TRENTON, Mich. (Sept. 8, 2025) – Boater Nolan Mandel of Kimball, Michigan, caught a total of 10 bass weighing 47 pounds, 5 ounces, over two days to win the Bass Fishing League Super Tournament (BFL) on the Detroit River Presented by Lew’s. The tournament was the fifth and final regular-season event of the season for the BFL Michigan Division. Mandel earned $12,370, including the lucrative $7,000 Phoenix Bonus for his victory. Mandel’s win came just a few short days after his wife gave birth Tuesday, and his priorities quickly changed from fishing to family.
“I only got about two hours of practice for this tournament because my wife just had a baby, and we’ve been at the hospital,” Mandel said. “I didn’t even know if I could catch 15 pounds. When I left the boat ramp, I had no idea where I was even going to fish. I just ran to St. Clair and decided to cover a lot of water and try to find fish.”
Mandel said grass on Lake St. Clair at this time of year begins to die off, and schools of perch will stay in the grass that is still alive, and smallmouth follow the perch. So, Mandel searched for big schools of perch in thick, healthy grass in 15 to 17 feet of water.
“The first day was amazing.” Mandel said. “I checked some spots they were on this time last year, and every spot I checked held a 5-pounder.”
The wind was a factor during the opening day of the tournament, so Mandel chose to fish the side of the lake that was protected by the wind. A drop-shot rig with a 3/8-ounce weight and a Berkley PowerBait MaxScent Hit Worm proved to be effective Saturday.
Saturday’s successful spots for Mandel muddied up on Sunday, so he switched tactics to a small, 3/8-ounce Keitech jig with a Z-Man Finesse TRD trailer as well as a jighead minnow to provoke strikes. Although Mandel had a 3-pound lead heading into the final day of competition, Sunday did provide some tension for him.
“I broke two fish off and kept losing fish, and I started to kind of spiral out,” Mandel said. “I had a really good co-angler who had a good attitude and brought me back down, and I ended up catching enough fish to still win.”
Mandel also wrapped up the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with the win.
“This week was just sweet because of the circumstances,” Mandel added. “This is my favorite win I’ve had. It is just amazing.”
The top 10 boaters finished the tournament:
1st: Nolan Mandel, Kimball, Mich., 10 bass, 47-5, $12,370 (includes $7,000 Phoenix Bonus)
2nd: Cody Kelley, Plainwell, Mich., 10 bass, 47-1, $2,635
3rd: Noah Stauffer, Gowen, Mich., 10 bass, 43-3, $1,758
4th: Scott Dobson, Clarkston, Mich., 10 bass, 42-11, $1,230
5th: Joshua Kolodzaike, Ypsilanti, Mich., 10 bass, 40-9, $1,054
6th: Jesse Richardson, Ligonier, Ind., 10 bass, 40-4, $966
7th: Ty Fain, Springfield, Ohio, 10 bass, 40-0, $878
8th: Wilson Burton, Findlay, Ohio, 10 bass, 39-11, $790
9th: Mike Trombley, Belleville, Mich., 10 bass, 38-5, $703
10th: Julian Sweet, Flint, Mich., 10 bass, 37-14, $615
Ralph Blasey of Pinckney, Michigan, caught a bass that weighed 5 pounds, 14 ounces, and earned the Big Bass Boater award of $675. Scott Lutz of Bremen, Indiana, won the co-angler division and $2,635 Sunday, after bringing six bass to the scale that totaled 24 pounds, 1 ounce.
The top 10 co-anglers finished:
1st: Scott Lutz, Bremen, Ind., six bass, 24-1, $2,635
2nd: Dennis Blakely, Norwalk, Ohio, six bass, 23-8, $1,367
3rd: Terry Bucciarelli, Ypsilanti, Mich., six bass, 23-7, $980
4th: J.D. Marcum, Catlettsburg, Ky., six bass, 22-9, $615
5th: Daniel Dumais, Trenton, Mich., six bass, 22-3, $527
6th: Justen Fain, Springfield, Ohio, six bass, 21-14, $483
7th: Steve Ward, Trenton, Mich., six bass, 21-4, $439
8th: Jacob Alltop, Lewistown, Ohio, six bass, 21-2, $395
9th: Adam Suliman, Solon, Ohio, six bass, 20-12, $351
10th: Caleb Edgerton, Dayton, Ohio, six bass, 20-1, $307
Scott Sims of Morgantown, Indiana, earned the Berkley Big Bass co-angler award of $337, catching a bass that weighed in at 5 pounds, 7 ounces.
With all five events in the division now complete, boater Nolan Mandel of Kimball, Michigan, won the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 1,367 points and earned the $1,000 prize, while Brian Ruetz of Toledo, Ohio, won the Fishing Clash Michigan Division Co-Angler of the Year race with 1,299 points and earned the $500 payout.
The top 60 boaters and co-anglers in the division based on point standings, along with the five tournament winners of each qualifying event, will qualify for the Oct. 3-4 BFL Regional tournament on Lake Erie in Sandusky, Ohio. Boaters will fish for a top award of a new Phoenix 819 Pro with a 200-horsepower Mercury or Suzuki outboard worth $50,000, while co-anglers will compete for a top award of $20,000.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/bfl-detroit-9825.html
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