Shockley and Watts stay in their comfort zone to win at Kerr Reservoir

April 30, 2026   SALLISAW, Okla. — Josiah Shockley and Landon Watts may not have been familiar with Kerr Reservoir before this week’s Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, but they felt right at home all the same.

The Northwestern State University freshman claimed the victory with a two-day total weighing 35 pounds, 12 ounces, outlasting Day 1 leader Clayton Easter to earn the trophy and a berth in the 2026 Strike King Bassmaster National Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops at Leech Lake.

“This is absolutely one of the best feelings ever,” Watts said. “This is something we have worked for and put in so much time on the water for. To be able to do it today in such a special way and with a style that is so normal for us, it was awesome.”

Hailing from southeast Louisiana, Shockley and Watts have been fishing partners since high school, competing for the Livingston Parrish Bassmasters. They had come close to winning big tournaments before but had never sealed the deal until Thursday.

“We’ve gotten so close a couple times,” Shockley said. “Holding up that trophy in front of everyone was awesome. To do it flipping jigs in a place we aren’t used to is awesome.”

Shockley and Watts stayed in Kerr Reservoir the entire tournament, focusing on two stretches of rock bank in less than 4 feet of water. While other competitors were throwing reaction style baits around the same rocks, they threw a 3/8-ounce black and blue Strike King jig paired with a Zoom Speed Craw.

“We had to drag it super super slow,” Watts said. “We would go behind other people and catch fish. They were on rock banks with points and ledges, and dragging the jig off the rock and over the ledge … the bass were liking it.”

It took a little while for Shockley and Watts to build momentum. After a tough practice, the Louisiana natives did not catch a keeper before noon on Day 1. That’s when they moved to their best stretch off rock, an area they only got one bite around in practice.

“I caught a 5 on a jig during practice, so we went and started flipping some rocks,” Shockley said. “Within 30 minutes, we had three. And within an hour, we had a limit and culled a couple times after that.”

They finished Day 1 in sixth place with 18-0, but picked up right where they left off by catching a 4-pounder first thing on Day 2. From there, they filled out a limit by 10:30, but only made one cull on their way to 17-12.

“The fifth bass today was icing on the cake, but our first fish, we weren’t expecting to catch anything where we were,” Watts said. “The rock bite hadn’t started yet and we were just piddling around. We caught that 4-pounder in some brush, and I thought then that this might pan out.”

Easter, meanwhile, added 15-2 to his 19-9 Day 1 total to finish with 34-11. The Tarleton State senior caught all of his bass in the same backwater area that Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series pro Jacob Foutz utilized to win the Gamakatsu Bassmaster Elite just two weeks prior.

He was joined by around 10 other teams, and by Day 2 Easter felt the pressure had finally taken its toll on the area.

“I really wanted to win, but I think it just dried up. Foutz caught 80 pounds out of there and then the first day of this tournament 80 or 90 pounds was caught out of there between us,” Easter said.

The bass in that area were in all three stages of the spawn, and Easter used a wacky rig and a Neko rig to catch those largemouth. Flooded bank grass, wood and a little hydrilla all held quality bass.

Just before 10 a.m., Easter landed a 5.70-pounder and decided to stay in the backwater the rest of the day.

Emmanuel University’s Scooter Ligon Jr. and Logan Fisher caught the biggest bag of Day 2, landing 22-2 to jump from 91st all the way into third place, a critical move in terms of the Lunkers Trail Team of the Year race.

“We went out there mad at them. We wanted revenge,” Fisher said. “It went down today.”

After catching just 11-4 on Day 1, the duo changed their approach, slowing down their swim jigs around the bank grass while also trying to make as many casts as possible. They filled out a limit within the first hour of fishing before rounding out their bag around midmorning.

“We changed retrieves and we had to stay in it mentally,” Ligon said. “There was a lot of other people around, so we tried to be as different as we could. We knew that whoever won would have to land their bait in front of more bass, literally by landing it on their heads. The water was so muddy that you basically had to throw it on their head for them to see it.”

Rhett Miller and Emmarie Bires of Wabash Valley College caught the Big Bass of the Tournament, a 6-10 they landed on Day 1.

For the second year in a row, Stephen F. Austin’s Grant Pursifull and Ben Burns claimed Legends Trail Team of the Year honors with 736 points, earning a spot in the College Classic Bracket presented by Lew’s. Ligon and Fisher narrowly finished second with 735 points while the Drury University duo of Seth Prather and Jacob Longlois finished third with 726 points.

This event was hosted by Cherokee Nation.

2026 Bassmaster College Series Title Sponsor: Strike King

2026 Bassmaster College Series Presenting Sponsor: Bass Pro Shops

2026 Bassmaster College Series Platinum Sponsor: Progressive, Toyota
2026 Bassmaster College Series Premier Sponsors: Bass Pro Shops, Humminbird, Mercury, Minn Kota, Nitro Boats, Ranger Boats, Rapala, Skeeter Boats, Yamaha
2026 Bassmaster College Series Supporting Sponsors: AFTCO, Daiwa, Lew’s, Lowrance, Phoenix Boats, VMC, Yokohama

2026 Bassmaster College Series Youth Sponsors: Seaguar

About B.A.S.S.

B.A.S.S., which encompasses the Bassmaster tournament leagues, events and media platforms, is the worldwide authority on bass fishing and keeper of the culture of the sport, providing cutting-edge content on bass fishing whenever, wherever and however bass fishing fans want to use it. Headquartered in Birmingham, Ala., the organization’s fully integrated media platforms include the industry’s leading magazines (Bassmaster and B.A.S.S. Times), website (Bassmaster.com), TV show, radio show, social media programs and events. For more than 50 years, B.A.S.S. has been dedicated to access, conservation and youth fishing.

The Bassmaster Tournament Trail includes the most prestigious events at each level of competition, including the Progressive Bassmaster Elite Series, Turtlebox Bassmaster Opens Series presented by Battery Tender, Nitro Boats Bassmaster Elite Qualifiers Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Mercury B.A.S.S. Nation Qualifier Series presented by Lowrance, Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops, Strike King Bassmaster High School Series, Tackle Warehouse Bassmaster Junior Series, TNT Fireworks Bassmaster Team Championship, Newport Bassmaster Kayak Series presented by Native Watercraft, Bassmaster College Kayak Series, Yamaha Bassmaster Redfish Cup Championship presented by Skeeter and the ultimate celebration of competitive fishing, the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Under Armour.