantasyFishing.com.