Page 15 - 2022 Barnett Spring Issue

Magnolia Crappie Club Adventures Magazine
Magnol ia Cr appie Club Adv entur es Magazine
In-depth with the Hottest Crappie Team in the Country
Hayden & Dan Jeffries – Part 1 of 2

By Bernard Williams, Outdoor Writer, Magnolia Crappie Club

Over the years, I’ve seen excellent crappie teaching me how to bass fish. I started crap-
fishing teams come on the scene and wreak pie fishing about seven years ago, going
havoc on the tournament world. The Capps around Ross Barnett and jigging every visi-
& Coleman, the Buntings, Jeremy Aldridge, ble piece of structure I could find. I started
Terry Stewart, Team Outlaw, and now Team learning how to spider rig a couple of years
Jeffries rule the tournament setting. The after and spent a couple of years trying to
trend would last a few seasons, maybe more, figure that out. When it came out, I got the
but never total domination like I’m seeing original panoptics and tried to understand
now. what I was looking at while spider rigging.
I’ve fished with the Magnolia Crappie Club When I got put out of school for COVID, I
for nearly twenty years; I can honestly say made it my intention to figure out how to use
we’ve got some of the country’s top teams the livescope. I was fishing 6-7 days a week
fishing our tournaments. I’ve witnessed Terry for 2-3 months, no matter the weather.”
Stewart, Rabbit Rogers, John Harrison, and “My home lake is Ross Barnett Reservoir; I
Jeremy Aldridge constantly blow us away at have fished it my whole life. We own a house
the scales during their heyday. on Eagle Lake, so for the last couple years, I

With the advent of the Garmin Livescope, have devoted a lot of my time into trying to
the game has changed. Like live sonar, no figure that crazy lake out”, according to Jef-
other crappie fishing tool has impacted the fries.
crappie fishing world in such a drastic way Hayden says, “Being in school full time and
since the inception of the boat. I’m here to working full time, my fishing time is some-
tell you; live-sonar will only get better. what limited. I fish every day that I can catch
Introducing Hayden and Dan Jeffries, the a break. Sometimes I get to fish all day, and
Brandon, MS Team started fishing with MCC sometimes I will go for an hour or two. I
about 3 or 4 years ago. In their first tour- would say I fish 100-125 days of the year.
nament, they spider-rigged to a third-place Once I get done with school this semester, I
finish at Barnett. plan to have a lot more time to fish.”

Hayden is a full-time college student at “My all-time favorite technique is fishing
Mississippi College studying Business Admin- with a single pole and a jig during the spawn
istration. I like that he’s pursuing a college around Cyprus trees and Reed Grass. I enjoy
degree while balancing his fishing and work- casting at brush piles that hold lots of fish
ing careers. Dan is a laid back proud dad. during the summer. I have been working
Hayden and Dan remain humble and down hard the last two years at long pole dipping
to earth. I’ve seen them get beat, and they utilizing the livescope. I am a spider rigger at
heart, and it will always remain in my arse-
always congratulate the winners. That’s ex- nal.” says Hayden.
cellent sportsmanship.

Hayden says, “I’ve been fishing since I Continued on next page ...................
could walk. Dad put a baitcaster in my hand
when I was 4 or 5 years old and started

15 - Adventures Magazine - MCC Barnett Spring 2022 Issue