By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor

Much has been written and broadcast about the red-hot Jason Christie recently, including a few tidbits about him being a former teacher and basketball coach. Many BassFans might be unaware, however, that a former tour pro and TV host (one with a last name that's famous in bass fishing circles) has transitioned into that same educational role that Christie left long ago.

Chad Brauer, who fished his last tour event exactly 2 years ago, recently completed his first year of teaching physics and coaching freshman basketball at his alma mater, Camdenton (Mo.) High School. He can't say for sure, but he thinks this third major career move might be his last.

"It's something I can see myself doing until I reach retirement age," he said last week. "Like anything else, it's a learning process starting out and some days were great and other days I was scratching my head wondering what (led me to making) this decision.

"The first year was exactly like a lot of seasoned teachers told me it would be. There were times when I was scrambling because (a lesson plan) only took half as much time as I'd thought it would, and other times I had to figure out how I was going to catch up because something else took three times as long. But I enjoyed it overall and this upcoming year should go a lot smoother."

Many Great Experiences

The son of Bass Fishing Hall-of-Famer Denny Brauer lived what could be described as a sportsman's dream existence for the better part of two decades. He logged 13 seasons as a tour pro with one victory at that level (a 1996 Bassmaster Top 100 at Old Hickory) and qualified for three Bassmaster Classics. After leaving the Elite Series in 2007, he spent several years as the host of the Academy Outdoors TV show, which afforded him the opportunity to fish and hunt all over North America at optimal times for each location.

He then competed for 2 seasons on the FLW Tour (2010-11) and also won the Red River Bassmaster Central Open in '10. By that time, though, he'd discovered he was ready to do something that would keep at home a lot more often.

He's still a couple of weeks shy of his 41st birthday, but his son Colby will enter college this fall and he regrets missing as much of Colby's developmental years as he did. He became determined to prevent that from occurring with daughters Abby, 14, and Makenna, 7.

Missouri is one of a handful of states in which holders of a bachelor's degree in any subject can take online courses and pass two exams to become certified in one of seven teaching areas. His certificate allows him to teach general science at the middle school and early high school levels.

He completed the program in 5 months.

"When we called it quits on the television thing, I needed to figure out what to do next and that seemed like a fairly good option," he said. "I'd like to eventually move on and teach a couple of biology courses, which is what my degree (in wildlife and fisheries management) is involved with.

"I'd have to go and take one more test and from what I've been told, it's not super-hard. I'd definitely be interested in that, but as the low guy on the totem pole, I have to take what I can get right now."

Struggles on the Court

Brauer's freshman basketball team compiled an unimpressive 4-13 record last winter, but he enjoyed the season nonetheless.

"Our school isn't traditionally good in basketball – it's more of a football school – and the class I had wasn't overly talented. It's a really good conference and the teams that got beaten up in football pay us back in basketball. They don't show us any mercy."

The Missouri State High School Activities Association voted this spring to make bass fishing a sanctioned activity, and he was a natural to be appointed as overseer of the launch of that program. He had 27 students show up for the organizational meeting and events are being planned to run through the duration of the upcoming school year.

"We'll have club activities at least once a month and we'll try to get on the water six or seven times during the year. We'll work to get affiliated with (The Bass Federation) because I've already got two or three kids interested in competing at that level."

Does he miss competing at the sport's highest level, or traveling the continent to hunt or fish on somebody else's dime?

"I do miss the tournament days, but I don't miss practice or driving down the highway or staying in hotel rooms. And when we were filming, we made our own schedule and got to go to some of those places at the right times, and I do miss that type of freedom.

"But overall, there's at least as much that I don't miss, and I do like the stability I have now."