Entry 44-4

George Cochran's Favorite Lures and When to Fish Them

The Midnight Special and Midnight Premier Spinner Baits

Strike King LureEditor's Note: George Cochran of Hot Springs, Arkansas, a longtime member of Strike King's Pro Fishing Team, has won the BASS Masters Classic twice and has qualified for this World Series of bass fishing numerous times. Cochran has proved over and over again that he's one of the best shallow-water anglers in the nation. Many fishermen consider him the master of finding overlooked places to find fish and using under-utilized tactics to catch bass. Today we'll talk with Cochran about a time when Strike King saved the day for him.

The professional fishermen on Strike King's pro staff asked Strike King to produce the Midnight Special and the Midnight Premier spinner baits because these baits are big, effective, bass-catching baits.

George Cochran Professional anglers don't have the opportunity to fish any competitive tournaments at night, but these are the spinner baits we love to fish at night. I bet a fisherman can catch the biggest bass he'll ever take by fishing these two lures at night in the middle of the summer. I've caught more big bass on these spinner baits than on any other night-fishing bait I've ever used. If you want to catch a big bass at night this summer, take a Midnight Special, put a crawfish trailer on the back hook, and fish the bait on a full moon. Your chances of catching the biggest fish of your life are as good as they get.

The Origin of the Midnight Special:

George CochranKevin VanDam, Larry Nixon and I all contributed to the design of the Midnight Special. The three of us had been fishing at night for bass for 20 to 30 years, and we decided to design what we believed to be the perfect spinner bait for catching big bass at night. The Midnight Special, which resembles a giant spider at night, is compact, creates a lot of vibration and has large blades. I like to fish the Premier Model, even though it's a little more expensive. The Premiere Model has the best swivel, the best hook and the best blade. Although both Midnight Special models will catch big bass, I prefer to spend a few dollars more on the Premier and fish a higher-quality spinner bait.

George CochranHow to Fish the Midnight Special:

I like to fish deep water with this lure. I'll cast the Midnight Special toward the bank, let it free-fall and then crank it slowly. The real key to fishing this bait is to slow-roll it. At night, the big bass don't have to hide under cover. They move out onto open water looking for bait. When the bass are out roaming at night, and they see this spinner bait, they're going to eat it. I'll either use a 3X ribbontail worm as a trailer or a black and blue crawfish-type trailer. And I always fish this bait on 20-pound-test line. The Midnight Special usually will produce 3-, 4- and 5-pound bass. I've probably caught more big fish at night on this bait than I've caught daytime fishing a spinner bait. In fact, I have a replica of a 10-pound, 9-ounce bass displayed on my wall at home that I caught using the Midnight Special.




 

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