MUSKOGEE, Okla. (June 13, 2026) – As is so often the case on river fisheries, the Toyota Series Southwestern Division tournament on the Arkansas River came down to local knowledge in the end. Catching the second-biggest bag of the event, pro Rodney Copeland of Sallisaw, Oklahoma, moved up from fifth to first to earn $25,465 and his first career MLF win.
Weighing 16 pounds on the final day, Copeland totaled 40-13 to earn the trophy. In second, Devin Freeman weighed 39-1, and Chris Jones tallied 37-7 for third and also took home 7 Brew Angler of the Year for the Southwestern Division. Levi Thibodaux had the lead going into the final day, but only weighed three fish on Day 3 and dropped down to fourth.
Retired from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Copeland took the opportunity to make a foray into the Toyota Series, and once he got in his wheelhouse, it paid off handsomely.
“I’m super excited, it was a bucket list to just fish these Toyotas and try to be competitive,” Copeland said. “At the end of the day, to have a fifth place at Grand and turn around and win here, I couldn’t have written the script any better.”
With the Toyota Series event coming to his home river, Copeland blocked off time to go all-in on it. Leaving out in fifth place, less than 3 pounds off the lead, he at least had a chance on the final day.
“I’ll be honest, when I left this morning, I told myself if I could catch 15½ pounds I would have a chance,” he said. “I hadn’t done that, so, it was setting the bar high, but I knew in my mind I had a chance. On the way back, I didn’t know how much I had. I knew I was around it, but when they hit the scales was the first time, I knew.”
Copeland fished in his wheelhouse every day, locking down to Kerr and throwing a BOOYAH Poppin’ Pad Crasher, a BOOYAH Pad Crasher and a BOOYAH Mobster Swim Jig . He used a 5/16-ounce jig, and went with shad colors in cleaner water or sunnier conditions, and black and blue in dirtier water or darker conditions.
“I thought it could be won from any pool, and all three pools were competitive this week,” Copeland said. “But my home court advantage was to go to Kerr. I practiced the Muskogee Pool as well, but when I pulled out on Day 1, I knew I had to go to Kerr to catch ‘em. Day 1, I was a little bit discouraged, but after looking at everyone else’s weights, I knew I wasn’t out of it and decided to make the run again.”
Copeland had to make adjustments every day, as the current was rolling, and overnight storms after Day 1 further impacted the conditions.
“I had about five places I rotated, and it was all grass and pads,” he said. “Some areas were a little dirtier, some were a little cleaner. The conditions changed every day – not just water clarity, but the overall environment.”
The ability to adapt with those conditions set him apart, and he was one of three very local anglers to make the Top 5 by the end of the event.
“I knew when we left this morning, the guys who fish this river the most would have a big advantage,” he said. “We knew what would clean up, what was going to get dirty, and that’s what we did all week.”
In the end, with a big final day, that recipe was exactly what it took to win on the river.
The top 10 pros at the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at the Arkansas River finished:
1st: Rodney Copeland, Sallisaw, Okla., 15 bass, 40-13, $25,465
2nd: Devin Freeman, Coweta, Okla., 15 bass, 39-1, $9,868
3rd: Chris Jones, Bokoshe, Okla., 15 bass, 37-7, $7,639
4th: Levi Thibodaux, Thibodaux, La., 13 bass, 36-4, $6,366
5th: Jeff Clark, Van Buren, Ark., 13 bass, 35-13, $6,480
6th: Walt Stevens, Bernice, La., 14 bass, 34-9, $5,093
7th: Seth Kelm, Canyon Lake, Texas, 14 bass, 34-8, $4,456
8th: Denton Cooper, Smithville, Texas, 15 bass, 34-7, $4,820 (includes $1,000 Phoenix Bonus)
9th: Dale Hightower, Mannford, Okla., 13 bass, 31-10, $3,183
10th: Bradley Sullivan, Shawnee, Okla., 14 bass, 31-6, $2,546
Pro Cody Ross of Jefferson, Texas, earned Thursday’s $500 Big Bass Award with a bass weighing 6 pounds, 10 ounces, while Jeff Clark of Van Buren, Arkansas, won Friday’s $500 Big Bass Award with a bass weighing 5 pounds, 3 ounces. Lonnie Miller of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, won the co-angler division Saturday at the Arkansas River with a three-day total of 12 bass weighing 27 pounds, 10 ounces. Miller earned the top co-angler prize package worth $33,550, including a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower outboard motor.
The top 10 co-anglers at the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats at the Arkansas River finished:
1st: Lonnie Miller, Broken Arrow, Okla., 12 bass, 27-10, Phoenix 518 Pro boat w/115-hp Mercury outboard
2nd: James Edmonds, Hot Springs Village, Ark., nine bass, 23-7, $3,455
3rd: Mark King, Gurdon, Ark., nine bass, 23-3, $2,794
4th: Brett Brumnett, Wagoner, Okla., 10 bass, 22-8, $2,313
5th: Demarcus Armstrong, Pittsburg, Texas, eight bass, 19-14, $1,983
6th: Robert Jacuzzi, Mount Ida, Ark., eight bass, 18-14, $1,652
7th: Alan Hults, Gautier, Miss., seven bass, 18-9, $1,422
8th: Ryan Bowman, Seneca, S.C., eight bass, 17-3, $1,157
9th: Robert Chavers, Knoxville, Ark., six bass, 16-11, $991
10th: Eugene Kane, Seattle, Wash., seven bass, 16-10, $826
Co-angler Mark King of Gurdon, Arkansas, earned Thursday’s Berkley Big Bass co-angler award on Day 1 with a 4-pound, 11-ounce bass to earn the $150 prize, while Friday’s Day 2 $150 co-angler award went to James Edmonds of Hot Springs Village, Arkansas, who weighed in a 5-pound, 1-ounce bass.
With all three Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Plains Division now complete, pro Chris Jones of Bokoshe, Oklahoma, won the 7 Brew Plains Division Angler of the Year (AOY) race with 764 points, while Robert Chavers of Knoxville, Arkansas, won the Plains Division Co-Angler of the Year race, also with 762 points.
https://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_123/toyoto-arkansas-61326.html
MLF Toyota Series