Eagle Anglers land successful weekend with 4th annual youth camp

Carson-Newman University’s nationally ranked Eagle Anglers hosted its fourth annual Youth Angler Academy over the weekend. The event, which gives high school and middle school age anglers the chance for hands-on instruction from C-N’s team, featured 2019 Bassmaster Classic Champion Ott Defoe as guest speaker.

Eagle Angler’s Head Coach Hunter Sales says the event was a success. “We had right at 40 anglers, which is a really good number,” Sales said. “It was a good group for us to manage and teach.” Attendees traveled as far away as North Carolina and Georgia.

Sales said 20 members of C-N’s Eagle Anglers were on hand to give seminars and casting instruction. He explained the motivation behind the event.

“It’s really two-fold. It gives our anglers the opportunity to become more comfortable in speaking in front of audiences and the chance to give back and teach the next generation of anglers coming up,” Sales said. “The other part is that it’s a good recruitment opportunity for us. It allows us to have recruits on campus and to gauge their skill level.”

The Eagle Anglers come off an incredible season, capturing the 2022 Strike King Bassmaster College Classic at Lake Keowee. Having finished fifth in the National School of the Year race, the team is picked 4th in the 2022-23 pre-season rankings according to a voting poll of top coaches, schools, media personnel and fishing industry personalities. The team’s first tournament for the upcoming season will be held Labor Day weekend at Winyah Bay in South Carolina.

Founded in 1851, Carson-Newman is a Christian liberal arts-based university affiliated with the Tennessee Baptist Convention. The University is located in Jefferson City, Tennessee, among the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. Carson-Newman offers 50 undergraduate majors, as well as associate, bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees.