Z-man Report
A single cast on a chilly morning has rewritten the Tennessee record books. On February 28, longtime Nickajack angler Darren Nunley caught a massive 15.75pound largemouth bass on a ½ounce Green Pumpkin ZMan®/EverGreen ChatterBait® JackHammer™, pending DNA testing and final certification by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) as the new state record.
Nunley was fishing with close friend and guide Hensley Powell, who had been on a remarkable run of big fish in the same area. The pair launched into 38-degree air temps and 53-degree water, targeting a hydrilla flat in 4–5 feet, classic early spring ChatterBait water.
Powell had been there the day before with another client, boating two 8 pounders and losing a giant. When he idled up that morning with Nunley, he didn’t hesitate.
“Throw right there on a long cast,” Powell told him. “That’s where the big ones were yesterday.”
One perfectly placed cast with the ½-ounce Green Pumpkin JackHammer was all it took.
“I Thought I Was Hung in the Grass…”
Nunley initially believed he’d buried the JackHammer in hydrilla.
“I thought I was hung in the grass and tried to pop it through,” he said. “Then I realized it was actually a fish. I didn’t realize just how big it was until I got it to the boat and it went ape. But it was too big to actually jump.”
Powell wasn’t even looking when Nunley set the hook.
“I thought he’d hooked grass until I saw the line running sideways,” Powell recalled. “The fish came to the surface, and I netted it easy. As soon as it hit the deck, Darren said, ‘That’s the biggest bass I’ve ever caught,’ and I said, ‘That’s the state record.”
Their scale read 15.8 pounds, and Hensley immediately headed back to the ramp and called TWRA. TWRA directed them to a certified scale where the fish officially registered 15.75 pounds.
A Fish 15 Years in the Making
TWRA biologists conducted a full examination and determined the fish had never been caught before.
“This fish swam around for 15 years and never got caught,” Nunley said. “My hook was the only mark in its mouth.”
DNA results required for final certification as a state record due to the presence of hybrid bass in Tennessee waters are expected within two weeks. Powell, who has guided on Nickajack for years, wasn’t surprised the lake produced the new record.
“I’ve been saying for years the next state record would come out of Nickajack,” he said. “The stars aligned for Darren. That fish was meant for him.”