Peyton Dunn and Luke Mcguffin of Emmanuel University have taken the lead on Day 1 of the Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Lake Okeechobee presented by Bass Pro Shops with a total of 20 pounds, 9 ounces.
Photo by Tyler Bridges/B.A.S.S.
Jan. 28, 2026
Emmanuel’s Dunn & McGuffin make late move, shoot to top of Okeechobee leaderboard
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. — The temperature fell 30 degrees overnight at Lake Okeechobee, but the fortune of Emmanuel University’s Peyton Dunn and Luke Mcguffin was climbing Wednesday on Day 1 of the Strike King Bassmaster College Series presented by Bass Pro Shops.
The duo caught a five-bass limit weighing 20 pounds, 9 ounces, to jump atop the leaderboard in this two-day tournament in south Florida. That gave them a 1-5 edge over Tennessee Tech’s Cole Petroff and Noah Loxley, who are in second place after weighing a 19-4 limit.
In all, 219 tandems are competing in the derby on Okeechobee, which at a staggering 730 square miles is the second largest freshwater lake in the lower 48 states.
The storied Okeechobee was a bit of a puzzle for Dunn and Mcguffin early on Day 1, and that’s not unexpected when they practiced in 65-degree weather but hit the water Wednesday morning with the thermometer sitting at 35 degrees. The duo started out on the LiveScope, but their bites were infrequent. By noon, they only had two bass totaling about eight pounds in the livewell.
But as quickly as the cold crept in overnight, the weather warmed just as rapidly Wednesday afternoon. That led the Emmanuel anglers to change tactics.
“We stuck with the ’Scoping for a good while because we thought the fish would push off the banks in this colder weather,” Dunn said. “But as we started taking layers off when the sun came out, we decided to get to the bank.”
Mcguffin caught a 6-pounder along the bank to anchor their bag and get momentum in their favor. They boated a pair of 3- to 4-pounders in the final minutes to vault into the lead.
“I was stressing at about noon, I’m not gonna lie,” said Mcguffin, a 19-year-old freshman from Seneca, S.C. “You’re just fishing and not talking to one another because you’re both stressed. But hey, it’s Florida. You can turn things around quick here. We proved it today.”
The pair didn’t divulge the lures they used to mount their late rally, but they acknowledged the bites were coming from 4 feet deep or less. And with winds gusting as high as 20 mph at times on Day 1, they were looking for the calmest water they could find — a comfort not only to them, but to the Okeechobee bass they figured might be staging to spawn.
“The water was pretty muddy, and it was hard to see much of anything,” said Dunn. “I think the 6-pounder was spawning, but I’m not sure on the others.”
Regardless, bass like that capped Day 1 on a high note. Now the young aces from Emmanuel, located in Franklin Springs, Ga., will try to duplicate their production on the second and final day of the tournament.
“It was a magical day,” Mcguffin said. “You pray for miracles and sometimes you get them … Having the lead won’t help me sleep any easier, but I feel a bit better because we didn’t find a lucky place. We found a good place. It has fish and there should be fish there tomorrow.”
Rounding out the Top 5 teams on Day 1 at Okeechobee are third, Noah Haas and Jace French, of Purdue University, 16-12; fourth, Brycen Williamson and Reed Rooke, Erskine College (S.C.), 16-7; and fifth, Lane Clark and Tallis Morrison, Erskine College (S.C.), 14-15.
The Top 22 teams in the tournament (10% of the field) will earn a spot in the Strike King Bassmaster College Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops later this year. This was the first of three tournaments on the Lunkers Trail this year. B.A.S.S. has a two-division format (both the Legends and Lunkers trails each have three tournaments) which is designed to give college anglers additional opportunities to compete.
The Top 10 teams at Okeechobee will split a cash purse of $23,069 that will be awarded to their respective college bass fishing programs.
The second and final day of the Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Lake Okeechobee presented by Bass Pro Shops will begin Thursday with a 7 a.m. ET takeoff from C. Scott Driver Park. Weigh-in is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET. Fans can follow the action on Bassmaster.com.
Okeechobee County Tourist Development Center is hosting this event.
2026 Strike King Bassmaster College Series at Lake Okeechobee – Lunkers 1/28-1/29
Lake Okeechobee, Okeechobee City FL.
(BOATER) Standings Day 1
Angler Club/School Pts
1. Peyton Dunn – Luke Mcguffin Emmanuel University 250
Day 1: 5 20-09 Total: 5 20-09
2. Cole Petroff – Noah Loxley Tennessee Tech University 249
Day 1: 5 19-04 Total: 5 19-04
3. Noah Haas – Jace French Purdue University 248
Day 1: 5 16-12 Total: 5 16-12
4. Brycen Williamson – Reed Rooke Erskine College 247
Day 1: 5 16-07 Total: 5 16-07
5. Lane Clark – Tallis Morrison Erskine College 246
Day 1: 5 14-15 Total: 5 14-15
6. Ryan Wiener – Max Meyer Alexandria Technical And Communi 245
Day 1: 5 14-14 Total: 5 14-14
7. Cole Russell – Ty Trentham University of Tennessee 244
Day 1: 5 14-08 Total: 5 14-08
8. Will Kimbrough – Mac Nail Georgia Southern University 243
Day 1: 5 14-03 Total: 5 14-03
9. Elijah Kelley – Kyle Smith Kentucky Christian University 242
Day 1: 5 13-09 Total: 5 13-09
10. John Cooper – Daxton Wammack University of North Alabama 241
Day 1: 5 13-05 Total: 5 13-05
11. Bryson Dotson – Victor Alford Tennessee Wesleyan University 240
Day 1: 5 13-02 Total: 5 13-02
12. Cameron Seay – Nate Campbell USC – Union 239
Day 1: 4 13-01 Total: 4 13-01
13. Nolan Gray – Riley Brown Carson-Newman University 238
Day 1: 5 12-12 Total: 5 12-12
14. Nick Hawkins – Chase Wollam Southeastern University 237
Day 1: 5 12-07 Total: 5 12-07
15. Cooper Hughes – Brett Bucolo Florida Gulf Coast University 236
Day 1: 4 12-07 Total: 4 12-07
16. Fischer Barber – Troy University 235
Day 1: 5 12-05 Total: 5 12-05
16. Wes Smith II – Caden Gettys Catawba Valley Community College 235
Day 1: 5 12-05 Total: 5 12-05
18. Anderson Jones – Lander University 233
Day 1: 5 12-00 Total: 5 12-00
19. Graham Flaherty – Nathan Preston Auburn University 232
Day 1: 5 11-15 Total: 5 11-15
20. Kaden Casey – Collin French Carson-Newman University 231
Day 1: 3 11-13 Total: 3 11-13
21. Joe Vaulton – Walker LaRue Carson-Newman University 230
Day 1: 5 11-10 Total: 5 11-10
22. Bryson Gurley – Ethan Evatt USC – Union 229
Day 1: 5 11-09 Total: 5 11-09
23. Ethan Burnette – Cameron Dials Kentucky Christian University 228
Day 1: 5 11-04 Total: 5 11-04
24. Nick Fashho – Mason Stidwill Oakland University 227
Day 1: 5 10-11 Total: 5 10-11
24. Tucker Sutherland – Brier Hardy Faulkner University 227
Day 1: 5 10-11 Total: 5 10-11
24. Andrew Terry – Kole Weir Bryan College 227
Day 1: 5 10-11 Total: 5 10-11
27. Colin Oldfield – Jack Miner Michigan State University 224
Day 1: 5 10-10 Total: 5 10-10
28. Brayden Ruckman – Zach Wolfe Carson-Newman University 223
Day 1: 3 10-08 Total: 3 10-08
29. Ryan Small – David Buccafuri Penn State University 222
Day 1: 5 10-06 Total: 5 10-06
30. Jaxon Leverette – Austin Sawyer Troy University 221
Day 1: 5 10-05 Total: 5 10-05
31. Drew Kuhnle – Landon Rollison Lander University 220
Day 1: 5 10-03 Total: 5 10-03
32. Hayden Williams – Chase Rogers USC – Union 219
Day 1: 4 10-02 Total: 4 10-02
33. Cameron Yates – Harrison McCall Lander University 218
Day 1: 5 10-00 Total: 5 10-00
34. CJ Chavous Jr. – Landon Bannister USC – Union 217
Day 1: 2 10-00 Total: 2 10-00
35. Jackson Fuller – Grant Steinauer Auburn University 216
Day 1: 5 09-14 Total: 5 09-14
36. Andrew Turner – Evan Powell Carson-Newman University 215
Day 1: 3 09-13 Total: 3 09-13
37. Jake Lovingood – Bryson Hatcher Bryan College 214
Day 1: 5 09-09 Total: 5 09-09
38. Max Hondorp – Ridge Faircloth Troy University 213
Day 1: 5 09-07 Total: 5 09-07
38. Szymon Piton – Riley Faulkner Carson-Newman University 213
Day 1: 5 09-07 Total: 5 09-07
40. Drew Moss – Reece Knight Auburn University 211
Day 1: 3 09-07 Total: 3 09-07
41. Anderson Keim – Adam Hyder Clemson University 210
Day 1: 2 09-04 Total: 2 09-04
42. Dan Maciejczyk – John Meyer Penn State University 209
Day 1: 4 09-02 Total: 4 09-02
43. Hunter Barrow – Kanton Trull Catawba Valley Community College 208
Day 1: 5 09-01 Total: 5 09-01
43. Emerson Petty – Carson Falk Tennessee Wesleyan University 208
Day 1: 5 09-01 Total: 5 09-01
45. Quinn Williams – Emery Burnett Georgia Southern University 206
Day 1: 5 08-15 Total: 5 08-15
46. Reece Keeney – Brantley Anders Kentucky Christian University 205
Day 1: 5 08-14 Total: 5 08-14
47. Jake Brown – Nathan Reynolds University of North Alabama 204
Day 1: 4 08-12 Total: 4 08-12
48. Emory Carver – Colby Clayton Auburn University 203
Day 1: 3 08-11 Total: 3 08-11
49. Carter Steed – Brewton-Parker College 202
Day 1: 4 08-10 Total: 4 08-10
50. Zach Helton – Blake Wheat Carson-Newman University 201
Day 1: 3 08-10 Total: 3 08-10
50. Jackson Mitchell – Will Shepherd Carson-Newman University 201
Day 1: 3 08-10 Total: 3 08-10
52. Joe Mcnamara – Grady Mcclendon University of North Alabama 199
Day 1: 5 08-08 Total: 5 08-08
53. Trey Marco – Jake Rowlands Carson-Newman University 198
Day 1: 3 08-06 Total: 3 08-06
54. Logan Greeno – Ty Kreis University of Nebraska – Lincoln 197
Day 1: 1 08-05 Total: 1 08-05
55. Hunter Owens – Jackie Hatfield Carson-Newman University 196
Day 1: 4 08-04 Total: 4 08-04
56. Drew Pitts – Nicholas DellaPorta Carson-Newman University 195
Day 1: 3 08-04 Total: 3 08-04
57. Dane Leopold – Chris Veitch Coastal Carolina University 194
Day 1: 2 08-04 Total: 2 08-04
58. Carson Peeters – Drew Wagner University of Wisconsin – Steven 193
Day 1: 1 08-04 Total: 1 08-04
59. Hampton Shull – Landon Surrett Lander University 192
Day 1: 5 08-01 Total: 5 08-01
60. Will Wester – Jackson Thomas Emmanuel University 191
Day 1: 2 08-01 Total: 2 08-01
61. Luke Wyle – Trey Richardson III Auburn University 190
Day 1: 4 07-15 Total: 4 07-15
62. Ryan Soles – Alexander Karp Georgia Southern University 189
Day 1: 4 07-14 Total: 4 07-14
63. Landon Myers – Lane Parker Carson-Newman University 188
Day 1: 3 07-13 Total: 3 07-13
64. Mason Sills – Catawba Valley Community College 187
Day 1: 1 07-12 Total: 1 07-12
65. Caleb Dugger – King University 186
Day 1: 2 07-08 Total: 2 07-08
66. Robert Miller – Levi Bolton Emmanuel University 185
Day 1: 2 07-07 Total: 2 07-07
67. Brendin Simich – Carter Stambelos Auburn University 184
Day 1: 2 07-06 Total: 2 07-06
68. Alex Thigpen – University of Alabama 183
Day 1: 1 07-06 Total: 1 07-06
69. Hunter Slone – Wilson Greenwood Tennessee Tech University 182
Day 1: 3 07-02 Total: 3 07-02
70. Brady Osborn – Connor Racine Adrian College 181
Day 1: 2 07-02 Total: 2 07-02
71. James Lamberth – Carter Burdette Troy University 180
Day 1: 3 07-01 Total: 3 07-01
72. Brendan Ellis – Parker Mckee Faulkner University 179
Day 1: 3 07-00 Total: 3 07-00
73. Skyler Stevens – Grant McCraney Faulkner University 178
Day 1: 1 06-14 Total: 1 06-14
74. Will Hammond – John Such Lander University 177
Day 1: 2 06-13 Total: 2 06-13
75. Benjamin Travis – Auburn University 176
Day 1: 3 06-06 Total: 3 06-06
76. Zion Dunaway – Andrew Krintz Purdue University 175
Day 1: 3 06-05 Total: 3 06-05
77. Austin Denmark – Matthew Bennett Faulkner University 174
Day 1: 4 06-04 Total: 4 06-04
78. Grant Rice – Blake Marcum Morehead State University 173
Day 1: 2 06-03 Total: 2 06-03
79. Garrett Sullivan – Hayes Pate Faulkner University 172
Day 1: 3 06-02 Total: 3 06-02
80. Cole Moulton – Jared Hubbard Lander University 171
Day 1: 3 05-15 Total: 3 05-15
81. Alex Barrett – Doyce Beard University of North Alabama 170
Day 1: 3 05-12 Total: 3 05-12
82. Gavin Seewald – Drew Turnbull University of North Alabama 169
Day 1: 3 05-11 Total: 3 05-11
83. Dylan Mclaughlin – Lawton Williams Erskine College 168
Day 1: 2 05-10 Total: 2 05-10
84. Paxton Giem – Nick Seitz Adrian College 167
Day 1: 2 05-09 Total: 2 05-09
85. Gary Wilmuth – Hunter Nipper Shelton State Community College 166
Day 1: 3 05-07 Total: 3 05-07
86. Kole Cos