Howell Heralds the Summertime Texas Rig

By David A. Brown

Pro anglers simply must have a diverse arsenal ranging from the slim-chance maybes to the tried-and-true dependable that’ll for sure put ‘em in the boat. For Randy Howell, the latter is heavily anchored by a strategic assortment of Texas rigs.

“Texas rigs are an all-time staple, all the way from when I was a kid to a professional fishing career spanning about 27 years,” Howell said. “I’ve depended on Texas rigs not only for fun fishing in all situations but for competing all over the country, making a living.

“When money’s on the line, I have multiple Texas rigs with multiple Yamamoto baits on the deck of my Triton boat all the time. It’s very important.”

Across the spectrum of Howell’s professional fishing arsenal, Texas rigs vary greatly in size, weight and presentation style. The collection comprises a mix of stalwarts and situation-specific specialties. An exhaustive summary would take all day, but Howell has curated a quartet of summertime favorites that he knows he can depend on for the year’s middle months.

FLAPPIN’ HOG

Noting that this bait stays in his boat pretty much all the time, Howell said he can rely on the Flappin’ Hog for casting around docks or grass, pitching, flipping or swimming around cover. A true all-around versatile bait, he’s put countless keepers in the boat with this popular creature bait.

He’ll vary the size of his Bass Pro XPS Tungsten bullet weight to match depth and/or cover density, but he always pegs the weight and rigs it on a 4/0 Daichi X-Point Heavy Duty hook. His top color is 955 — watermelon green pumpkin black/red.

“I can do so much with that bait; I can use it with the flappers on there if I want a slower fall or a bulkier bait,” Howell said. “What I do a lot is pull those two flappers off and just have the two main legs sticking out so it looks like a stubby crawfish bait.

“It’s a very versatile bait and that’s why I use it so much on a Texas rig. It’s mostly a pitching/flipping bait for me, but I also do well casting it sometimes.”

KUT TAIL WORM

Howell uses this 7 3/4-inch bait (7GL-series) for bulkier magnum trick worm casting presentations. He’ll commonly rig the Kut Tail on a 3/16-ounce tungsten weight for casting around lily pads and shallow weeds, where he wants a slower fall with a bait that moves a lot of water.

“This bait catches a lot of fish when I’m just casting it, but I can also pitch and flip this bait,” Howell said. “If I’m pitching the Flappin’ Hog and need to change up the presentation, instead of having a short, stubby bait, I want a longer, bulky bait for a bigger bite. A lot of times, I’ll change to that Kut Tail and catch bigger fish.

“If I need to upgrade or I’ve been catching a lot of little fish and all of sudden I know I need a bigger bite; I’ll put that Kut Tail on and that’ll be the difference in getting a couple 3- or 4-pound fish, or one big fish, versus a bunch of 2-pounders.”

Howell rigs his Kut Tail worm on a 5/0 Daichi offset worm hook and favors the green pumpkin purple/green color. Going up or down on his tungsten weight affords him multiple options.

“This is a good deep water bait,” Howell said. “I can go up to a 1/2-ounce bullet weight for casting around deeper on cover. I use this on brush piles a lot. That bait is really high on my list of fish-catching baits, especially in the warmer weather. It’s something I use a lot from the postspawn through the summer months and into the fall.”

6.75-INCH PRO SENKO

This thin worm with the tapered tail fills Howell’s finesse Texas rig needs. Depending on his intended use, he’ll vary his rigging a tackle.

“I’ll use this bait a lot with a 1/4- or 3/16-ounce weight on a baitcaster, but I’ll also use it on a spinning rod with a 1/8 or 1/16-ounce weight,” Howell said. “I do a lot of skipping with this rig; the Pro Senko is a really good dock bait. It’s also good for shallow brush or deep brush with a heavier weight.

“It’s just a really good bait to get a lot of bites on when fishing is tough. Most of the time, I use a 3/0 Daichi offset shank worm hook.”

In clear water, Howell likes straight green pumpkin or green pumpkin watermelon laminate. For all-around use, maybe with some stain in the water, he uses green pumpkin purple green or green pumpkin purple copper.

5-INCH SENKO 

Calling this his Texas-rig staple, Howell won’t be fishing without this ultra-versatile bait. Physics, he said, allows him even greater flexibility.

“I can use the 5-inch Senko with a really light weight and still throw it on a baitcaster because it’s a heavy, bulky bait,” Howell said. “It always catches fish when I’m casting it around points, on brush, on grass. Then I can increase the weight size on a Texas-rigged Senko for pitching it into heavy cover or into grass edges.”

Howell said he’ll maximize his Senko’s versatility by using a wider range of colors. In darker waters like Florida, he likes black blue, bruised green pumpkin or Junebug. In Clear waters, it’s green pumpkin purple copper or green pumpkin watermelon laminate.

“If I’m flipping the 5-inch Senko in heavy cover, I’ll use that 4/0 Daichi X-Point Heavy Duty hook,” Howell said. “If I’m casting it, I’ll change it back to the offset shank worm hook — usually a 4/0.

“That’s why that Texas-rigged Senko is so versatile because you can flip it with heavy braid and a heavy hook in Kissimmee grass or lily pads; but then you can turn around and put it on 10-pound line on a spinning rod and fish it with a tiny weight or no weight at all to fall really slow. All in all, I could not fish for a living without the Texas rig.”