Matt Vines

Riverdale alumni Colton Caskey is making waves in his first collegiate season at LSU Shreveport, but this past weekend, Caskey was lifting a Phoenix Bass Fishing League trophy.

Caskey won Sunday’s BFL event on Sam Rayburn Reservoir by bagging 23 pounds, 15 pounces, on five fish – despite losing multiple lunkers due to net issues at the boat.

BFL tournaments are known for helping anglers get their foot in the tournament fishing door, and Caskey is competing in the 7 Brew Cowboy Division Angler of the Year race.

His event win Sunday qualifies him for the BFL Regional Tournament on Grand Lake in Grove, Okla in late October.

Caskey’s win pulls him into No. 55 in the standings, and his event win bagged him more than $4,000 between his winnings and securing the largest fish of the tournament, an 8-pound, 14-ounce bass.

Caskey, who was the only angler to bring in more than 20 pounds Sunday, said he pulled away from the bank and started fishing shallow timber without a scope.

“I decided to pull off the bank and fish a couple of hard spots,” Caskey told majorleaguefishing.com. “I pulled up on one in 15 feet of water I hadn’t fishing in a long time, and I cast up there with a jig and had one about six pounds that came off at the boat.

“Then I had another about five pounds that came off at the boat. I lost two big ones at that spot. So I decided to turn on my scope and see what was there. And there was a good many of them. I caught my first big one at 8-14.”

Caskey added that he was having problems with the net, and he figured it would cost him an event win, especially since he finishing 46th place in Saturday’s event.

“I was very surprised because Rayburn is typically a 30-pounds-to-win type of lake,” Caskey said. “They were biting really well (Sunday), and I lost a lot of fish right at the boat.

“But I was grateful to have what I had.”

The LSUS Fishing team is looking to climb from its No. 7 national ranking in the final spring months, and Caskey has been an important piece to that success in his first year.

Caskey and partner Mason McCormick finished in the top half of the field on Lake Dardanelle (11th), Kissimmee Chain (81st), Lake Seminole (86th) Kentucky Lake (171st).