Following Bass Pro Tour Competition, Lake Toho set to host 2023 Abu Garcia College Fishing National Championship
Nearly 400 of the Nation’s Top College Fishing Anglers Compete for the Opportunity to Fish as a Pro in the 2023 Toyota Series Championship and the Chance to Win up to $235,000
KISSIMMEE, Fla. – The best professional anglers in the world are on the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes this week competing on the Bass Pro Tour, but next week Central Florida will showcase the next generation of pros. The best college fishing teams from across the nation will visit Kissimmee, Florida and Lake Toho next week, Feb. 21-23, for the 2023 Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI National Championship Presented by Lowrance at Lake Toho.
Hosted by the Kissimmee Sports Commission, the 15th annual College Fishing National Championship will feature 198 teams of the nation’s best collegiate anglers – a record-breaking number of teams for the MLF College Fishing National Championship, representing 82 colleges across the nation – to compete for a $43,500 prize package, including a new Phoenix 518 pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard plus $10,000, as well as the chance to advance to the 2023 Toyota Series Championship to compete for a top prize of up to $235,000..
“Kissimmee has been a host to many Major League Fishing events in the past, but this is the first time to host the College Fishing National Championship,” said Tyler Weyant, Director of Sports Development for the Kissimmee Sports Commission. “Many of the veteran anglers call Lake Toho and the Kissimmee Chain a rite of passage for anglers. We are excited to see how the college anglers perform and wish them the best of luck.”
Both members of the winning team and the runners-up at the 2023 Abu Garcia College Fishing National Championship will advance to the 2023 Toyota Series Championship where they will compete as pros for a top prize of up to $235,000. In addition, the winning team’s highest finishing team member at the Toyota Series Championship will advance to REDCREST 2024 to compete against the world’s best pros for the sport’s top prize of $300,000.
Both members of the third-place team at the College Fishing National Championship will advance to the 2023 Toyota Series Championship to compete as co-anglers for a shot at winning a $33,500 Phoenix 518 pro with a 115-horsepower Mercury outboard.
The Florida Gateway College duo of Seth Slanker and Jackson Swisher, both of Lake City, Florida, won the MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Open Presented by YETI on Lake Guntersville last year. The victory earned the team a coveted slot in the 2023 MLF College Fishing National Championship, in their home state.
“I’m really looking forward to the tournament next week and the high temperatures that are forecasted,” said Slanker. “Jackson and I fished on our high school bass team all four years, so we were always fishing high school tournaments at Kissimmee and have a lot of experience down there.
“The fishery changes a lot, but the bass are mid-spawn and this is the best time of year to fish on Kissimmee, so we are hoping to be able to fish up shallow, fish to our strengths and see what we can get in the boat,” Slanker continued.
The duo started the 2023 season with a bang, finishing second at the MLF College Fishing Open on the Harris Chain of Lakes last month in Leesburg, Florida. Slanker said they are excited to get back out on the water and expect to see a lot of big weights – and big fish – in this event.
“I think there will be several 20-pound bags weighed in, especially with the cold front that we’ve had this week and the anticipated warm up next week,” said Slanker. “I believe it will take more than 20 pounds per day to win this event. I think teams will do really well if they can get 25 pounds per day.”
Slanker and Swisher are both in their third year at Florida Gateway College and are enrolled in the Commercial Heating and Air Conditioning Technology program. This is their second time to qualify for the MLF College Fishing National Championship.
“We have about a day and a half to practice, so we’ll just see where the bigger fish are, try to use our time wisely and see if we can figure out something special,” said Slanker. “We really like flipping the Strike King Ocho and the Rage Tail Craw this year, so that’s definitely where we will start and hopefully get some key bites.
“There will also be a bunch of post-spawn fish, so we will definitely throw a (Z-Man) ChatterBait and a (Bill Lewis) Rat-L-Trap around some offshore hydrilla as well.”
Anglers will take off from Big Toho Marina, located at 69 Lakeview Dr. in Kissimmee at 7 a.m. ET each day of competition. Weigh-ins will be held at the marina starting at 3 p.m. and will be livestreamed daily. Fans are welcome to attend the event or tune in to the weigh-in and follow the online coverage at MajorLeagueFishing.com.
Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI teams compete in three regular-season qualifying tournaments in one of five conferences – Central, Northern, Southern, Southeastern and Western. The Top 10 teams from each division’s three regular-season tournaments and the Top 20 teams from the annual Abu Garcia College Fishing Open advance to the following year’s Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI National Championship.
Proud sponsors of the 2023 MLF Abu Garcia College Fishing Presented by YETI include: 4WP, 13 Fishing, Abu Garcia, B&W Trailer Hitches, Black Rifle Coffee Company, E3, Favorite Fishing, Fox Rent a Car, General Tire, Grundens, Lawless Lures, Lew’s, Lowrance, Mercury, Mossy Oak, Onyx, Phoenix, Polaris, Power-Pole, Strike King, Tackle Warehouse, T-H Marine, Wiley X and YETI.
For complete details and updated tournament information, visit MajorLeagueFishing.com. For regular College Fishing updates, photos, tournament news and more, follow MLF5’s social media outlets at Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.