Myrtle Beach Sun Times article:
The McMullan family of Ocean Isle Fishing Center once again ventured to the waters of the giant kings off Biloxi, Miss., and continued their rule over the Southern Kingfish Association’s Nationals.
For a record-setting third time in five years, the McMullans and their Team OIFC won the national championship of king mackerel fishing in Biloxi Saturday by weighing in kings that tipped the scales at 56.28 and 48.82 pounds for a two-fish aggregate of 105.10, which topped the second-place finisher by over 10 pounds.
Team OIFC also won the open championship of the SKA Nationals in 2009 and 2011, and with each passing year, it has become more and more of a family affair for the crew as the younger McMullans get a little older.
This year the crew included brothers, Capt. Barrett McMullan and Capt. Brant McMullan, their dad, Rube McMullan, and Brant’s wife, Amy McMullan. Even the youngsters – 8-year-old Caroline and 4-year-old Brayden, the daughter and son of Brant and Amy – played important roles.
Each November, the top king mackerel fishermen from North Carolina to Texas converge on the Gulf Coast at Biloxi after qualifying for the national tournament through SKA divisional tournaments during the year.
Winning the championship three out of five years against such stiff competition in a sport that supposedly involves a huge dose of luck is an amazing accomplishment.
“I think it’s extremely impressive,” said Jack Holmes, managing partner of the SKA, which was formed in 1991. “I just think that whole family has done their homework. Somewhere along the line I’m sure they keep some type of records of where, when, time, conditions. They’re paying attention to all the details. They take the necessary time to prepare, and they never quit until the last minute.”
Holmes reflected on when the McMullans came on stage Saturday to accept their winnings – about $60,000 worth of cash and prizes including a 21-foot Contender center console – at the awards ceremony.
“Rube came up onstage, the kids were all there, Amy was there, and I congratulated him,” said Holmes. “There are a lot of fathers around that could learn lessons here. They work together, play together, hold family values together. Here’s a guy holding his family together – they’re just excellent people and excellent fisher people.”
After a few days to reflect on the win, Brant McMullan was sure to give credit to every member of the crew including four-year-old Brayden.
“I’m really proud of that fact – Mom and the kids aren’t sitting in the bean bags just hanging out cheering on Dad and husband,” said Brant. “Our family are members of the team. Even the young ones have a specific job.”
Brant detailed the roles of the crew members.
“Amy is the No. 1 angler – she caught both fish we weighed to win the tournament. Her job is to catch the fish so Barrett and I can keep fishing,” said Brant. “Caroline is angler No. 2. She is asked to keep lines tight, help keep fish hooked.
“Brayden, even though he is only 4, he’s responsible for getting bait out of the bait well. We call for a bait and he gets the dip net and gets us a lucky bait. He’s also the plier man – he grabs them when we need them. He also knows how to make sure the rod is bent and keep the line tight when we have a fish on a rod in the rod holder.”
All that help allows the men of the crew to concentrate on keeping baits in the water and hooking up as many fish as possible, which is especially important at Biloxi where the bite of kings ranging from 30 to 50 or even 60 pounds can be fast and furious. Simply, the more kings caught the better chance of culling through them to find that smoker everyone is looking for.
“When you’re in them, the more fish you see and catch, the better odds you have (of catching a big one),” said Brant McMullan. “When you get to the right spot, you’ve got to be efficient in what you do. You’ve got to capitalize on the moment. For us it’s an objective to have five fish on at all times.”
Team OIFC was one of four boats fishing the event with ties to Ocean Isle Fishing Center (OIFC), which is owned and operated by the McMullans.
Amazingly, the top three finishing boats had ties to the OIFC and southeast North Carolina. The crew of Choice of Two, headed by Corey Bellamy of Calabash, N.C., and the OIFC, finished second and the Wilmington N.C.-based crew of Windy Conditions, including OIFC Capt. Steele Park, took third.
“Actually that whole group up there, it’s a strong fishing area and when they fish together, that’s got to help,” said Holmes. “Everybody’s got one or two boats fishing with them, very few boats fish all by themselves.”
Indeed, the four boats with OIFC ties started fishing different areas with an agreement to call their partners if they found an area with a hot bite. Rough seas caused the tournament to be pared down to a one-day event instead of two, with boats able to weigh two kings during the one day of fishing on Saturday.
Bellamy and the Choice of Two crew found a hot bite in a likely spot – the Salt Dome area near the Horseshoe Rig, located about 80 miles south of Biloxi, where the McMullans caught their fish during their previous two wins in the tournament.
Bellamy and crew radioed their partners to inform them of the bite, and the OIFC crew joined the action.
Choice of Two caught the largest king in the tournament there, a 58.44-pounder, and held the lead at the docks, until Team OIFC showed up to weigh their catch.
The McMullans two-fish aggregate of 105.10 pounds topped Choice of Two with 94.82 pounds and Windy Conditions’ third-place aggregate of 91.86 pounds.
