Fish of the Year
FOTY Anglers Submit 55 Species in 2022
Indiana’s Fish of the Year (FOTY) program continues to be popular, with 71 anglers submitting 139 entries in 2022.
The longest fish of 2022 was a 56-inch longnose gar caught by Hayden Baker in Aikman Creek in Daviess County. The smallest FOTY winning entry was a 3-inch mottled sculpin caught by Greg Porter in the Big Blue River in Henry County. Anglers collectively submitted entries for 55 different fish species. Smallmouth bass was the species that received the most entries from anglers in 2022. Several species made their first appearance to the program, including blue tilapia, emerald shiner and mottled sculpin. Notable species that did not receive entries in 2022 were muskellunge, Northern pike and white crappie.
The Tippecanoe River had more winning entries than any other body of water in 2022. Winning entries for the Tippecanoe River included bigmouth buffalo, blue sucker, gizzard shad, hybrid striped bass, quillback, rock bass, smallmouth bass, smallmouth buffalo and white bass. Other popular bodies of water with multiple winning entries included the Wabash, White, and Ohio rivers, and Lake Michigan.
Anglers who plan to submit entries in 2023 must remember that to be eligible, they are required to submit a photo showing the full length of their catch while on a measuring board or tape.
If you think you’ve caught a winner, there are three easy ways to enter: online, U.S. mail, or email.
- For online entries, enter the required information using the online entry form (found at fishing.IN.gov; click Record Fish) and submit a photo of the fish showing the measurement and a copy of your fishing license (if you are required to have one) to [email protected]
- For mail entries, print and complete an entry form (found at fishing.IN.gov; click Record Fish) and include a photo of the fish showing the measurement and a copy of your fishing license (if you are required to have one) to Record Fish Program, Division of Fish & Wildlife, 402 W. Washington St., Room 273, Indianapolis, IN 46204
- For email entries, submit an electronic version of the entry form and attach a photo of the fish and a copy of your fishing license (if you are required to have one) to [email protected]
Winners are notified by mail and receive an award certificate and a commemorative patch.
2022 Fish of the Year Contest Winners |
||||
Family |
Species |
Length (inches) |
Location (County) |
Angler |
Black Bass |
Largemouth Bass |
22.0 |
Loon Pit (Warrick) |
Matthew Kiefer |
Smallmouth Bass |
21.3 |
Tippecanoe River (Pulaski) |
Alex Deneau |
|
Spotted Bass |
14.5 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
|
Sunfish |
Black Crappie |
16.0 |
Elk Creek Lake (Washington) |
Ray Bateman |
Bluegill |
11.0 |
Private Pond (Newton) |
Anthony A Talarico Jr |
|
Green Sunfish |
8.8 |
Private Lake (Henry) |
Michele Porter |
|
Hybrid Sunfish |
12.0 |
Private Pond (Dubois) |
Sam Sermersheim |
|
Pumpkinseed (tie) |
9.3 |
Clear Lake (Steuben) |
Sally Pagorek |
|
Pumpkinseed (tie) |
9.3 |
St. Joseph River (Elkhart) |
Bruce Buteyn |
|
Pumpkinseed (tie) |
9.3 |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Anthony A Talarico Jr |
|
Redear Sunfish |
12.4 |
Private Lake (Putnam) |
Will Lloyd |
|
Rock Bass |
11.0 |
Tippecanoe River (White) |
Liu He |
|
Warmouth |
9.0 |
Clear Lake (Steuben) |
Roger Voirol |
|
Catfish |
Brown Bullhead |
17.0 |
Private Pond (Johnson) |
Gregory Zentz |
Channel Catfish |
33.0 |
Private Pond (Huntington) |
Dan Bickel |
|
Perch |
Sauger |
18.5 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
Saugeye |
23.0 |
Sullivan Lake (Sullivan) |
Wayne Witkowski |
|
Walleye |
30.0 |
Sylvan Lake (Noble) |
Kenneth Barden |
|
Yellow Perch (tie) |
14.0 |
St. Joseph River (Elkhart) |
Aaron Voirol |
|
Yellow Perch (tie) |
14.0 |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
Greg Saylor |
|
Trout/Salmon |
Brown Trout |
25.0 |
Lake Michigan |
Sean Allwardt |
Chinook Salmon |
40.5 |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
Kenny Barden |
|
Coho Salmon |
33.3 |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
Jeff Brown |
|
Lake Trout |
36.5 |
Lake Michigan (Lake) |
Bryan G Odom |
|
Lake Whitefish |
22.0 |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
Hogir Saeed |
|
Rainbow Trout (tie) |
19.0 |
Strip Pit (Greene) |
Steven Kellett |
|
Rainbow Trout (tie) |
19.0 |
Lake Gage (Steuben) |
Micheal Grime |
|
Steelhead |
32.0 |
Trail Creek (LaPorte) |
Liu He |
|
True Bass |
Hybrid Striped Bass |
30.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Hao Wu |
Striped Bass |
15.5 |
Cecil M. Harden Lake (Parke) |
Liu He |
|
White Bass |
16.5 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
|
Minnow |
Common Carp (tie) |
30.0 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Jonah Switzer |
Common Carp (tie) |
30.0 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
|
Creek Chub |
10.1 |
Crooked Creek (Porter) |
Max Odom |
|
Emerald Shiner |
3.4 |
Otter Creek (Vigo) |
Steven Kellett |
|
Golden Shiner |
10.3 |
Airline Lake (Greene) |
Travis Rowe |
|
Grass Carp |
30.5 |
Ohio River (Clark) |
Joe Johnson |
|
Silver Chub |
6.4 |
Ohio River (Clark) |
Joe Johnson |
|
Striped Shiner |
8.5 |
Fawn River (Steuben) |
Greg Enyart |
|
Sucker |
Bigmouth Buffalo |
24.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
Black Buffalo |
26.8 |
Kankakee River (Starke) |
Mark Holbrook |
|
Blue Sucker |
27.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
|
Golden Redhorse |
20.3 |
Kankakee River (Starke) |
Mark Holbrook |
|
Northern Hogsucker |
15.5 |
White River (Lawrence) |
Ron Anderson |
|
Quillback |
18.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
|
River Carpsucker |
17.0 |
Ohio River (Clark) |
Joe Johnson |
|
Shorthead Redhorse |
18.0 |
White River (Lawrence) |
Ron Anderson |
|
Silver Redhorse |
19.5 |
Ohio River (Clark) |
Joe Johnson |
|
Smallmouth Buffalo |
26.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
|
White Sucker |
20.8 |
Lake Michigan (LaPorte) |
Anthony A Talarico Jr |
|
Other |
Gizzard Shad |
18.0 |
Tippecanoe River (Carroll) |
Liu He |
Goldeye |
17.0 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
|
Skipjack Herring |
16.0 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
|
Bowfin |
30.0 |
Pine Lake (LaPorte) |
Ronald Ryba II |
|
Freshwater Drum |
23.5 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Liu He |
|
Longnose Gar |
56.0 |
Aikman Creek (Daviess) |
Hayden Baker |
|
Shortnose Gar |
28.0 |
White River (Greene) |
Jeffrey Kellett |
|
Blue Tilapia |
17.5 |
Dowling Park (Lake) |
Eric Alegre |
|
Mottled Sculpin |
3.0 |
Big Blue River (Henry) |
Greg Porter |
|
Shovelnose Sturgeon |
31.0 |
Wabash River (Tippecanoe) |
Joe Johnson |
|
