On top of making college fishing history in more ways than one, Lander University anglers Garrett Smith and Andrew Blanton won the Yamaha Power Pay bonus for the 2025 Strike KingÒ BassmasterÒ College National Championship on beautiful Lake Cherokee in the hills of east Tennessee.
The Lander University Bearcats won an additional $5,000 from Yamaha’s popular contingency program for being the highest finishing team with an eligible Yamaha outboard on their boat. Smith and Blanton became the first two-time National Champions in Bassmaster’s storied college series. They also won the 2024 Championship on Lake Hartwell.
Smith and Blanton narrowly edged out the team of Andrew Turner and James Sumrell during a sudden death fish-off following day three, due to the two teams being tied at the conclusion of the weigh-in. They caught a legal keeper within five minutes of the start of the first-ever overtime, buttoning up their first-place finish in dramatic fashion.
The younger team of Turner and Sumrell (Carson-Newman) ultimately fell to second, but also earned a $1,250 Yamaha Power Pay bonus for being the second highest placing team running an eligible Yamaha. Highlighting one of the many benefits of Yamaha Power Pay; there are numerous opportunities to earn additional money even if you don’t place first.
The back-to-back National Champions fished out of Garrett Smith’s new Falcon boat powered by a Yamaha 250-HP V MAX SHOÒ. Smith was deliberate when buying his new boat and motor package this offseason, after not being eligible for Power Pay during the 2024 championship.
“I was able to get into a new boat for the 2025 season, and I specifically made sure it was powered by a Yamaha so we’d be eligible for Power Pay,” Smith explained. “We missed out on the Power Pay bonus last year, and I wasn’t going to let that happen again! Contingencies like Yamaha offers are so clutch for us college anglers. Bonus payouts go a long way for any angler, but especially at the college level. Yamaha is the way to go for sure.”
A smart decision from Smith, a fifth-year senior who is currently pursuing his master’s in business administration after graduating last year with a degree in Business Marketing. However, Smith’s satisfaction with his Yamaha motor goes beyond contingency payouts.
“I’ve found this Yamaha gets my boat up on pad a lot quicker than other brands I’ve run in the past,” Smith offered. “I’m a shallow water guy, so being able to jump up on pad in skinny water just saves me so much idling time and stress. It has really helped me be a lot more efficient and trust my equipment more this year.”
The ability to safely and efficiently get his Falcon Boat on plane in shallow water may have mitigated some of Smith’s stress throughout the 2025 college fishing season, but it’s safe to say the nail-biting end to the championship on Cherokee induced plenty of anxiety for Smith, Blanton, and Lander University.
Out of all the bass the duo from Lander caught in their college fishing careers, who would have thought a 17-inch largemouth from Lake Cherokee caught within shouting distance from the launch ramp would go down as the most memorable fish catch of their lives?
If you compete in fishing tournaments in high school, college, or in one of the over 600 supported tournaments across the country each year, you should sign up for Yamaha Power Pay. Register online, find more information on the program, and peruse the full list of events and payouts through this link: https://yamahapowerpay.com/ or send an email to powerpay@dynamicsponsorships.com.
