Let me see a show of hands who knows that Auburn University has a competitive bass sports club? Unbeknownst to many people, the AU Bass Sports Club is a chartered competitive sports club at Auburn University, just like any other sports club. To everyone that does not know anything about the AU Bass Club, I am going to shed some light on this interesting and already very successful group of young anglers.

The AU Bass Club began in March 2007 when a group of 16 young men wanted to be part of a bass fishing team. These young men already had an advisor selected, Jann B. Swaim, who is the Manager of Special Projects and Deferred Maintenance at the AU Facilities Division. The club was provisionally chartered in September 2007 and quickly following, the AU Bass Club solidified its presence at Lake Guntersville in Guntersville, Ala., where the club won first and second place at the Guntersville Invitational over 18 other schools.

Since then, the AU Bass Club has been very successful, placing fifth in the National Championship last summer. The club has also grown to 32 members, which are all male (although females are more than welcome to join).

The club has put together the Southern Collegiate Bass Fishing Series which includes a fishing trail in north Alabama from Gadsden to Florence. Last year was the first year the AU Bass Club hosted this competition and had 11 schools participate.

Competitive bass clubs actually started 14 years ago at colleges and universities in the North.

"You would think they [competitive bass teams] would have started in the South," said Swaim. "But now there are 11 schools in Alabama that have fishing teams."

There are no requirements to join the AU Bass Sports Club. Just a love of fishing, a slight competitive nature, and maybe a few rods and reels. There are different skill levels of the young men in the group, with guys who have trouble maneuvering boats in the water to one angler who has won All-American in the Bass Fishing League two years in a row.

Swaim hopes that the AU Bass Club will win the the National Championships the club attends in Texas and Arkansas this summer, just like any coach of a sports team hopes his team will win the grandest title. He also hopes the club will keep growing and will help promote fishing around the campus and the community.

"I'm not like advisors of other clubs. I don't kiss their hands and send them off. I go out there with them," said Swaim.

The AU Bass Club is gearing up to compete in Guntersville in two weeks, which is the second event in the South Collegiate Bass Fishing Series. The next big event will be the National Championship in May in Texas, then in July in Arkansas.

"I am involved with the AU Bass Club because I want to try to regrow the interest in the sport on campus and in the community. And just in general we want to be a competitive part of Auburn University," said Swaim.




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