Meet the Gators

Gipson and Wercinski of the University of Florida share their thoughts about qualifying for the National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship

(Editor’s note: Leading up to the inaugural National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship, which will be held at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn., April 10-12, CollegeFishing.com will post semiweekly feature stories highlighting the 25 teams that qualified. At stake in the tournament is a prize package of $100,000 and a chance to compete in the 2010 Forrest Wood Cup.)

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Q&A

CollegeFishing.com: How were you introduced to fishing?

Gipson: I started fishing as soon as I could hold a rod. My dad and grandfather introduced me to the sport. By the time I was 5 years old, I would go fishing with my dad from sun up to sun down. I loved just being out there and enjoyed fishing the whole day whether or not we did well. I didn’t start tournament fishing until about the time I entered college. My father and I fished a military team tournament together my last year of high school. We continued fishing team events together and I also joined a city club when I moved to Gainesville.

Wercinski: I received a Zebco fishing rod and reel for my birthday when I was 6 years old. After school I would ride my bike to the local golf course ponds and fish until sun down. My first tournament fishing was done when I moved to Gainesville and joined the local city club.

CollegeFishing.com: What style/method of fishing are you most comfortable with?

Gipson: I prefer to fish typical Florida fishing techniques, targeting shallow water and grass. My favorite technique in Florida is flipping and I’ll do it all day if I can. I also enjoy cranking quite a bit. I don’t get to crank very often in Florida but I am very comfortable throwing a crankbait when I can. Overall though, I love learning any new techniques that I can and I’m not afraid to pick up something new and try it out.

Wercinski: I like fishing simple. One of my favorite techniques is dead-sticking a Senko-style bait.

CollegeFishing.com: What did it feel like to qualify for the inaugural National Championship? How do you plan to prepare for the big event?

Gipson: Lake Monroe was an incredible experience, one I will never forget. Ever since I knew the regional was near us I had my sights set on qualifying for Nationals. We worked very hard at Monroe to find good water to fish and were both very stoked it turned out like it did. I can’t say enough about how great all of the other teams were on and off the water and how much of a blast the whole college season has been.

We are going to prepare for Nationals much like we did for the Regional Championship, by spending lots of time on the water. We live almost nine hours away but we will be up there as much as we can. We’ve already done some research and map study and are looking forward to start checking out what we’ve found.

Wercinski: It was awesome. My partner and I put in a lot of time on the water at the Regional and it was nice to see that pay off. We plan on doing the same for the National Championship and look forward to competing against all the other qualifying schools.

CollegeFishing.com: Tell us something interesting about yourself that most people wouldn’t know.

Gipson: Since I’ve been in college I have studied abroad on four different continents. It has been a really cool experience and I am grateful for the opportunity. The really cool thing about all the places I have visited is that they have plenty of bass fishing opportunities. The sport is a little bit different in each place but it is cool to know that it really is a worldwide sport.

Wercinski: I am actually right-handed although I fish left-handed. I wouldn’t say that I am ambidextrous but I do play different sports with varying right-left dominance.