The 2025-26 season is complete for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. The top three were made up of perineal bass fishing powerhouse names with the University of Montevallo earning its 6th School of Year title, followed by 2nd place Carson-Newman University, and the University of North Alabama rounds out the Top 3.
To see all of the schools ranking in the Top 25 in the nation, as well as where the rest of the schools in the nation finished the season, you can view the final rankings here.
The 2025-26 season of the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia marks the 15th season in which the ACA has awarded this title. During this historic 15th season, a total of 129 teams earned points. 55 points earning events were contested, with close to 1,000,000 points being awarded. From Michigan down to Florida, and many places in between, thousands of elite college anglers competed in local, regional, and major national tournaments.
Numerous major milestones and accomplishments were achieved by multiple different schools. The University of Montevallo secured its 6th straight title as Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia. Carson-Newman earned its highest-ever finish by placing 2nd.
The last event of the season was recently contested on the James River and both Carson-Newman and UNA earned points at the B.A.S.S. event last week. This allowed those schools to close the gap between themselves and the top spot, however the lead Montevallo had too much to overcome thanks to high finishes at the recent ACA Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship presented by Bass Pro Shops.
Montevallo earned a total of 40,285 points this season. Carson-Newman finished 1,765 points behind in 2nd, and UNA amassed 34,430 points.
Here is a look at teams that also made significant moves at the James River event to end the year higher up in the rankings for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia:
4) Adrian College – Previously Ranked 7th
13) Auburn University – Previously Ranked 14th
15) Troy University – Previously ranked 17th
20) University of South Carolina-Union – Previously Ranked 23rd
Congratulations to all the teams in the Top 25 this past season. The 2026-27 season for the Bass Pro Shops School of the Year presented by Abu Garcia is now underway. View the program details here, and see a schedule of points earning events at this link.
About the Association of Collegiate Anglers
The Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA) is a division of CarecoTV that was created over twenty years ago to facilitate growth, development, and provide structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing, with emphasis on competitive fishing events nationwide. The ACA created the original BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship which has now evolved into the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, which is now recognized as the longest-running consecutive collegiate bass fishing series in existence. The ACA has also created various other programs such as the Collegiate School of the Year Rankings system, College Bass Fishing Open, Collegiate Big Bass Bash and the College Bass Fishing Springtime Slam.
The ACA lineup of major college fishing events includes a variety of nationwide tournaments that are multi-day tournaments, all of which are televised and streamed on several networks, as well as streamed on a variety of connected platforms allowing fans to follow anyway they choose on any device. These major events have no entry fees and no membership costs associated with them for the college anglers competing. The ACA also provides support to numerous schools operating regional events nationwide which is an effort to provide more opportunities to grow the exposure and awareness of college fishing.
The ACA owns the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, Bass Pro Shops School of Year presented by Abu Garcia program, and associated assets which is widely regarded as the most comprehensive and prestigious collegiate bass fishing title today.
Thanks in part to the large diversity of media exposure the ACA provides, the series boasts the largest amount of televised and streaming coverage of any collegiate fishing series. This includes a dedicated television series on numerous television networks and streaming platforms, as well as additional coverage of select events inside other programs.
This combination includes coverage from national and regional television networks as well as being streamed online on various apps and connected devices. You can also find coverage via video on demand online at any time of past events thanks to coverage on OutdoorActionTV.com and PursuitUp.com
For more information on the ACA or the Bass Pro Shops Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com.
For more information on CarecoTV, visit www.CarecoTV.com
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