West Virginia Angler Catches 72.75-Pound Blue Catfish To Set New State Record

Imagine having a state record on your resume … epic.

That’s exactly the case for angler Tyler Harmon, who was just out for some casual fishing with his father, Rodney, and 4-year-old son, Walker. (RELATED: ‘Majestic Unicorn’: Rare Albino Buck With Huge Rack Captured In Viral Video)

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From Ravenswood, West Virginia, Harmon wanted to do some evening fishing and decided to take a trip to the Ohio River.

Originally, the group just wanted to find a small fish for Walker to catch, but the fishing gods had something else in store for them.

Sitting in an 18-foot aluminum boat, the Harmons had four catfish rods in the water, and not too far into things … it happened.

Initially thinking they were snagged, Tyler ended up finding himself in a 20-minute fight with a blue catfish, and ultimately hoisting it on the boat with his father after also battling against submerged brush and the boat’s anchor line, the catch didn’t come without the fish bending the aluminum handle of their landing net.

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But 72.75 pounds, 48.15 inches long, 33.5 inches in girth and a new West Virginia state weight record for blue catfish later, I’d say it was worth it.

This is the beauty of river fishing. You pack a cooler and rig up a few lines with zero grand ambitions, and suddenly you’re in a brawl with a 73-pound beast.

The Ohio River isn’t exactly the crystal-clear postcard water of the Florida Keys or a pristine mountain trout stream in Montana — it’s murky, industrial, and grimy — but a state record is a state record.

What makes this even crazier is that most hardcore trophy hunters spend thousands of dollars on high-end electronics, obsess over lunar phases, and grind through miserable 14-hour days just to catch a glimpse of a fish like that. Harmon caught it on a casual evening trip with three generations squeezed into a boat.

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73 pounds of pure river gold … under these circumstances … truly incredible.