Meet the Tigers

Clemson University teammates Turner, Wicker share their thoughts on qualifying for the 2012 National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship

Clemson's Harold Turner and Andy Wicker have some fun with their second-place catch. Photo by David A. Brown. Anglers: Harold Turner, Andy Wicker.

February 27, 2012 • Gary Mortenson • Abu Garcia College Fishing

(Editor’s note: Leading up to the 2012 National Guard FLW College Fishing National Championship – slated for April 13-15 on Lake Murray in Columbia, S.C. – CollegeFishing.com will publish weekly, in-depth features stories of each of the 25 national championship team qualifiers. At stake in the tournament is a first-place prize package worth $100,000 as well as a chance for the winning team to compete in the 2012 Forrest Wood Cup.)

Name: Harold Turner (pictured on left)

Class: Alumni

Major: Construction Science and Management

Hometown: Sumter, S.C.

Other interests: I enjoy other hobbies such as; deer hunting, duck hunting, turkey hunting, and playing golf.

Name: Andy Wicker (pictured on right)

Class: Senior

Major: Civil Engineering

Hometown: Pomaria, S.C.

Other interests: I enjoy hunting and being in the outdoors. I also love having a good time with my friends.

Club Web site: www.facebook.com/pages/Clemson-Bass-Fishing-Team/212724822073535

Q&A

CollegeFishing.com: How were you introduced to fishing?

Turner: I was originally introduced to fishing by my dad when I was very young. However, I really got serious with bass fishing when I met a good friend of mine Drew Pope. We started fishing almost every weekend in Sparkleberry Swamp which is on the upper end of Santee. It is full of nothing but flooded cypress and bass which makes for a fun place to fish. I really learned a lot about bass fishing right there in that swamp and built on it as I started fishing tournaments all over the place.

Wicker: I was introduced to fishing by my father. I started out bream fishing with my best friend as a child on our dock on Lake Murray in the summer months. As I got older, I started bass fishing with my dad.

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

Turner: I’m right at home fishing shallow and fast. I love throwing crankbaits and swimbaits, but I also like flipping a jig.

Wicker: I’m most comfortable flipping/pitching … or whatever lets me put the trolling motor on high and go.

CollegeFishing.com: What did it feel like to qualify for the 2011 FLW College Fishing National Championship? How do you plan to prepare for the big event?

Turner: There is almost no way to describe how it feels to qualify for the national championship. It’s nothing short of awesome. Qualifying for this is event is probably the biggest opportunity I’ve ever had in my life. This might sound funny, but I get “butterflies” in my stomach when I think that there are only 24 other boats standing between me and the Forrest Wood Cup! I also feel like Andy and I are twice as excited that the tournament is coming to Lake Murray. I grew up less than an hour from the lake and fished my very first tournament there. Andy also grew up near the lake and has a lake house on Murray. Therefore, we feel really comfortable fishing the lake and hope we can show off for the home crowd.

Wicker: It felt really awesome to qualify for the national championship. I’ve had a lot of bad luck with big tournaments and the cards finally fell in the right place this time. I’m going to spend a lot of time finding the “right” types of areas for this spring event. I grew up fishing this lake and have extensive knowledge of it, so I plan to spend a lot of practice time in areas I’ve visited the least.

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

Turner: Clemson was not the first college I went to out of high school. After graduating high school I received a golf scholarship to Newberry College. I played two years of college golf at Newberry College before transferring to Clemson and joining the fishing team. Most people might not think golf and fishing have anything in common, but golf is a very mental sport as is fishing. I think the strategizing skills I learned playing golf helped me on the water, especially when it comes to making a game plan for a tournament.

Wicker:

• I was involved with Boy Scouts and received the rank of Eagle Scout.

• I’m the youngest of a big family consisting of three brothers and one sister.

• I was elected South Carolina Vice President of Beta Club in high school but later resigned from office in order to fish in the Junior Bassmasters World Championship.

• I’m artistic. I actually received three hours of college credit for my drawings that were done in high school.

• I’m a junior state champion in archery.

• I grew up fishing Lake Murray and have had some of my best childhood memories at our lake house here on Murray.