Nate Overocker is a freshman from Dana, Illinois and went to school at Fieldcrest High School in Minonk, Illinois. He is also a math major and angler for the fishing team here at Greenville. The following is an interview with Overocker:
Q: What made you want to come to Greenville University to fish in college?
A: I came to fish in college because it just seemed like the right move to make. College fishing gives me a good opportunity to grow and fish new water and hone my skills to maybe one day be good enough to fish professionally.
Media by Greenville University
Q: When did you start fishing?
A: I’ve been fishing for as long as I can remember.
Q: When and how did you become interested in bass fishing competitively?
A: I got into competitive bass fishing when I was about 11 years old. I got into my first tournament with my dad. Fishing has always been something we have done together and this was just another step in the natural progression of things. My dad and I do not fish team tournaments together, so when we are in the boat together, we are working to beat each other as well as everyone else in the tournament. This competition between me and my dad has led to us having a very interesting relationship because we want each other to succeed, but we still want to win.
Q: As a collegiate angler, what is the major goal that you are seeking to set and how do you plan to achieve that goal?
A: A major goal for me is to qualify for a national championship. I need to improve my skills so that I can succeed when thrown onto new water I have never seen before to give myself the best chance to reach that goal.
Q: In the next few months, you have a few tournaments: one at Kentucky Lake and the other at Lake Norman in North Carolina. How are you going to prepare for these tournaments?
A: I prepare for all tournaments in the same way. I start by looking at some really far out forecasts and trying to use those to predict where fish will be before I even look at a map. After that, I look at a map and try to find spots that look like they will hold fish based on the information I have already gathered. From there, I just repeat the process and continually change my strategy around how the weather forecast changes and changing lake conditions.
Q: Who are your biggest influences in fishing and why?
A: My dad is easily my biggest influence in fishing. This is because he is the one that has had me in a boat fishing for as long as I can remember. He has taught me so much of what I know today and introduced into the world of tournament fishing.
Q: What is your favorite thing to do outside of fishing and school?
A: I love to play video games; they are a way for me to take my mind off of the more serious things in life and just have fun for a little while.
Q: What is your favorite way to fish for Bass?
A: I like to use whatever the fish are biting. But if I got to choose what they were biting, I’d choose a square bill crankbait.
Q: How do you want your season to go this year, and what do you expect out of your team and yourself this year?
Media by Anthony Macon.
A: This year, I’d really like to qualify for a national championship and be able to do well there. I have the same hope for the team. I really hope at least one team qualifies for a national championship so that we have something to continue to build off of next year. Another major thing is finishing well in school for the year. Right now, we are in a decent position and we have a lot of tournaments coming up that will give us ample chance to move up in the standings.
Media by Chris Brooks.
