Mercury College Bass Anglers Sport fishing Society ranked Auburn University's Bass Sports Club no. 1 in the nation.
Bassmaster.com published the pre-season rankings of the top 10 collegiate bass fishing teams last week in its College B.A.S.S. section.
The Bass Sports Club was also ranked second in FLW's College Fishing, according to the team's official page of Auburn University's website.
"We've only officially been a club since 2007 and have done well in our tournaments," said Matt Lee, president of Auburn's Bass Fishing Club.
Lee's brother Jordan recently came in second place with Shane Powell at the 2011 College B.A.S.S. National Championship.
Bass team members Daniel Holland and Chris Seals also placed second in the 2011 Alabama Invitational in mid-July.
Performances like this may be one of the reasons Auburn is ranked number one on College B.A.S.S.'s list so quickly.
"The team participates in five fall tournaments as qualifiers for the Regional and National Championships," said Jordan Lee, member of the Bass Sports Club.
These tournaments raise money for Auburn's Bass Sports Club as well as promote the team.
There are more than twenty fishing teams at schools throughout the state of Alabama that are eligible to participate in the qualifying tournaments.
This year, The National Guard FLW Southeast Regional Championship will be held in Auburn's own Heritage Park from September 8-10.
"The FLW Regional [Championship] is basically the Super Bowl of college fishing," Matt Lee said.
The three-day event will conclude with the top five schools competing for the title of Regional Champions.
"It's big that we are hosting this tournament in Auburn, and hopefully it will make others want to join the club," Matt Lee said.
The last club meeting boasted 32 members, which is a fairly high number of attendees for such a new club, according to Matt Lee.
"There's no application or requirements to join the club, just show up to the meetings," said Jann Swaim, the bass club's current academic adviser.
The Bass Sports Club will meet on September 6 at 7:00 pm in room 2040 of the Beard-Eaves Memorial Coliseum.
*Content has been corrected from original publication.
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