For a shallow water angler from Florida, John Cox has developed into quite the smallmouth angler. He's scored countless finishes the past few seasons across the northern states and has done it his way: fishing shallow when most of the field is battling it out in deeper water with traditional smallmouth tactics. This is the single thing Cox credits for his transformation to becoming a better smallmouth angler: sticking to what works for him everywhere.
A Love for the Smallmouth
Being from Florida, Cox was never around smallmouth growing up and ever since he caught his first one during his teenage years on a trip to Pickwick Lake in Alabama, he's been hooked on the fish.
"They pull hard and are so aggressive," Cox said. "They can be some of the easiest fish in the world to catch when you're around them; other times, they are so moody and move all over the place. I think that's why I love them so much, the challenge and then the excitement when you find them. Every year when the schedules come out, the first thing I'm looking for is the smallmouth tournaments."
When he first started venturing north during the summer following the pro tours, Cox would fish like everyone else in deeper water. "I would get out and try the drop-shot in deep water and never had much success," he said. "A fellow pro 'Gussy' (Jeff Gustafson) saw me after a bad day and told me to approach it like I do largemouth and fish shallow. Since then, that's all I do and it's more like hunting individual fish on isolated rocks, grass patches, and little sand spots."
Since that revelation that he could stay shallow and still compete on smallmouth fisheries, Cox has had more fun and improved his results in the North Country.
As he does with all of his fishing, he keeps things simple with limited rods on the deck and fishing his instincts. For smallmouth, he relies on three different spinning setups to cover just about every technique he plans to fish in a day.
The Do-It-All Rod
Even though he's not out in the abyss dropping to fish he sees on his electronics, a drop-shot rig is still one of his best producers. For this technique and several others, he opts for a 7-foot medium Abu Garcia Zenon rod with a matching Size 30 Zenon reel spooled with a 6-pound Fireline Crystal with a leader of 6 to 10-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon.
"That's the lightest spinning combo I've ever seen and you don't lose as many fish with it," he said. "I like how well it loads up and it has just the right power. Some heavier rods will create a big hole in the fish's mouth from the hookset and that's how you lose a lot of those smallmouth."
When fishing a drop-shot, Cox likes a heavier weight to keep the bait in place in current and will pitch the rig to isolated targets, utilizing a small bait like a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Flat Worm or Lil' Trooper.
"I like a ½-ounce weight most of the time to keep the bait on the bottom, even in heavy current," he said. "I'll rig my baits on a small #2 drop-shot hook, and I think it hooks and holds the fish better than a bigger hook."
Jighead Baits
Another of his favorite ways to catch shallow smallmouth is with a small jighead rigged with a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Hit Worm, Flat Nose Minnow, or Lil' General.
"Fishing those baits on a jighead is a great way to get bites, but you tend to lose some of those fish when you are fighting them unless you have a rod that loads up well," he said. "I use the 7-foot, 2-inch Abu Winch with the Abu Garcia Revo Rocket reel. The rod sends those little baits way out there and the action and bend prevent you from losing as many fish."
A Beefier Spinning Setup
In saltwater, inshore anglers routinely use spinning gear to battle big hard-fishing redfish and Cox took note of this and designed a rod for Abu Garcia that fits the bill. It's a signature series rod set to come out this fall and the spinning model is a 7-foot medium-heavy.
"It's an inshore saltwater style rod and for the times when you are using bigger baits or around heavier cover, situations where you aren't supposed to be using spinning gear," said Cox. "It has a good backbone with a nice soft tip. It's been great for throwing a PowerBait Jerk Shad or 6-inch The General round grass in Florida, but it was also great for throwing tubes and heavier baits for big smallies last year when I tested the prototypes."
John Cox has been one of the most successful professional bass anglers over the past few seasons, fishing three major tours last year and having success on them all. He's no longer just a shallow water largemouth angler and has discovered how to catch smallmouth, making him even deadlier.
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