# Tusc River Flatties...........Is a state record possible???



## tcba1987 (Jun 22, 2004)

I fish the Tusc River ALOT for flatties and a majority of the flatties that Ive caught have been between 5-15 lbs. This year I have "SEEN" a 28 lber caught on rod and reel and I caught a 32 lber on a Trotline. I have "HEARD" of fish bigger being taken on rod and reel but have never personally seen one yet. I know the Fall fishing will be AWESOME , I cant wait to see what i hook into this year. I am just curious ..............with the BIGGEST flatties ive heard of from the Tusc being 30-35 lbs..................Do you guys and gals think that a river as small as the Tusc holds many fish bigger then say 40 lbs ??? Could it hold a STATE RECORD fish ??? If not.......WHY ??? JUST CURIOUS !!!


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## monsterseeker06 (Aug 21, 2006)

ive heard of some biggins coming out of there so i wouldnt be surprised to see a 50+pounder maybe more


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## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

It's a huge jump from 40 lbs to 77 lbs. Very unlikely.


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## Salmonid (Apr 14, 2004)

I agree, a 80 lb fish would eat 2-3 lbs of fish a day and would need a river hole about 2 miles long at 10+ ft deep to keep enough food around year round for it to be happy. Therefore the best chance for a state record will come from an inland lake. Now Im sure the Scioto, muskingum and even Great Miami hold a few honest 50's but again, those are so rare I cant imagine another 30 lbs on top of that from a inland river. Now a place like the Ohio river might hold some 60-70 lb fish with its phenominal amount of bait and roughfish but the currents and efforts needed to follow those bait fish through there yearly cycle would keep those flatties lean and mean, not lazy and fat so its unlikely but possible I suppose. I never fished the Tusk but have crossed it a few times and its just not big enough to hold big fish and I m suprised to see some high 20's and 30's come from that smaller water, those are trophy's from that size water! Just my .02

Salmonid


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## tcba1987 (Jun 22, 2004)

Yeah, I agree a fish over 20 lbs is a TROPHY to me too, especially from a small river like the Tusc but Im always hearing stories of BIG fish so i kinda wondered what you guys thought !!!


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## flathunter (Apr 5, 2004)

I have never seen the tusc river..How large is it compared to the scioto? Is it about the size of paint creek?..I know paint creek holds some 60-lb flatties.


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## katfish (Apr 7, 2004)

There may be a State record in the Tusc.

Odds are better where several 50s




























And 60s



















Are caught. 

I will continue fishing areas that provide us with many fish over 50 pounds and hope that a genetic freak or an extremely old fish still swims.


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## fishing_marshall (Jun 12, 2004)

I think the Tusc. should hold a fish around 50lbs , but not sure about the state record. There's lots of suckers and big shad for them to eat.


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## tcba1987 (Jun 22, 2004)

the Tusc is 30-50 yards wide in most areas with alot of baitfish and tons of wood and cover in it !!! i KNOW there has to be fish over 50 lbs in there just havent caught one yet. me and catfish hunter did have a BIG flattie on a limbline that tried to swallow a 12-14 inch channel that was caught on the line, when we pulled him up he opened his mouth and just fell off. i dont think he ever was hooked, id guess it to have been at least 45-50 lbs.


these 2 fish were 32 lbs and 18 lbs caught on a trotline 2 hooks apart.


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## misfit (Apr 5, 2004)

there are most likey some 50+ class fish in the river.it just takes time and research to find the areas they prefer,being that they're territorial.i've seen large flatheads come from much smaller streams.some streams just don't have an abundance of "flathead friendly" territory,and produce fewer fish,especially larger ones.


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## husky hooker (Apr 6, 2004)

waiting for a cat that big from the tusc is like waiting for a browns superbowl!!!!!!!


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## saugeyeslayer1 (Oct 9, 2004)

I agree with huskyhooker.LOL


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## awfootball (Aug 10, 2005)

lol i love the browns but i have to agree with u


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## rockbass (Apr 16, 2004)

I highly doubt there are state record fish in the Tusc, but nobody knows for sure. I know I have caught quite a few of them over 20 lbs and several 30 or over. I have never landed anything 40 yet though, but have talked to several people that have caught 40 lbers in the Tusc. There was a 50 lb class flattie caught in the Tusc just recently. rod and reel too. You can't really say it won't hold larger fish though. There is lots of the river nobody catfishes. Will's creek is a smaller body than the Tusc, but holds lots of 50 lb plus fish. There are lots of big flatties in the Stillwater Creek too, but I don't hear about many of them either. That creek is a lot smaller than the Tusc. 20 lbers are not that uncommon in the Tusc, with 30's being caught quite a bit too. Only from what I have seen and heard though. I think I have caught 7 or 8 flatties over 20 lbs this year and have been witness to prob at least a dozen 20 plus lbers. all from the Tusc. I have not fished it quite as much as I would like though, and have a bunch of places I want to fish but need a boat to get to. I am sure if I had the time and a boat to reach some places, those numbers would go up significantly. But, I am still relatively new to the Flathead game.


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