I feel it's the right way. I want the record of George Perry (22-4) to still stand. I don't want this (foul-hooked bass) to be a record, and I want to keep pursuing it with Jed and Mike, and I want everybody else to keep pursuing it.

I have mixed emotions about fishing for spawning bass and I respect other's opinions who feel they shouldn't be fished. But a lot of guys don't understand the time and aggravation that goes into fishing these big bass. The stars really have to be aligned. Conditions have to be perfect. Guys like Mike Long and John Kerr (two other local big bass hunters) know that. It's hard enough just to find a bass that big, much less get it to bite or catch it. Only the people who have caught and fought these big bass know that.

I feel good, awesome, in fact. I'm just stoked to see a fish that big.

We don't want to go out breaking the record with so many people doubting it. We want it to be 100 percent -- or more realistically 90 percent -- being behind it with no controversy. We plan to be back with a world-record bass everyone will get behind.

If I kept pulling it out of the water, I don't know if I would have damaged it. This was so big, we thought we were going to break its neck. But we were confident in the scale. It is without a doubt the world record, so we let it go.

We're playing for the team, playing for the school. The nerves are flaring right now, I want everyone to get in there, go in and play for the team. Understand that everyone has a part to play, it's getting us ready for where we were last season.