Saturday, February 21, anglers gathered for an exciting and memorable fishing tournament at the SAF Florida State Championship on the Toho Chain out of Camp Mack. The event brought great weather, strong competition, and plenty of action on the water — making it a truly enjoyable day for everyone who attended.

By the end of the tournament, participants had landed an impressive 141 fish, with a combined total weight of 414 pounds, 3 ounces — a testament to both the excellent fishing conditions and the skill of our anglers. Big fish for the day weighed in at 8lbs. By Treston Stowers.

Congratulations to our Top 4 teams, who have earned their place to compete in Kentucky:

1 Colton Battlon & Jackson Ming- 27.70

2 Jackson Munns & Saylor Urban-21.23

3 Jaedin Velez & Daniel Gray- 20.64

4 Mason Collier & Jayden Lauffer- 18.99

Well done to all participants for making this tournament a fantastic success. We look forward to seeing our qualifying teams represent us in Kentucky and wish them the best of luck.

Georgia High School Association GHSA, local county officials and the SAF National Tournament staff discussed the situation based on local and statewide conditions expected.

Out of an abundance of caution, the Lake Seminole qualifier for this Saturday is cancelled. The overnight temperatures will be well below freezing and it’s not worth the risk for 200 teams and boats to travel from all corners of the state. GHSA had notified the states AD’s of this decision.

GHSA has been in touch with the SAF National Office, and we have collectively drafted a contingency plan that will add qualifying slots to the three remaining scheduled tournaments, so everyone still has a fair chance to advance. Those details will be defined and published as soon as possible, and we will move forward safely and effectively.

We are sorry to have to make this decision, but YOUR safety must always be our top priority, and this is certainly an unusual situation. So, we wanted to make sure to let you know as soon as physically possible so that you can cancel travel and lodging arrangements. We thank you all for your understanding, no one likes to cancel an event, but it is the right thing to do in this particular case.

PLEASE help us pass the word of this cancellation to other GHSA team’s coaches and teammates that you know, so no one travels in these conditions.

TBF Student Angler Federation (SAF) Announces 2026 High School State Championships and Sanctioned Fishing Schedule.

Registration is open! 

PONCA CITY, OK (Dec 8, 2025) – The Bass Federation’s Student Angler Federation (SAF) announced today the 2026 High School Fishing sanctioned schedule. Offering more opportunity than ever before including 41 SAF High School Fishing State Championships, 5 Open Challenge events, 14 state high school athletic association sanctioned tournaments, up to 5 MLF High School Fishing Opens and the pinnacle event in all of high school fishing the 17^th annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship.  Available dates/locations are listed below and on the website at www.highschoolfishing.org .

“As the founders of the National High School fishing movement in 2007, we immediately seen reaction to getting young people outdoors and the rapid growth potential with parents embracing the concept nationwide at our first High School Fishing World Finals in 2010. We are proud to have had our partners in fishing at MLF be the very first to join us in the High School arena. Together in 2011, we rolled out events in every state and Canada to provide more fishing opportunities for more high school students than anyone else in the world,” said TBF President Robert Cartlidge. “For us High School fishing was and is not about fishing for money, which is why TBF/SAF nor MLF charges any entry fees at our High School events and we do not pay cash to student anglers.  It is also not about getting students sponsorships or patches on their jerseys.  The core mission is about education through fishing, earning prizes and scholarships and getting young people into the outdoors.  We will continue to jointly push the programs forward to accomplish those goals.”

TBF/SAF and MLF will continue advancement opportunities with 1 in 10 teams from each TBF and/or MLF State Championship, Challenge or Open event earning a spot in the National Championship. The 16^th Annual High School Fishing World Finals and National Championship offered over 3 million in college scholarship and prizes up for grabs giving the maximum amount of student anglers the best shot ever for a college scholarship, technical or trade school education.

Additionally, High School anglers who win a SAF state championship and are 16 years old or older(one or both team members) will be offered a High School TBF Living The Dream package, a TBF sponsorship for a year to include: fully paid ADULT TBF\MLF competitor membership, advancement opportunity to represent their home state in a TBF National Semi-Finals as a co-angler, with fully paid entry fees! From there, the sky is the limit, they could qualify for the TBF Federation National Championship or beyond!  Check it all out at HighSchoolFishing.org.

2026 Student Anglers Federation (SAF) High School Fishing Schedule 

2026 17^th Annual High School World Finals / National Championship:

June 24-27, 2026     Lake Cumberland, Russell Springs, KY

2026 Season SAF High School Fishing State Championships

Jan 31      Florida State Championship, Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, Lake Wales, FL

Feb 21     South Carolina State Championship, Lake Greenwood, Ninety Six, SC

March 7    Louisiana State Championship, Lake D’Arbonne, Farmerville, LA

March 21  Kentucky State Championship, Lake Cumberland, Russell Springs, KY

March 14  Virginia State Championship, Smith Mountain Lake, Huddleston, VA

April 4       Georgia State Championship, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA

April 11      Alabama State Championship, Black Warrior River/Tombigbee River, Demopolis, AL

April 11      Mississippi State Championship, Back Bay, D’Iberville, MS

April 11      North Carolina State Championship, Lake Jordan, Chapel Hill, NC

April 11      Tennessee State Championship, Old Hickory Lake, Hendersonville, TN

April 11      West Virginia State Championship, Sutton Lake, Sutton, WV

April 25      Kansas State Championship, Melvern Lake, Osage City, KS

April 25      Tri State Championship (MA,CT,RI), Webster Lake, Webster, MA

April 25      Tri State Championship (MD,DE,NJ), Upper Chesapeake Bay, Northeast, MD

April 26      Arizona State Championship, Parker Strip, Phoenix, AZ

April 26      Iowa State Championship, Lake Okoboji, Okoboji, IA

May 2        Indiana State Championship, Patoka Lake, Celestine, IN

May 2        Missouri State Championship, Lake Truman, Warsaw, MO

May 2        Oklahoma State Championship, Grand Lake, Grove, OK

May 3        Idaho State Championship, Cascade Lake, Cascade, ID

May 9        California State Championship, California Delta, Stockton, CA

May 16      Montana State Championship, Noxon Reservoir, Trout Creek, MT

May 16      Wisconsin State Championship, Lake Puckaway, Montello, WI

May 23      Arkansas State Championship, Lake Hamilton, Hot Springs, AR

May 30      Michigan State Championship, Lake Charlevoix, Charlevoix, MI

May 31      Nebraska State Championship, Lake McConaughy, Ogallala, NE

June 6       North Dakota State Championship, Lake Ashtabula, Valley City, ND

June 6       Ohio State Championship, Alum Creek, Galena, OH

June 7       Colorado State Championship, Pueblo Reservoir, Pueblo, CO

June 14     Illinois State Championship, Shelbyville Lake, Shelbyville, IL

July 11       Vermont State Championship, Lake Champlain, Colchester, VT

Aug 3         Minnesota State Championship, Whitefish Chain, Crosslake, MN

Aug 8         Washington State Championship, Moses Lake, Moses Lake, WA

Sept 12      New York State Championship, Paradox Lake, Paradox, NY

Sept 19      Maine State Championship, Salmon/McGrath Pond, Belgrade, ME

Sept 26      Nevada State Championship, Lake Mohave, Boulder City, NV

Oct 4          New Hampshire State Championship, Connecticut River, Hinsdale, NH

2026 SAF High School Fishing Challenges\Open Events:

March 8    Missouri Open Challenge, Pomme De Terre, Hermitage, MO

March 22  California Open Challenge, Clear Lake, Lakeside, CA

April 19     California Open Challenge, San Joaquin Delta, Oakley, CA

May 9        New England Open Challenge, Connecticut River, Hinsdale, NH

Oct 10       Alabama Open Challenge, Lake Harding, Valley, AL

2026 MLF High School Fishing Opens: (Major League Fishing events) 

Feb 21        MLF HS Open, Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, GA

March 14    MLF HS Open, Lake Eufaula, Eufaula, AL

April 11       MLF HS Open, Table Rock, Branson, MO

Sept 26       MLF HS Open, Lake Guntersville, Guntersville, AL

Oct 24         MLF HS Open, Cherokee Lake, Jefferson City, TN

2026 State Athletic Association Events: (Qualified teams only)

Jan 31      GHSA #1, Lake Seminole, Bainbridge, GA

Jan 31      LHSAA Qualifier 1, Toledo Bend, Many, LA

Feb 7       GHSA #2, West Point Lake, LaGrange, GA           

Feb 21     LHSAA Qualifier 2, Lake D’Arbonne, Farmerville, LA

March 7   GHSA #3, Clarks Hill, Appling, GA

March 13-14  LHSAA State Finals, Toledo Bend, Zwolle, LA

April 4      GIAA/GAPPS Finals, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA

Apr 11      GHSA #4, Lake Hartwell, Hartwell, GA

April 25     KHSAA Region 1, Lake Barkley, Kuttawa, KY

April 25     KHSAA Region 2, Lake Cumberland, Jamestown, KY

April 25     KHSAA Region 3, Green River, Campbellsville, KY  

April 25     KHSAA Region 4, Harrington Lake, Harrodsburg, KY

May 8-9    KHSAA State Finals, Kentucky Lake, Calvert City, KY  

May 9       GHSA State Finals, Lake Sinclair, Milledgeville, GA

GAPPS – Georgia Athletics Private Parochial School

GISA– Georgia Independent Athletic Association

GHSA – Georgia High School Athletics

LHSAA – Louisiana High School Athletics Association

KHSAA – Kentucky High School Athletics Association

Complete rules are available HERE

Registration for the 2026 season state championships and challenge events is open now at HighSchoolFishing.org .  For SAF High School Fishing State Championships, each team must compete in the state in which their school is located. Teams from all states can compete in a SAF challenge event or a MLF High School Fishing Open tournament. Entries for all State Championships, SAF Challenge events or State Athletic Association events should be made at HighSchoolFishing.org or by calling TBF at (580) 765-9031, entries for MLF Open HS events should be made at High School Fishing – Major League Fishing or by calling 270-252-1000. There is no limit to the number of teams accepted into a tournament from each school or club except per State Athletic Association rules and those events only.

All MLF and TBF High School Fishing tournaments are free to enter, there is no event entry fee. The tournaments are two-person (team) events for students in grades 9-12 (one member of each team can be 7^th or 8^th) and open to any SAF-affiliated high school club.

About The Bass Federation

The Bass Federation Inc., (TBF) is a member of the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame. TBF is owned by those we serve and dedicated to the sport of fishing. The Federation is the largest and oldest, organized grassroots fishing, youth and conservation organization there is. TBF, our affiliated state federations and their member clubs conduct more than 20,000 events each year and have provided a foundation for the entire bass fishing industry for more than 50 years. TBF founded the Student Angler Federation and the National High School Fishing program in 2007 to promote clean family fun and education through fishing and are proud partners in fishing with MLF. Visit bassfederation.com or highschoolfishing.org and “LIKE US” on Facebook.