‘Tis the season…
Of course, depending on where you live, you might be entering one of the most exciting times of year for bass fishing… the prespawn. In bass fishing, prespawn refers to the time of year, typically somewhere from February to May depending on how far north or south you live, when big bass move up to shallow waters to spawn (lay their eggs). It’s typically one of the best times of the year to catch big bass because the fish are feeding aggressively to bulk up before spawning. That aggressive behavior can lead to a ton of bites, and because the females are full of eggs, the tend to clock in at their heaviest weights all year.
Result will always vary depending on location, but one the water starts hitting the mid-40s, fish start thinking about scooting up out of their winter holes and towards those secondary points. And then, as the water warms into the 50s, they push up even further towards the flats, staging on points, perhaps just off the flats, and you can sometimes find a ton stacked up on whatever pieces of cover are nearby… wood, rock, big boulders, old pad stems, maybe even docks. I generally like to find the shallow mud bays, and the really thick, weedy areas that will have a lot of grass come summer.
And when it comes to prespawn bass fishing, especially for largemouth, there’s a pretty strong consensus on the best baits to use… your Chatterbaits, lipless, squarebills and other shallow to medium crankbaits, jerkbaits, jigs, and spinnerbaits… ask any prespawn angler and I guarantee you they will have most if not all of those tied on and ready to go on the front deck of their boat. And in my 5 Best Baits of March blog, they were all included.
But what about those times when the bites just aren’t coming, or you’re in a highly-pressured fishing situation… is there something else you can try? There sure is. Here’s a few of my favorite underrated, or perhaps overlooked, prespawn fishing baits that may be able to get you a bite when nothing else will. Plus, you know everyone on your lake is gonna be throwing Chatterbaits and crankbaits… this will give the fish a look at something entirely different.
Swing Head
A swing head jig is such an underrated prespawn bait, and reason being is that you can fish it just like you would a crankbait, banging it along the bottom on rocky points, gravel transitions, shell beds, chunk rock banks, or river channel swings. A swing head jig perfectly imitates a crawfish or baitfish scurrying along the bottom, and its free-swinging action creates a ton of side-to-side movement that can generate reaction strikes. When everyone on your lake is cranking, give this a try and you’ll catch fish… I promise. Pair it up with your favorite craw trailer and you’re good to go.
Strike King Jointed Structure Head – 3/8
Colors: Tilapia Magic, Green Pumpkin Blue, Bama Craw
*I haven’t had a chance to throw these yet on a swing head, but got my hands on a few bags and they look amazing. I’m confident they’ll join the Cleanup Craw as my go-to craw bait
Colors: Green Pumpkin, Black & Blue, Green Pumpkin Blue
Underspin
Much like a swing head is a similar approach to a crankbait, an underspin can be a great option when the Chatterbait or a spinnerbait is just a little too much for finnicky fish. Of course I’m gonna have a Chatterbait in my hand during the prespawn, but if it’s not producing when the conditions are right, I try and downsize with an underspin. I really like the Great Lakes Finesse Sneaky Underspin, which was primarily designed for smallmouth, but will catch largies too.
Great Lakes Finesse Sneaky Underspin
Size: 3/14
Great Lakes Finesse Drop Minnow
Colors: Watermelon Pearl, Green Pumpkin, Crush Shad
Colors: Pro Blue Red Pearl, Bluegill, Sexy Shad
Hair Jigs
Up north here in Wisconsin hair jigs are a hammer for smallmouth, but I catch a lot of prespawn largemouth on them too once they get up and roam the shallow flats. You really need a long, light spinning rod to effectively cast such a light lure, but the subtle presentation is hard to match. They fall slowly and naturally, like a dying baitfish or a leech,
Colors: Black
Ned Rig
You really can’t go wrong with a Ned rig anytime of year, and it’s especially powerful for smallmouth in the prespawn, but it’s a big sleeper for largemouth too. Your best chance of success is earlier in the prespawn with colder, clearer water. You’re going to want to target rocky bottoms, weed edges, and secondary points. It’s particularly effective in clear or pressured waters where a more subtle presentation can entice those finnicky bass.
Jigheads
Outkast Tackle Perfect Ned – 1/8th
VMC Swingin Ned Rig Jig – 1/8th
Baits
Colors: Green Pumpkin Goby, Goby Bryant, Green Pumpkin
Colors: Goby, Coppertreuse, Green Pumpkin Magic
Buzzbait
The buzzbait is one that most people don’t pull out until after the spawn, but it can actually be pretty effective in the prespawn if the fish are staging up really shallow and you have some color on the water. Bonus points if you have warming and rising water. Plus, it is really fun to throw, and it catches some of the biggest fish in the lake. I generally like a white buzzbait in dirtier water (which is what you want in the prespawn), and a black in clearer water, and most of the time I don’t use a skirt… just throw a Zoom Horny Toad on the back. But you can use a skirt if you like, or feel free to throw your favorite craw-style bait on it.
Colors: Black, White
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