Giant Tennessee Bass Might Rewrite State Record Book

Darren Nunley, right, said that when he first hooked the huge bass while fishing Tennessee’s Nickajack Lake, it ran straight toward the boat, so he didn't initially think it was very big. Photo courtesy Hensley Powell.

Officials are reviewing what’s likely a new Tennessee state-record largemouth bass, and the fish might be the culmination of an innovative state effort.

Darren Nunley, 54, caught the 15.75-pound fish — weighed on certified scales — Feb. 28 on Nickajack Lake. If the huge bass is ultimately certified, it will best the current Tennessee record largemouth by about a half-pound.

Nickajack Lake is one of nine major impoundments on the Tennessee River. It’s a relatively small lake between Chickamauga Lake and Guntersville Reservoir in northern Alabama, both of which are famed bass fisheries.

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Nunley said the huge bass didn’t feel that big when he first hooked it.

“It felt like it ran straight toward me at first,” he said. “I thought I missed it, and then I finally caught up with it.”

Still, Nunley said the bass didn’t fight as hard as he would have expected.

TWRA Fisheries Biologist Brandon Ragland collects a tissue sample from a Chickamauga largemouth. The state has stocked fingerling Florida-strain bass in several Tennessee River reservoirs since 2000. Photo by Richard Simms.

“It was a pretty good fight, but it wasn’t jumping or anything,” he said. “I guess it was too big to jump. I didn’t think it was as big as it was in the water, but then when we got it out of the water, I thought, ‘My God, what have I done?’”

The potential record bass must still undergo official review. However, with the help of Shawn Edgmon, a Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency wildlife officer, Nunley weighed the fish on certified scales at a grocery store near his home in Whitwell, Tennessee.

Edgmon said the scales had just been certified as accurate in January. He said the bass was 29.5 inches long, and he helped Nunley download and complete the necessary Tennessee record fish application. Nunley said he is scheduled to meet with TWRA Fisheries Biologist Mike Jolley to verify the species. Jolley will likely also take a sample from the fish for DNA analysis.

If the fish is the same as the current Tennessee record largemouth (15.3 pounds), it might be an F-1 hybrid, which is the result of a true Florida bass spawning with a native northern largemouth, resulting in what biologists call hybrid vigor.

After the success of stocking Florida-strain largemouth bass in Chickamauga Lake beginning in 2000, TWRA began stocking Florida-strain fingerlings in Nickajack Lake in 2015 as part of an expanded stocking program for several Tennessee River reservoirs.

Even though he didn't catch it, Hensley Powell was proud to guide Darren Nunley to what might become a historic catch in Tennessee. Photo courtesy Hensley Powell.

In 2013, when Jolley and his crew collected DNA samples exclusively from Chickamauga bass weighing more than 8 pounds, they found no pure northern bass and no pure Florida bass. However, 75% of the big bass were F-1 hybrids.

“Hybrids, which are thought to have more vigor and better growth rates, made up the majority of the big fish and were confirmed to have superior growth rates versus the native northern strain,” Jolley said.

Nunley was fishing with professional guide Hensley Powell, who guides regularly on Nickajack Lake.

February seems to be a good month for catching trophy bass in Tennessee, as Gabe Keen caught the current state-record largemouth Feb. 13, 2015, on Chickamauga. At the time, Keen said he didn’t expect his record to last too long. However, it has endured longer than many expected, and few folks anticipated the next potential new state record to come from Nickajack. But Powell said he’s not surprised.

“Just since last Saturday, I know of 10 [bass] over 8 pounds that have been caught just by people I know, and three of them were caught from my boat,” he said. “Just yesterday we caught an 8-pound, 4-ounce [fish] and lost another one that looked like a twin to it.

On Feb. 28, about an hour after they got on the water, Hensley gave Nunley a half-ounce Z-Man Jack Hammer Chatterbait to use.

The 15.75-pound fish surpasses the current Tennessee record, set in 2015, by about a half-pound. From left to right, guide Hensley Powell, Darren Nunley and Tennessee Wildlife Officer Shawn Edgmon pose with the fish. Photo courtesy Hensley Powell.

“It was green pumpkin-color jig, and I put a Hog Farmer tail on the back of it,” Hensley said. “I believe they call it a Spunk Shad. Hog Farmer Baits is a local company in southeastern Tennessee, well-known to area anglers.

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When the huge bass was in the boat and Hensley saw the unofficial weight on his scales, the pair didn’t waste time heading in to get an official weight. Hensley said he told Nunley that he might not understand what it means to break a state record.

“I said, ‘You don’t realize what you just did,’” he said. “‘You’re fixing to get calls left and right.’”

Edgmon, an avid fisherman, was astounded when he saw the biggest bass he’s ever witnessed.

“Its eyeballs were the size of a half-dollar, they were so big,” he said. “I’m just glad I was able to help [Powell and Nunley] and get them going in the right direction. Mike Jolly guided me, and of course, it is still only pending until Mike examines it and everything is officially reviewed.”

It will likely be a long wait for Nunley, but if the fish is certified, it will be akin to the Sequatchie County angler hitting the Mega Million bass fishing lottery.

Stay tuned.