By Todd Ceisner
BassFan Editor
Time is ticking down. The pattern that worked yesterday isn’t working today. It’s crunch time. There’s an hour left until the weigh-in starts. Your nerves are starting to fray. What do you reach for when you absolutely need to generate bites?
We’ve been asking pro anglers from the various leagues that same question as a way to find out what their ultimate confidence baits are regardless of the situation, along with the reasoning behind their choices. As one might expect, the answers have run the gamut, from big-line, big-weight flipping to light-line finesse and from topwater to slow-dragging baits.
For Elite Series veteran John Crews, he's relied more and more recently on a smaller creature bait because of its versatility. He can fish it on a Texas rig or a Carolina rig or a even on a swing-head jig.
After checking out the latest installment in the series, head over to our Feedback page and let us know what your go-to bait is and how you rig it.
> Angler: John Crews
> Confidence bait: Missile Baits Baby Destroyer (Texas- and Carolina-rigged)
> Gear used: Flipping/Pitching – 7’6” medium-heavy Cashion Rods casting rod, unnamed casting reel (high speed), 20-pound Sunline Shooter fluorocarbon, 5/16-oz. tungsten worm weight, 3/0 Gamakatsu heavy cover worm hook
> Origin: “About three years ago – the year we released it – I went from not fishing much in that category bait wise to really catching a lot of fish on it. Bedding fish kill it. It’s good in high-pressure areas, on tidal fisheries, in flooded bushes and pitching vegetation. It’s a really good do-all option.”
> Why he trusts it: “In the past, it was a shaky-head for me, but this is way more versatile, especially the Texas-rig version. I have caught ‘em throwing it out and dragging like you would a shaky-head, but it also comes through cover well and you can heave them out of the cover.”
> One more thing: “At La Crosse (last year), on day 2 I had four fish. I pulled that out and in the last 30 minutes, I caught three keepers. I felt like an idiot for not fishing it more.”
