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Guide and tournament angler Matt England with his “lifer” southern reservoir crappie. |
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Straight Specks |
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Crappie purist and veteran guide Matt England advances on fish during the pre-spring period. |
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By Noel Vick |
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Caldwell, ID (February 20, 2025) – If you book a trip with England Expeditions, don’t expect to go ‘course fishing’ for carp, bream, and roach. There’ll be no groundbait or boilies, either. That’s a different England. Rather, veteran guide Matt England is based right here in the good ‘ol USA and fishes exclusively for American-made crappies. It’s mid-March in central Illinois and area lakes vacillate between skim ice and hypothermic open water. The so-called ‘brave’ tiptoe out on reservoirs like Shelbyville and Decatur when decent ice forms, but England stays safely at home, prepping for the early spring crappie outbreak and thumbs through names of clients that are at a moment’s notice once England says, “it’s time.” |
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England rolls with the EGO Kryptek S2 Slider-Medium Clear Rubber Net. |
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England doesn’t prebook March, though, understanding that Mother Nature doesn’t much care for him putting hard dates on the calendar. But April and May? “I’m booked,” said the fulltime central Illinois guide. Now your average spring article talks about the shallows warming on bluebird days and the pending spawn. That’s all fine, but what about that chunk of time when crappies still linger in winter mode? That’s where this story begins. Although England’s backdoor crappie waters – Shelbyville and Decatur – are in the Land of Lincoln, the crappie artisan’s wisdom and tactics apply to anywhere crappies take a winter stance, and that’s about everywhere. 2,800-acre Decatur Reservoir is, as England describes it, “basically a big bowl.” With an average depth of 8-feet and no structure to speak of, its crappies – white and black – tend to ball up in general areas of preferred temperatures, which they share with nummy baitfish. |
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To find fish, England relies on forward-facing sonar (FFS) to identify remnants of the past season’s baitfish population and hopefully their arch nemesis crappies. He searches for the warmest water and takes an outside-in approach, first testing wintering grounds and then moving shallower if fish are starting to make their move. Almost invariably, he says, transitional crappies will be suspended, making them prime for FFS discovery. Once fish are outed, he creeps as close as possible without blowing up the school, which requires long and accurate casts. England’s next act is assessing their willingness to eat. Without a second thought, he reaches for a pre-rigged combo featuring a hair jig. “The density of cold water gets the best out of a hair jig,” said England. “They don’t displace a lot of water and move subtly and naturally.” A naked hair jig also falls seductively and doesn’t force a half-frozen crappie to chase down a meal. |
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England says EGO’s 18-inch aluminum Measuring Board is a must-have tool for crappie fishing. He notes that the white markings pop through a crappie’s translucent tail. |
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But if they aren’t buying the free-range jig, England slows things down with a slip-float. “Fish have more time to find and hit the jig under a cork,” said England. He operates with Thill Crappie Corks, liking that individual sizes are marked to match exact jig weights. He ties the same hair jig with a loop knot beneath the float. The specialty knot lets the jig seductively “lullaby swing,” as he describes it. England activates the cork and jig with small twitches, which prompts the jig’s hair to pulse ever-so-slightly. Bites can be subtle, too. “They might just close their mouth around the jig, not pulling or running,” said England. Consequently, it’s imperative to watch the cork like a hawk. Irregular activity, like tipping to one side, can indicate there’s a taker. |
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If the fish are especially persnickety, England covers the tip of the hook with a single waxworm. Shelbyville Reservoir is England’s other love interest. Significantly beefier than Decatur at 11,000-acres, the waterway is laden with submerged timber – and England goes straight to the wood, seeking remnant trees and brush midst creek channels and associated drop-offs. The denser the lumber the better. England’s wooden options on Shelbyville consist of shallow stuff on one end of the reservoir and deeper timber on the other. Knowing that rank and file anglers prefer the more easily fished shallower timber, he chooses the motherlodes that stick to trees in 30-feet and over, where they’ll suspend 8- to 15-feet below the surface. By and large, his techniques are the same on Shelbyville, too, opening with nude hair jigs and adding a slip-float as necessary. |
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Dean Martin Nuclear Hair Jig (England’s choice in clear water) |
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Dean Martin Phantom Hair Jig (England’s choice in stained water) |
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THE BAIT As you’d expect, England’s tackle selections are equally as precise. In the realm of hair, the crappie slayer fishes jigs tied by a 16-year old artisan. “They’re called Dean Martin Hair Jigs, part of the TOPHAT Jigs family of baits,” England explained. The kid truly ties extraordinary jigs, too. They’re based off detailed jigheads, replete with bulbous inset eyeballs, and feature a fully wrapped body finished with the ideal volume of exquisite plumes. Mostly, England fishes a 1/16th ouncer, and has a poignant thought on color selection. “It’s sort of backwards math, but I have better success with darker colors in stained water and brighter colors when the water is clear.” Universally, his premise is proven out again-and-again with anglers willing to think in reverse, regardless of the species. Crappies can be as picky about colors as an interior designer. Consequently, England carries a wide assortment of optic options. |
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TOPHAT Jigs‘ crappie colorwheel. England encourages having a wide range of colors for the particular preferences of crappies. |
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THE CATCH The nickname ‘papermouth’ is well earned. Crappies, especially slabs, are notorious for coming unglued before you can grip a lip. England doesn’t take his chances, netting keepers and outsized crappies with a reliable EGO landing net. “I bought my first EGO S2 Slider eight years ago,” said England. “I love the sliding option and how it can be condensed to lay on the deck of the boat.” Presently, England rolls with the Kryptek S2 Slider-Medium Clear Rubber Net. “It’s just the right size – not too big, not too small, and it reaches out to nine feet. The soft rubber netting really takes care of the fish. And, I think because the clear netting doesn’t heat up laying on the deck, it’s also better for the fish.” So, where is England’s very first EGO net. The family heirloom now permanently resides in his dad’s boat… |
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ABOUT EGO Fishing Fourteen years ago, we set out on a simple mission – to develop a better fishing landing net solution that addressed the many functional and performance problems that existed with the traditional products. What started out as a small landing net company has now grown into the innovation leader in the fishing net and accessories category of the sport fishing industry. EGO products are sold at most major sporting goods retail chains and are carried by a large network of distributors and independent dealers in the United States. Distribution has also grown internationally to include countries such as Canada, Russia, South Africa, South Korea and Japan. |