# Biggest Ohio river smallmouth I've seen



## zack2345 (Dec 22, 2010)

So I had about twenty minutes to go cast a few times while the weather was nice I figured the fish should be feeding. The spot I went to is a place I fish in bass tournaments on the main stem of the Ohio river in my boat so I know it's pretty deep close to the bank... I casted a grub about ten times till I lost it.. So then I looked threw the few lures I had with me for a jerk bait in a shad color cause the water was very clear ... All I can find is a super old floating minnow with the 3 treble hooks and it's probably older than me the hooks are all rusted but it was all I had in a natural color. So third cast this beauty nailed it... I thought it was a hybrid in the water because of how tall the fish was ...once I got her on the bank I didn't know what to do except take as many pictures as I could I had no scale no tape measure so I notched my rod and later when I got home it measured just over twenty inches.... This fish was giant I've caught many of 5 pound largemouth and 3 pound smallmouth but this fish was in a different league. It looked like I just pulled it out of a weed bed in Lake Erie. It was a football this fish had not stopped feeding since fall started. There was three shad tails that I could see still n its throat.... These pictures might not show the real size of this fish but if I had I tape measure to get the girth on this fish I'd have a replica on my wall just for the fact that this fish came out of the Ohio river.


----------



## creekcrawler (Oct 5, 2004)

That is a pig.


----------



## GULPisgreat (Mar 17, 2009)

Nice fish. I caught my 1st Ohio River smallie last May. Not much smaller. Hope to bust more of them this coming year. All I can say is "disco green".


----------



## bountyhunter (Apr 28, 2004)

zack2345 said:


> So I had about twenty minutes to go cast a few times while the weather was nice I figured the fish should be feeding. The spot I went to is a place I fish in bass tournaments on the main stem of the Ohio river in my boat so I know it's pretty deep close to the bank... I casted a grub about ten times till I lost it.. So then I looked threw the few lures I had with me for a jerk bait in a shad color cause the water was very clear ... All I can find is a super old floating minnow with the 3 treble hooks and it's probably older than me the hooks are all rusted but it was all I had in a natural color. So third cast this beauty nailed it... I thought it was a hybrid in the water because of how tall the fish was ...once I got her on the bank I didn't know what to do except take as many pictures as I could I had no scale no tape measure so I notched my rod and later when I got home it measured just over twenty inches.... This fish was giant I've caught many of 5 pound largemouth and 3 pound smallmouth but this fish was in a different league. It looked like I just pulled it out of a weed bed in Lake Erie. It was a football this fish had not stopped feeding since fall started. There was three shad tails that I could see still n its throat.... These pictures might not show the real size of this fish but if I had I tape measure to get the girth on this fish I'd have a replica on my wall just for the fact that this fish came out of the Ohio river.
> View attachment 199072
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## bountyhunter (Apr 28, 2004)

sounds like you released it? congrats on being a true sportsmen, and a fish you,ll always remember.


----------



## zack2345 (Dec 22, 2010)

Yes I released it ... It's just killing me cause I didn't have anything with me measure the girth and stuff I needed to get a replica.... I mean I don't think I'll ever catch a smallie over 5 pounds out of the Ohio river again... I'm sure I'll catch more up in Erie and at Clair but a fish like that from the Ohio is a once and a life time I think... I fish a lot of bass tournaments on the river and I've never seen a smallie over 4 pounds brought in.


----------



## Jim Paden (Feb 28, 2014)

Go and get your replica anyway. You can guess within an inch and who cares if you are off a bit, it's a great fish. You get bonus points for the release, so guess high.


----------



## buckeyebowman (Feb 24, 2012)

Jim Paden said:


> Go and get your replica anyway. You can guess within an inch and who cares if you are off a bit, it's a great fish. You get bonus points for the release, so guess high.


Yeah! You have a real good pic of it on that lure box to help you scale it.


----------



## MogadoreRez87 (Feb 14, 2009)

nice fish man! They're in there, I know first hand }=D


----------

