Lower Burrell's Austin Aikins casting off to professional fishing career

Fresh off competing in the collegiate national championships, Lower Burrell’s Austin Aikins is taking the next step in his fishing career.

“I’m going to try to pursue it on a professional level right now,” said Aikins, who represented Bethel University in the Major League Fishing (MLF) College National Championships, Feb. 21-23, in Kissimmee, Fla. He is scheduled to graduate with a degree in sports management from Bethel in early May.

A small school in western Tennessee, Bethel has one of the top bass fishing programs in the country.

“Down south, bass fishing is like wrestling in Western Pennsylvania. All the high schools and colleges have fishing teams,” said Aikins, who earned a fishing scholarship to Bethel coming out of Central Catholic.

“Austin Aikins is a fine young angler, but more than that, he is a great young man,” Bethel coach Garry Mason said. “Austin’s career as a pro angler, if he so chooses to take that path, will be very exciting to watch, as he continues to grow in the sport of professional bass fishing. We wish him all of the best moving forward, and it has been a true privilege to have been his college fishing coach over the past few years.”

The Bass Cats qualified four boats, with two anglers in each craft, for the recent championships at Lake Tohopekaliga, commonly known as Lake Toho. Aikins was teamed with Sean O’Brien, a junior from Oklahoma.

“It was tough. We finished in the middle of the pack, I believe,” Aikins said. “I’m used to fishing in Pennsylvania and Tennessee. It’s a lot of river fishing and big lakes with very deep water. Down in Florida, the water is shallow and super hot. There are a lot of weeds and grass. It was a completely different style of fishing. We gave it our all, but it just wasn’t enough.”

According to Aikins, tournament teams launch at 7 a.m., fish for bass all day and then return at 3 p.m. to weigh their five heaviest catches. Weather conditions hampered the Aikins-O’Brien duo on the tourney’s second day.

“There was a fog delay until 10:30, and they didn’t push back the weigh-in,” he said. “We couldn’t go to the spots we had planned to fish because we would have lost too much time. We tried to figure out something new, but it just didn’t work.”

Aikins said he’s just the third angler from Pennsylvania to compete for Bethel since Mason started the program in 2009.

“If I wouldn’t have come down here and learned all of the tips and techniques from people down here, I don’t think I would ever be able to pursue a pro career,” he said.

Aikins also credited his parents, Marie and Bill, for being instrumental in his fishing endeavors.

“I wouldn’t be anywhere if it weren’t for them,” he said. “They supported and helped me in every single way possible.”

With his college career in the rear-view mirror, Aikins is looking to follow in the footsteps of a number of Bethel alumni fishing on the pro circuits.

“There are two different pro leagues, MLF and Bassmasters,” he said. “Bassmasters is kind of the one that everyone wants to go for.”

On the Bassmasters circuit, Aikins said he would start competing as an amateur in open tournaments. The top open finishers receive invites to the elite series for pro anglers.

Pro fishing can be an expensive career path, Aikins pointed out.

“There’s a tourney every two weeks, and it’s about $2,500 to enter one,” he said. “You kind of have to fish them all because there’s a point system. Besides the entry fees, there’s hotels, gas and food. It’s pretty pricey.”

Aikins said he’s fortunate to have a sponsor — MVW Nutritional — to help defray costs. He sealed the deal with a personal pitch to the owner of the Huntsville, Ala.,-based producer of nutritional supplements and vitamins.

“In high school, I was sick from Lyme disease. I started taking MVW’s products, and they really brought me back to health,” he said. “I reached out to the company’s owner and told him my story. He loved it and said he wanted to help me pursue my career. So MVW started sponsoring me last year.”

In addition to the sponsorship, Aikins started working at MVW through an internship. After college graduation, he plans to return to Lower Burrell while continuing to work for the company to save money. He expects to embark on his pro fishing career in January 2024, dividing time between his MVW job and competing in open tournaments.

“I feel good about taking the next step,” he said. “Bethel was definitely a great experience, and a lot of fun too. We got to travel all of the country and fish. That’s pretty unbeatable.”