Even at the ripe age of 21 years young, Easton Fothergill is about as even-keeled and easygoing as a bass angler gets. Fothergill is the College Series’ representative in the 2024 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Classic presented by Jockey Outdoors after coming out on top of the gauntlet that is the Bassmaster College Classic bracket in the fall of 2023.
As the bracket champion, Easton won a year lease for a 2023 Toyota Tundra and Nitro Z20 wrapped in his school colors, paid entry fees into all nine Bassmaster Opens as an EQ qualifier and a spot in bass fishing’s biggest tournament.
The University of Montevallo angler has proved unflappable whether he’s fishing college events, competing at the Opens level or even having emergency brain surgery just weeks before the Classic Bracket last fall. Fothergill grew up in Minnesota before moving to Alabama for school, perhaps his cold-blooded nature comes from his northern roots. That being said, Fothergill admitted he’s feeling his nerves a bit now that he’s navigating the pressure cooker that is Bassmaster Classic week.
“Honestly I’ve felt very normal until I drove into downtown Tulsa for our first round of meetings on Tuesday … now it’s all kind of hitting me,” Fothergill said. “Grand is a big, pretty lake, and with only 56 of us fishing it felt like I was practicing for any old tournament. But to drive into a big city for a tournament registration felt very not normal.
“Then we toured the giant BOK Arena today before Media Day, a place I normally would only go to see a big concert or something, and to think I will be weighing in inside of there tomorrow … it’s crazy.”
“Crazy” is an accurate descriptor when comparing the jam-packed Classic schedule to any other tournament or experience Fothergill has under his belt. But Fothergill is still far from rattled. He’s proven his poise already this year through three events in the Bassmaster Open EQs, where he currently sits in fifth place of the points race among some of the biggest names in bass fishing.
After describing his practice as “decent,” not too great and not too bad, Fothergill heads into the biggest tournament of his young life riding the well-balanced wave he seemingly always maintains. His demeanor and fishing abilities continue to impress to the point it would surprise few to see Fothergill near the top of the leaderboard throughout the weekend.
“This week has made me realize why this is such a hard tournament to do well in,” Fothergill said. “With how much the fish change and move this time of year, our practice mixed in with multiple off days means a lot of what I saw (in practice) might not mean a whole lot. I’m just trying to enjoy the experience while staying focused on doing well in the tournament. I’m going to start in an area I have confidence in and hope the fish help me decide the rest.”
