Columns Archives - Page 35 of 130 - Mississippi Sportsman

June 1, 2026

An angler shows a speckled trout hooked and landed on a Pencil Popper.

Pencil Poppers

September 13, 2019 Don Shoopman

This fisherman has been smiling ever since Cotton Cordell Lures downsized one of his favorite artificial lures for speckled trout: the Pencil Popper. […]

One advantage of rigging a soft-plastic jerkbait with a nose hook? Most fish are hooked solidly in the corner of the jaw.

Nose-hooked soft jerkbaits

September 10, 2019 Chris Bush

Try nose-rigged soft-plastic jerkbaits when speckled trout aren’t responding to traditional offerings. It can be the difference between success and failure. […]

Ability to detect sounds provides bass real-time directional information about their environment that is little affected by water clarity or water movement.

Bass hearing

September 9, 2019 Hal Schramm

Sound detection is an effective sense for bass detecting their environment. Here’s how they hear, what they hear, what they don’t hear — and why it matters. […]

Paul Elias likes to fish a bladed jig in several different areas of the lake this time of year

Fish Bogue Homa in September

September 6, 2019 Paul Elias

September is the month where grass begins to die and bass fishermen at Lake Bogue Homa can put their lures where they may not have been able to all summer. […]

Largemouth bass like this 10.35-pound lunker are rare, even in healthy, fast-growing populations managed for trophy bass.

Getting a handle on trophy bass

August 13, 2019 Hal Schramm

For many bass anglers, size matters, and several states have implemented management efforts to enhance trophy bass opportunities. […]

Charleigh Champagne, the 21/2-year-old daughter the daughter of Matrix owner Chas Champagne, admires a huge speckled trout that fell for a Matrix Rip Shad.

Matrix Rip Shad targets the ‘tweener’ depths

August 13, 2019 Don Shoopman

The Matrix Rip Shad is a hard-body artificial lure, a jerkbait, that’s already a favorite of his and charter boat captains in Louisiana. […]

Species spotlight – African pompano

August 13, 2019 Brian Cope

African pompano (alectis ciliaris) are saltwater fish that are usually caught in deep, offshore water around wrecks and artificial reefs. […]

Mathews’ 2019 Vertix has a handful of tremendous features at price comparable to most manufacturers’ top-end bows.

Mathews’ Vertix is a bow to cherish

August 13, 2019 Sammy Romano

The new Mathews Vertix offers several features, including Switchweight technology, and an integrated arrow-rest mounting system. […]

Take notes about which lures worked this past year, and when, and put that knowledge to good use next time out.

What lures worked for you and when?

August 12, 2019 Chris Bush

To prepare for fishing the latter months of the year, you should look at the lures you used last season and consider why and where they were successful. […]

Scoring a whole flounder with a knife allows the sauce to better penetrate the meet.

Flounder without frying

August 7, 2019 Jerry Dilsaver

This is a tasty and simple recipe for preparing flounder other than frying it. This recipe is about as simple as cooking gets and is a bit healthier. […]

Fishing on drop-offs at the ledges and in Ross Barnett’s shallow water, you may not catch any monsters, but you should catch plenty of 11/2- to 2-pound bass.

Ross Barnett’s hot-weather bass

August 6, 2019 Paul Elias

A good reason to fish Ross Barnett this month is because it’s a shallow lake with lots of vegetation, which provides shade, cover and oxygen for bass. […]

The author untangled this big choupique under the water at a running cut into the Mississippi River.

Mississippi mother lode

July 17, 2019 Joshua Chauvin

Joshua Chauvin explains how he sets limb lines in the big waters of the Mississippi River and its oxbows to catch really big choupique and catfish. […]