14 to watch in 2014 - Bassmaster

All eyes are â or should be â on these 14 people, places and events in 2014.

<p>14. Adam Wagner <br>Most GEICO Bassmaster Classic qualifiers coming out of the <a href=

14. Adam Wagner Most GEICO Bassmaster Classic qualifiers coming out of the Weekend Series are at a severe disadvantage. But maybe not Wagner. He’s seen some bright lights in his career after a six-figure payday at the 2009 BFL All-American. What’s more, in February of last year he won a tournament on Lake Guntersville with a single day catch of 29-1. Is he ready for the big-time?

<p>13. Team Championship<br> It's probably true that 99 percent of all bass tournaments in the world are two-angler team events. It's high time, then, that B.A.S.S. got behind this format with the <a href=

13. Team Championship It’s probably true that 99 percent of all bass tournaments in the world are two-angler team events. It’s high time, then, that B.A.S.S. got behind this format with the Toyota Bassmaster Team Championship, a season-end event that will not only crown the sport’s team champion, but also send an individual angler to the 2015 Bassmaster Classic. Are you â and a buddy â ready for the big time?

12. Byron Velvick
Velvick took a medical leave from the 2013 Bassmaster Elite Series to recoup from neck surgery that plagued him after trying to come back too soon in 2012. He’s still ailing enough that long practice days will be challenging. Can he return to his Bassmaster Classic-qualifying form of 2009 and 2010?

<p>11. Brandon Lester <br>Qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series through the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens is quite a feat. Making it by <a href=

11. Brandon Lester Qualifying for the Bassmaster Elite Series through the Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens is quite a feat. Making it by winning the Southern Division points title is even tougher. It means you beat the best sticks in the business … who aren’t already in the Elites, of course. It also means you’re one of the frontrunners to win the Bassmaster Rookie of the Year title as you kick off your Elite career. Obviously, that Southern Opens points crown carries some big expectations. Can he keep the momentum going?

<p>10. Louie Echols<br>There aren't many bass anglers who have caught a 14-pound largemouth and been featured on two television programs (including "One More Cast" with Shaw Grigsby), but "Lunker" Louie doesn't stop there. He's also the cover boy of the 2013 Florida Freshwater Fishing Regulations handbook, has caught multiple double-digit bass, co-authors (with his grandfather, Dan) a regular magazine fishing column and just won the Junior division of the third annual Bobby Lane Cup where he also took overall big bass honors. Did we mention that he's 12 years old?</p>

10. Louie EcholsThere aren’t many bass anglers who have caught a 14-pound largemouth and been featured on two television programs (including “One More Cast” with Shaw Grigsby), but “Lunker” Louie doesn’t stop there. He’s also the cover boy of the 2013 Florida Freshwater Fishing Regulations handbook, has caught multiple double-digit bass, co-authors (with his grandfather, Dan) a regular magazine fishing column and just won the Junior division of the third annual Bobby Lane Cup where he also took overall big bass honors. Did we mention that he’s 12 years old?

9. Brandon Palaniuk
There’s probably no need to tell you to keep an eye on Palaniuk in 2014. Plenty of fishing fans were already planning to do just that. But the reasons to watch carefully may surprise you. First, you’ll want to check on his Classic performance. Palaniuk was solid in 2011, bombed in 2012 and was runner-up in 2013. Can he get it done this year? Second, his Elite Series performance has been distinguished by its ups and downs â two tournament victories amid mostly lackluster finishes. Can Idaho’s favorite bass angler stabilize his performances or will Classic qualification be big drama once again?

<p>8. Jordan Lee<br> It's one thing to follow in your brother's footsteps, but what the Lees have accomplished in college bass fishing over the past couple of years is ridiculous. In 2013, Matt made it to the GEICO Bassmaster Classic, barely edging out Jordan to get there. <a href=

8. Jordan Lee It’s one thing to follow in your brother’s footsteps, but what the Lees have accomplished in college bass fishing over the past couple of years is ridiculous. In 2013, Matt made it to the GEICO Bassmaster Classic, barely edging out Jordan to get there. This time it’s Jordan’s turn, and he’s fishing much closer to home. In fact, he calls Guntersville his home lake. He’ll get lots of attention at this year’s championship and be on a lot of short lists to win the whole thing. Will he be able to back up that kind of attention and support?

<p>7. Gene Gilliland <br>The last day of 2013 was also Gilliland's last as the Assistant Chief of Fisheries for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. This year he <a href=

7. Gene Gilliland The last day of 2013 was also Gilliland’s last as the Assistant Chief of Fisheries for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation. This year he takes the helm of B.A.S.S.’s conservation efforts as our National Conservation Director, filling a vacancy left with Noreen Clough’s retirement. Gilliland’s skills and reputation are beyond reproach. How will he put his stamp on the organization and the sport?

6. AOY Championship
The Bassmaster Elite Series and Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year program have been tweaked for 2014. Instead of eight Elite tournaments, there will be nine, and the season will end with the AOY Championship in September. Only the top 50 anglers in the points standings will be invited to compete in the finale, and with AOY on the line as well as dozens of 2015 Classic berths it should be a real shootout. Right now, though, the biggest question is where will they fish?

<p>5. Randall Tharp<br> He's won the FLW Championship and will be fishing his second GEICO Bassmaster Classic in 2014. He's even won a B.A.S.S. event on Lake Guntersville. What Randall Tharp hasn't done â at least not yet â is win a Classic or compete in the Bassmaster Elite Series. He'll have a chance to do both this year, and <a href=

5. Randall Tharp He’s won the FLW Championship and will be fishing his second GEICO Bassmaster Classic in 2014. He’s even won a B.A.S.S. event on Lake Guntersville. What Randall Tharp hasn’t done â at least not yet â is win a Classic or compete in the Bassmaster Elite Series. He’ll have a chance to do both this year, and he won’t be flying under anyone’s radar. Can he live up to the hype?

4. Chris Lane
He’s already won one Bassmaster Classic (2012), but this one will be in his backyard â quite literally. Lane’s mastery of Southern largemouth bass is unquestioned, but he shocked the bass world by winning the year’s final Elite event on smallmouth waters, securing a Classic berth in the process. Now that he’ll be fishing for another world title on his home lake, fishing fans everywhere will be watching to find out if Lane can overcome the home state jinx of bass fishing’s greatest championship?

3. Kevin VanDam
The past two seasons, KVD has been quiet … too quiet. Sure, he’s challenged for Toyota Bassmaster Angler of the Year with a couple of top seven finishes, but he hasn’t won an event or even qualified for the finals in almost two years. He’ll celebrate his 47th birthday in 2014, and no one is suggesting he’s over the hill, but are his greatest achievements now behind him?

<p>2. BASSFest<br> What is BASSFest? Well, as B.A.S.S. co-owner <a href=

2. BASSFest What is BASSFest? Well, as B.A.S.S. co-owner Jerry McKinnis explains it, other than the GEICO Bassmaster Classic, it just might be the biggest bass tournament in the world. But BASSFest will be more than a tournament; it’s also a week-long festival in Dayton, Tenn., featuring shows, vendors, displays and competitions involving anglers from the Elite Series, Opens, colleges and high schools. It all starts June 11. Will you be there?

<p>1. Lake Guntersville</p>
<p>The last time a Bassmaster Classic was held on Lake Guntersville, most of this year's field was in grade school; many of them weren't even born yet. Rick Clunn won that event â his first of four Classic titles. It took 30 years to best Ricky Green's lunker mark of 8-9, and some marks established at that Classic still stand. Many are predicting that Classic records will fall like dominoes in 2014 as 56 of the best bass anglers in the world vie for fishing's greatest championship on one of the best bass fisheries in the world, Feb. 21-23. Will <a href=

1. Lake Guntersville
The last time a Bassmaster Classic was held on Lake Guntersville, most of this year’s field was in grade school; many of them weren’t even born yet. Rick Clunn won that event â his first of four Classic titles. It took 30 years to best Ricky Green’s lunker mark of 8-9, and some marks established at that Classic still stand. Many are predicting that Classic records will fall like dominoes in 2014 as 56 of the best bass anglers in the world vie for fishing’s greatest championship on one of the best bass fisheries in the world, Feb. 21-23. Will Guntersville live up to its reputation?