B.A.S.S. Report
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — “New opportunities” is a fitting theme heading into the 2026 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.
Competition days are Friday through Sunday.
Though this will be the third Classic held on the Tennessee River out of Knoxville, Tenn., new regulations and a healthy fishery have local pro Sam Hanggi feeling optimistic that we’ll see the heaviest winning weight of any Classic held on these waters.
“My guess would be 17 pounds a day to win,” said the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series rookie. “I would not be surprised if it took more.”
For reference, the average daily weight caught by Ott DeFoe when he won the 2019 Classic in Knoxville was about 16 pounds, 6 ounces. Jeff Gustafson averaged about 14-2 when he won there in 2023.
Fellow Elite Series pro Bryan Schmitt, who’s in this year’s field and finished runner-up at the 2023 Classic, thinks weights could be even bigger, and we might see a couple mega-bags.
“I know a lot of guys went to the Classic to pre-practice before cutoff, and there were pictures and rumors going around left and right of 10-pounders,” Schmitt said. “Those kinds of fish weren’t in there when we were there last. If a guy could figure out how to catch 16 or 17 pounds of smallmouth fairly quick every day and also figure out a way to trick one or two of those huge largemouth [during the week], dude, it’s a wrap.
“I think we’re going to be in for a little bit of a treat,” he added. “The weights are going to be a little different than when we were there last. I think it’s going to be on.”
As for what’s driving the potential for heavier weights, there are several factors. First is a change in fishing regulations. During previous Classics in Knoxville, the minimum keeper sizes were 12 inches for spotted bass, 14 inches for largemouth and 18 inches for smallmouth. Last summer, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) standardized the minimum length limit to 15 inches for all black bass species.
Previously, catching a limit of 18-inch-plus smallmouth was enough of a challenge that few Classic contenders banked their entire tournament on smallies. When Gustafson won in 2023, he was the only pro to bring in only smallmouth for three days, and even he failed to secure a limit on the final day. That all changes this year.
“Now you have a sustained source of 2 1/2- to 3-pounders that guys had to throw back last time,” Schmitt said.
Thanks to the regulation change, we should see higher weights down the standings, with potential for multiple pros to average 15 pounds or more. The only catch is managing time. There are smallmouth throughout the system, which includes Fort Loudoun Reservoir and the connected Tellico Reservoir. However, the best quality typically comes from the clearer waters found in the lower reaches of each reservoir located a long ride from takeoff.
“It’s definitely not guaranteed [to catch a limit] with the hour-plus run to get down to where the majority of people are going to fish,” Hanggi said, “but it is going to be much more doable for guys to come back with a limit [of smallmouth] compared to last time.”
The other factor raising expectations is the potential for giant largemouth that Schmitt mentioned.
“Twenty pounds of largemouth is not out of the question,” added Hanggi. “But I still think smallmouth will prevail over largies over the course of the entire event.”
To put together a winning game plan, all options must be considered. Even Schmitt, a renowned power fisherman who weighed in all largemouth in the 2023 Classic, knows he will have to mix it up. He thinks the winner will weigh a mixed bag.
Fishing patterns should be typical for the time of year in east Tennessee. Unless we see extreme weather, always a possibility in early March, water levels will still be below summer pool and most bass should still be in prespawn staging areas.
“Water temps are still in the high 40s, low 50s,” said Hanggi on the last week of February. “But it’s definitely not far off. I think if we get one or two weeks of warm weather, fish are really going to be moving up. It should still be a hard-core prespawn event.”
Pros will likely find largemouth set up on shallow points and humps, as well as on wood and rock, where they can be caught with crankbaits, jigs, vibrating jigs and jerkbaits. Forward-facing sonar will see heavy use for targeting smallmouth on deeper brushpiles, points and hard-bottom areas using jerkbaits, Ned rigs, soft-plastic minnows, drop-shots and dice-style baits.
With lots of history on this system, the field could rely on similar tactics as the previous two Knoxville Classics. And certainly, as exciting as those events were, we could expect plenty of fireworks along the way. However, with change in the air and a new crop of young pros in the mix, this tournament might surprise bass fishing fans around the world. Hanggi sure hopes so.
“I really hope that some guys have some big bags of largemouth,” he said. “Maybe some guys figure out the smallmouth bite or the ’Scoping bite mid-lake in Fort Loudoun. I’m also really interested to see if anyone catches big bags up the Little River. There are just a bunch of strategies that could work that kind of go against the grain a little bit, and I’m excited to see who prevails.”