You should invest in some jigs. They cover the water column top to bottom and can be fished a 100 different ways. Get some black/blue jigs for murky water, and green pumpkin for clear water. Then I would get craws and single tail grubs for trailers. Obviously try to match the trailer to the jig. Example of a jigs versatility: I caught 3 fish on a jig today. The first fish was caught fishing deep water structure. The second fish was caught by throwing my jig into schooling bass that were breaking the surface. The third fish was caught flipping in shallow water cover. All of those fish were caught on a green pumpkin football jig with craw trailer.
I'm on my second season of bass fishing, so we're pretty much in the same boat. The best advice I can give for fishing jigs is pay attention to your line, because most of the time you will just see your line move or stop falling before your bait reaches bottom. Don't be afraid to set the hook either. I've gone to reel the slack out of my line and the jig will feel "lighter", so I'll set the hook and fish on! By the way, I have set the hook on nothing, tree branches, and weeds more than I've set the hook on bass.