Fishing Phenom: Brandon Cobb '12

Fishing Phenom: Brandon Cobb ’12

 

It’s been said that the worst day of fishing is better than the best day working. As a pro bass fisherman, Cobb has found the best of both worlds.

Brandon Cobb lives in his hometown of Greenwood, South Carolina, where he developed his love for fishing early on. “Ever since I was 6 or 7 years old, I’ve always wanted to fish,” he says. “I didn’t know exactly what being a pro entailed, but it was always a dream of mine.”

He came to Clemson with the intent of becoming an engineer but soon realized that he wanted to pursue something different — something he loved.

“During my freshman year, I discovered wildlife biology and fisheries and realized that was something more up my alley,” Cobb says. “Engineering would have been a great job, but it wasn’t what I loved to do.”

Joining Clemson’s bass fishing team provided Cobb with valuable experience competing against other universities and a taste of the professional circuit.

After graduating, Cobb drew from his experiences in smaller fishing tournaments during college to make his pro debut and gradually moved up the ladder in the professional fishing community. In his five years on the Fishing League Worldwide tour, Cobb has achieved 32 top-10 finishes and two tournament wins.

While the casual fisherman might think pros have an easy job, it requires hard work and dedication. Cobb wouldn’t have it any other way.

“It’s still a job,” he says. “When you get to the level I’m at, it is definitely more work than just going fishing. It is still the best job I could ever have; there’s never a bad day on the job.”

In production for this issue, Clemson World learned that Cobb won the Bassmaster Elite Series at Lake Hartwell on April 7, 2019. Contestants weighed in a limit of five bass each day of the tournament.

Cobb, who led the tournament from start to finish, had a four-day total of 72 pounds, 4 ounces to win by 3 pounds, 9 ounces over the runner up, taking home the first-place prize of $100,000.