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Reel Champs
by Laura Cauthen
The dynamic fishing duo of Kyle Tindol and Michael Eubanks are ranked third by ESPN in Collegiate Bass Fishing. Not a bad start for a team that didn't exist two years ago.
When Kyle Tindol made an announcement in chapel that he was starting a Bass Anglers club on campus, he didn't know what the response would be or what great success was looming in the future. To his surprise more than 30 people approached him, including Michael Eubanks. Soon the Tindol and Eubanks team quickly reeled in some respectable showings in national tournaments, placing in the top 10 six times. Now two years later, the team has already represented Faulkner nationally on four different occasions, garnering the number three spot by ESPN. They will also be featured guests in the expo booth at the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport, La. It's an incredible start for a team that almost did not exist.
Before this success story took off, Faulkner nearly lost half of the duo to another university. Only months before Tindol's chapel announcement, friends from Auburn University attempted to lure Tindol away from Faulkner to fish with their nationally-ranked team. Having grown up on the lake, Tindol's love of fishing was strong, but so was his love for Faulkner. He didn't want to transfer. So with Vice President Joey Wiginton's blessings, Tindol set forth to pioneer a Faulkner bass club and remain at the university he loved.
Since the team has club standing and is not a division of athletics, the team receives no school funding. All monies for tournament entries, boats, fishing gear and travel expenses must be raised by the club members. This raises the level of difficulty in maintaining a team, as each member must act as coach, manager, fund raiser and fisherman.
Luckily, Tindol and Eubanks are not only good fishermen but savvy businessmen, as well. As Reynolds says, the success of the team is due to its industrious attitude. "The early success of the Faulkner Bass Anglers is really quite simple: leadership and commitment," he says. "Some of the finest young people on our campus make up this team."
Eubanks landed the sponsorship of several high profile companies like John Deere and Mack Truck dealerships who fund them anywhere from $500 to $5,000. In turn, the team agrees to wear the sponsors' logos on their jerseys. These days, however, the duo is successful enough that companies like Sperry and Columbia are now coming to them.
And then there's the fishing. No Zebco 33s for these guys. It's a high-tech sport with state-of-the-art tools such as digital graphs, sonar and GPS which analyze all the conditions that point them to the fish. However, with respect to the gear, Tindol says it's a matter of having fishing sense. "You just have to think like a fish," he says. "You have to know how the fish are acting that day, follow their food and know what will entice them to bite."
Tindol and Eubanks will put their skills to the test this spring when they represent Faulkner in several tournaments including the FLW Outdoors and Versus Sports Collegiate, as well as the club's own local public tournament in April. As featured guests in the Bassmasters' expo booth, they will have the opportunity to talk fish--and Faulkner--with thousands of people. "I can't tell you how many people ask me about Faulkner," says Eubanks. "People want to know where it is and what kind of school it is."
Tindol concurs, stating that he gets hundreds of hits on his webpage from students who want to fish for Faulkner. "Faulkner is getting a lot of national publicity out of this," he says.
Tindol and Eubanks will graduate this spring and leave the club in the hands of its 12 other members. For Tindol, it's a passion he hopes to pursue on the professional level. "Fishing is complex," he explains. "It can be recreation and relaxation or it can be a million dollar job. But it takes more talent than you think."
When Kyle Tindol made an announcement in chapel that he was starting a Bass Anglers club on campus, he didn't know what the response would be or what great success was looming in the future. To his surprise more than 30 people approached him, including Michael Eubanks. Soon the Tindol and Eubanks team quickly reeled in some respectable showings in national tournaments, placing in the top 10 six times. Now two years later, the team has already represented Faulkner nationally on four different occasions, garnering the number three spot by ESPN. They will also be featured guests in the expo booth at the Bassmaster Classic in Shreveport, La. It's an incredible start for a team that almost did not exist.
Before this success story took off, Faulkner nearly lost half of the duo to another university. Only months before Tindol's chapel announcement, friends from Auburn University attempted to lure Tindol away from Faulkner to fish with their nationally-ranked team. Having grown up on the lake, Tindol's love of fishing was strong, but so was his love for Faulkner. He didn't want to transfer. So with Vice President Joey Wiginton's blessings, Tindol set forth to pioneer a Faulkner bass club and remain at the university he loved.
Since the team has club standing and is not a division of athletics, the team receives no school funding. All monies for tournament entries, boats, fishing gear and travel expenses must be raised by the club members. This raises the level of difficulty in maintaining a team, as each member must act as coach, manager, fund raiser and fisherman.
Luckily, Tindol and Eubanks are not only good fishermen but savvy businessmen, as well. As Reynolds says, the success of the team is due to its industrious attitude. "The early success of the Faulkner Bass Anglers is really quite simple: leadership and commitment," he says. "Some of the finest young people on our campus make up this team."
Eubanks landed the sponsorship of several high profile companies like John Deere and Mack Truck dealerships who fund them anywhere from $500 to $5,000. In turn, the team agrees to wear the sponsors' logos on their jerseys. These days, however, the duo is successful enough that companies like Sperry and Columbia are now coming to them.
And then there's the fishing. No Zebco 33s for these guys. It's a high-tech sport with state-of-the-art tools such as digital graphs, sonar and GPS which analyze all the conditions that point them to the fish. However, with respect to the gear, Tindol says it's a matter of having fishing sense. "You just have to think like a fish," he says. "You have to know how the fish are acting that day, follow their food and know what will entice them to bite."
Tindol and Eubanks will put their skills to the test this spring when they represent Faulkner in several tournaments including the FLW Outdoors and Versus Sports Collegiate, as well as the club's own local public tournament in April. As featured guests in the Bassmasters' expo booth, they will have the opportunity to talk fish--and Faulkner--with thousands of people. "I can't tell you how many people ask me about Faulkner," says Eubanks. "People want to know where it is and what kind of school it is."
Tindol concurs, stating that he gets hundreds of hits on his webpage from students who want to fish for Faulkner. "Faulkner is getting a lot of national publicity out of this," he says.
Tindol and Eubanks will graduate this spring and leave the club in the hands of its 12 other members. For Tindol, it's a passion he hopes to pursue on the professional level. "Fishing is complex," he explains. "It can be recreation and relaxation or it can be a million dollar job. But it takes more talent than you think."
