NPFL DQ

[JHoss]

Anyone else catch the footage of what got Skeeter Crosby DQ'd? He's making small talk with a camera boat and the conversation goes like this:

 

Skeeter: "y'all been over there and seen Buck?"

Assuming the camera boat responds in the affirmative because you can't hear it.

Skeeter: "He catching em?"

Some other response you can't hear.

Skeeter: "He's probably getting blowed out over there."

 

This no info rule has gone way too far in my opinion. Guarantee every angler on every pro tour has violated the rule if we're going that far. Whenever I pass another boat fishing, I almost always ask something like "y'all slaying em today?" I guess even that could get someone DQ'd with today's rules. 

[Team9nine]

I agree on the no-info rules starting to cause more issues than their worth. Something needs to change, IMO. However, just based on what I've read...so take it with a grain of salt as it might just be Internet chatter - lol - but "Buck" was his traveling roomate. If "Buck" had driven past him during the event and he asked him how he was doing, there would be no problem. However, since he asked a camera guy who is not in the tourney to share how he was doing, he is basically soliciting info to gain an advantage. Being roomies, you know he knows pretty much where, what and/or how his buddy is fishing. If the camera guy says, "Yeah, he's killing them," then that tips "Skeeter" off about the bite and where and how the weather or water is affecting it, allowing him to adjust his strategy. Likewise, if the guy says, "No, he's struggling, too," then he knows not to waste time trying to duplicate what or where his buddy is fishing. Just my thoughts on this one instance, as I don't follow NPFL.

[AlabamaSpothunter]

I kind of disagree......that's not a grey area rule.   He specifically asked a cameraman if another angler was catching them.    You can learn a ton of info just from the answer to a seemingly innocent question considering Skeeter knew where his friend was fishing, and the techniques/baits he was using.

 

A "yes" by the cameraman could have told Skeeter they're biting spinnerbaits on willow trees on the windblow side of the lake for example. 

 

Now you can argue that the NPFL should be more like the MLF with a live Scoretracker that's made known to the anglers.

 

I believe even though BASS has Basstrak, the anglers are not allowed to view or learn those results while on the water competing.   Someone correct me if I'm wrong.  

[JHoss]

I get the info side of this and agree with y'all he could've gleaned valuable intel from knowing if his roommate was getting bit or not. But I'm looking at it as the most common question/pleasantry exchanged between folks on the water. 

 

Also, I would like to think that cameraman are sort of like league officials. A league official in any other pro sport is going to not answer that question instead of answering and the athlete getting DQ'd. A linebacker in the NFL could ask a ref what play the other team was going to run, but that ref would never answer if he did know. It's probably time to give the folks employed by these leagues a course on what they can't discuss with anglers too. 

 

I did not realize at the time of posting that the NPFL let him keep his weights from day 1 and 2 and the points he earned for the event from those weights. That was the perfect way to handle this IMO. 

 

 

@Team9nine and @AlabamaSpothunter, who's DQ was most deserving? Herren, Martin, or Crosby?

[AlabamaSpothunter]

@JHoss  Imho it's easily Scott Martin considering the story that was put out by both him and BASS is absolutely false.

 

He specifically solicited info and it's on video, the person who filmed the video threatened to go to BASS if he didn't self report.   

 

It's one thing to break a rule, it's another to lie about breaking said rule.  

 

What Skeeter did was pretty innocent even though I would have done the same thing NPFL did.   

[Texas Flood]

I didnt know that about Martin. Yikes! 

 

This article and the Martin DQ thread did not age well.

 

https://www.bassmaster.com/column/bryan-brasher/mad-respect-for-scott-martin/

[AlabamaSpothunter]

Yeah that might have been my last straw for BASS, I'm amazed at the fact they would carry Martin's water at the expense of their integrity.   How they didn't think that knowledge would come out is beyond me.

 

 

[JHoss]

Where can I see the Scott Martin video? I've heard rumor of it multiple times now, but didn't know it was out there somewhere.

 

@AlabamaSpothunter Based on what I know about them all, I'd agree with you on Scott Martin. I clearly haven't seen the video yet, but it seems to be the only case of an angler intentionally breaking a rule. 

 

 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

I don't think the video is available to the general public including myself.  

 

I have no doubts it exists though because my friend who is a top level pro saw it and was talking it about the first day of that event.   Then after the event was over, other major players in the industry started to confirm the video.     

 

The way I understand is the deal was that if Scott self-reported the violation, the video wouldn't be made public, so I guess whoever made the video is honoring their word.  

 

 

[JHoss]

That tracks with BASS. Kind of reminiscent of the Tony Christian drama back in the day. To this day, only 3 or 4 people really know what happened. Really kills their credibility when this kind of knowledge is commonly out there in our community, but they sweep it under the rug. 

 

I've said on here before I like how Brad Fuller is running the NPFL and it seems like he's surrounded himself with the right kind of people. BASS and MLF could learn some lessons here. 

[Tennessee Boy]

So Scott Martin was caught on video breaking the rules.  The person with the video threatened to go public if he didn't self report.  He self reported and BASS DQed him.  What did BASS do wrong?  

[JHoss]

9 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

So Scott Martin was caught on video breaking the rules.  The person with the video threatened to go public if he didn't self report.  He self reported and BASS DQed him.  What did BASS do wrong?  

They've allowed him to spin the story in a way that makes him look good. Even going so far as to have him on the actual broadcast for that event. Martin pushed a story about how he didn't stop someone from sharing info in his shop, when the reality is that he was asking for info. IMO, BASS should have been more transparent about that and not let him lie about it. 

[Team9nine]

1 hour ago, JHoss said:

 

@Team9nine and @AlabamaSpothunter, who's DQ was most deserving? Herren, Martin, or Crosby?

I really don’t know. From what I’ve read, Zona/Sanders seemed to suggest Herren’s was much more egregious than what Herron suggested in his video explanation, and Scott Martin’s also seems much more nefarious than the happy picture BASS has painted. Would he have ever self reported on his own if not threatened/extorted? So I’m going with Crosby’s was the least deserving - lol - or most likely to be an honest mistake.

[Tennessee Boy]

9 minutes ago, JHoss said:

They've allowed him to spin the story in a way that makes him look good. Even going so far as to have him on the actual broadcast for that event. Martin pushed a story about how he didn't stop someone from sharing info in his shop, when the reality is that he was asking for info. IMO, BASS should have been more transparent about that and not let him lie about it. 

Do we know that BASS knew he was lying when he was on their broadcast?  Is there a rule against spinning a story?  

[JHoss]

17 minutes ago, Team9nine said:

I really don’t know. From what I’ve read, Zona/Sanders seemed to suggest Herren’s was much more egregious than what Herron suggested in his video explanation, and Scott Martin’s also seems much more nefarious than the happy picture BASS has painted. Would he have ever self reported on his own if not threatened/extorted? So I’m going with Crosby’s was the least deserving - lol - or most likely to be an honest mistake.

I certainly don't believe his or his son's side of the story 100%. Of course Jr is going to be loyal to his dad and not admit to something truly nefarious if it did happen. I think Crosby's being the most likely to be an honest mistake is very true. Otherwise, he's the dumbest cheater in history to try and do it on camera with an employee of the trail.

 

7 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

Do we know that BASS knew he was lying when he was on their broadcast?  Is there a rule against spinning a story?  

We don't know if BASS knew or not, but it's on them as the tournament organization to fully investigate these things before going public. And let's say they found out later, why not release a new statement instead of helping to keep it buried? They were way too tight-lipped with the Jaden Parrish violation in the Open this year. They've kept the details of the Tony Christian cheating scandal under the tightest of wraps for decades. I'm just saying, at this point BASS has shown us their pattern of hiding ugly truths from us. It's beginning to hurt their trustworthiness and I'm not sure how long their run last with legit competition in MLF and NPFL if those organizations do it the right way. 

[TnRiver46]

I’d say the more controversial the better, just look at how much chatter it drums up 

[F14A-B]

They should DQ the camera boat also. 

[JHoss]

1 hour ago, TnRiver46 said:

I’d say the more controversial the better, just look at how much chatter it drums up 

Any publicity is good publicity they say. Call me old fashioned, but I'd much prefer the controversy and drama be about the two guys who threw down at the ramp because one cut the other off. 

 

3 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

They should DQ the camera boat also. 

From the complaints about the latest MLF coverage, it sounds like Boyd DQ'd half his camera boats for half that event. 

[Pumpkin Lizard]

2 hours ago, JHoss said:

Where can I see the Scott Martin video? I've heard rumor of it multiple times now, but didn't know it was out there somewhere.

 

@AlabamaSpothunter Based on what I know about them all, I'd agree with you on Scott Martin. I clearly haven't seen the video yet, but it seems to be the only case of an angler intentionally breaking a rule. 

 

 

That’s why I don’t buy it. Like why is there even a video. Was it like some sort of no info rule sting operation?

 

 I think it’s funny that BASS DQd two guys and people cried bloody murder but NPFL did the same thing and it’s all good.

 

There just seems to be a double standard in play.

[JHoss]

7 minutes ago, Pumpkin Lizard said:

I think it’s funny that BASS DQd two guys and people cried bloody murder but NPFL did the same thing and it’s all good.

 

There just seems to be a double standard in play.

It's the way they handled it for me. BASS kept everything rather secretly while NPFL's was cut and dry on their stream. Speaking of double standards, BASS's double standard is the biggest issue with me. BASS slapped the wrist of an Open's angler with a $4,000 fine instead of a DQ just weeks before a complete DQ of Herren and Martin. Also, I think NPFL letting that angler keep the weight from his first two days was absolutely the right way to handle their situation. 

 

My understanding is that a lot of BASS leadership are not tournament anglers and it's shown a few times this season and offseason with their rules changes and punishments handed out for rules violations. 

[Tennessee Boy]

I am not really into the soap opera dramas in sports. All sports have it. I will say this: there is a difference between the officials and the pundits/media. It would be a big mistake for the NFL to allow the officiating crew to be interviewed after a game. Having them say on TV "The guy has a reputation with all of the officials in the league for trying to get away with holding on every play, so I was watching him closely." Officiating should be by the book without additional commentary in all sports.  

 

BASS is different from many sports leagues in that it has people who enforce the rules and it also has a media wing. I would hope the two communicate as little as possible. Scott Martin was DQed for soliciting information, which was the right thing to do. It is not the tournament director’s job or duty to also declare him a scumbag. That's the job for us on social media. 😆

 

Personally, I don't like the fact that everyone knows someone who’s seen the video but it's not publicly available. I haven't heard the details about the video because I haven't looked for them, but how do we know when the video was taken? What does it actually show him saying?  

 

If it's our duty as social media to condemn the guy, we need to see all of the evidence.

[Glenn]

EVERY tournament now has some sort of contrived drama surrounding it.  It's ridiculous guys.  At the end of the day, it hardly affects you personally, if at all.  So it's just a big nothingburger.  The Bachelor version of bass fishing.

 

Just knock it off and go fishing.  It's supposed to be fun after all.

[Pumpkin Lizard]

34 minutes ago, Glenn said:

EVERY tournament now has some sort of contrived drama surrounding it.  It's ridiculous guys.  At the end of the day, it hardly affects you personally, if at all.  So it's just a big nothingburger.  The Bachelor version of bass fishing.

 

Just knock it off and go fishing.  It's supposed to be fun after all.

 

The Bachelor. How did Byron Velvick get dragged into this?:)

46 minutes ago, JHoss said:

It's the way they handled it for me. BASS kept everything rather secretly while NPFL's was cut and dry on their stream. Speaking of double standards, BASS's double standard is the biggest issue with me. BASS slapped the wrist of an Open's angler with a $4,000 fine instead of a DQ just weeks before a complete DQ of Herren and Martin. Also, I think NPFL letting that angler keep the weight from his first two days was absolutely the right way to handle their situation. 

 

My understanding is that a lot of BASS leadership are not tournament anglers and it's shown a few times this season and offseason with their rules changes and punishments handed out for rules violations. 

 

Based on everything that is publicly available, I don't really see how BASS handled it wrong.  I also don't see NPFL doing anything wrong. It all just appears to be toxic axe grinding.

 

It's just amazing that the narrative went from "Scott Martin doesn't even need inside info on his home lake" to "Scott Martin is a scumbag" so easily and with basically just rumors.

 

I think Herren and Martin's punishment was fine since if they did get something then it would help them for the entire tournament and not just a part of it.

[JHoss]

50 minutes ago, Tennessee Boy said:

BASS is different from many sports leagues in that it has people who enforce the rules and it also has a media wing. I would hope the two communicate as little as possible.

Kinda like when Ike got fined for yelling at the dog then BASS used that clip heavily for their promos?

 

 

46 minutes ago, Glenn said:

EVERY tournament now has some sort of contrived drama surrounding it.  It's ridiculous guys.  At the end of the day, it hardly affects you personally, if at all.  So it's just a big nothingburger.  The Bachelor version of bass fishing.

 

Just knock it off and go fishing.  It's supposed to be fun after all.

Wouldn't the more posts and activity you have on here, be better for you?

[TnRiver46]

1 hour ago, Pumpkin Lizard said:

That’s why I don’t buy it. Like why is there even a video. Was it like some sort of no info rule sting operation?

 

.

If I was a betting man, id bet it was uploaded to YouTube by the offender and then taken down. Just a guess