This month’s featured interview is with Professional Crappie Guide Brian Young. Brian has been a crappie fishing guide in Eastern Oklahoma for over 15 years. Guided lakes include Eufaula, Ft. Gibson, Tenkiller, Wister and Kerr to name a few.
BIO: My name is Brian Young. I live on Lake Eufaula and coach/teach at Checotah High School for the last 14 years. I am the Offensive Coordinator at Checotah Football and coach the 6th grade boys’ basketball team. I love to watch college football, love the Oklahoma Sooners. I’m a baseball guy at heart, I played 4 years of college ball at EOSC and ECU on full scholarship. I am an Atlanta Braves fan, have been for years. I deer hunt a little bit when football season allows. I absolutely love camping with family and with the friends I’ve made through crappie fishing in Oklahoma.
Question #1: What got you started crappie fishing and when did you know that being a professional crappie fishing guide was something you knew you wanted to pursue?
Answer #1: In 1996, my dad took a church in Eufaula and one of the men in the church took us crappie fishing at Eufaula Cove Marina and it was over from there, I loved it! I was hanging out at the tackle shop one day, the owner pointed at me and said that boy will take you fishing. The rest is history. It provided a way for me to teach crappie fishing to others.
Question #2: I know you and your brother fish many professional tournaments, please share any advice to our members on how they should best prepare for a tournament?
Answer #2: Use google maps, meet as many people as you can, they will help you. Remember your crappie fishing basics, “Fish where the crappie live”. Don’t be afraid to fail, getting your butt kicked is a huge learning experience.
Question #3: I believe one of your favorite crappie fishing techniques is Spider Rigging. For us members who have never Spider Rigged, what is your recommendation for getting set up and learning the trade?
Answer #3: Go on a guided trip and learn how to fish the technique the right way. I would suggest this with any technique. I was able to be around two guys that made it, famous Ronnie Capps and Steve Coleman. The knowledge they share is priceless. We all have our favorite ways to catch crappie. Learn all the techniques.
Question #4: If you were stuck on a deserted island surrounded by fat crappie, the water clarity was neutral, not too clear and not too stained, and had a magic jig that never wore out or came off your hook, what would be your jig of choice?
Answer #4: Bobby Garland 3’ Slab Slayer Pumpkin/Pearl Chartreuse with ¼ ounce orange Pro-built jig head
Question #5: What is the craziest guide trip you have hosted?
Answer #5: Years ago, Todd Huckabee, Barry Marrow, and myself guided a family of 12 down by Elm Point in June. We started at 9 o’clock and had 421 keepers by 1 o’clock. We cleaned fish for 4 hours. We had 21- 1gallon bags of crappie fillets. Crazy Numbers in a 4-hour period!
Question #6: I know Livescope is really changing the sport of crappie fishing and recently in many tournaments from local to nationally, anglers with Livescope are extremely successful. With that being said, what are your thoughts on the future of the sport and do you think in the long run these amazing new electronics are going the affect the crappie population?
Answer #6:
Livescope has started a new technique called “Livescoping”. It is a great tool for fisherman to be dead on accurate with depth, bait, and presentation. Some believe it will hurt the numbers, I disagree and don’t think it will. I believe it will make fisherman spread out and fish more areas of our lakes. Eufaula is 100,000 acres but the “South End” is known as the best place for numbers and size. With Livescope we will see that there may be other areas that fish really well too.
Question #7: Not matter who you are, if you fish enough, you are going to miss the “huge” fish, the one that got away. Tell us about your most memorable experience of when you let one slip away and was there anything you would have/could have done different?
Answer #7: Crappie.com Wister Spring Tournament 2016, Doug Owens and I were Spider rigging in Poteau River on a log jam in 5ft of water. I hung a true giant maybe my fish over 3lbs. As I set the hook and was bringing her to the net the hook pulled out. We wasted another hour on that log jam.
Question #8: As you are aware, the OCAC, Oklahoma Crappie Anglers Club is brand new and off and running. What advice would you give the Board of Directors in ensuring a successful club, high membership and ultimately spreading the enjoyment of Crappie Fishing in Oklahoma.
Answer #8: Keep the tournament trail going, it’s a great deal because of the people that I have met over the years that share the same passion. If you have rules enforce them, remember we are all trying to be better crappie anglers by learning from our own mistakes and each other. Try to get to a 2-division format so the beginners won’t be intimidated. We all had to start somewhere, and it’s all about growing the sport, not about winning and losing but “Learning”.
Brian, thank you for taking the time to participate in our first Newsletter. We really appreciate you sharing your expertise and fishing experiences. We will see you on the water!
If you are interested in a great fishing trip with a great angler that will help you learn the techniques of crappie fishing in Eastern Oklahoma, please contact Brian Young, the one and only “Eufaula Boy”.
Contact Information:
Brian Young
(918)-617-0362
Email – eufaulaboy@yahoo.com
Facebook – Eufaula Boy’s Crappie Guide Service