Becker’s Drew Graning has built quite the impressive fishing résumé, pitching lures into rivers, lakes and oceans all across the United States.  He’s caught numerous trophy-sized fish, even being named a Master Angler by the MN Fishing Museum Hall of Fame in four categories: crappie, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass and northern pike.  His catch list also includes some unique species, including the long-nosed gar and a lizardfish. 

This week, he will add a television appearance to his impressive index of accomplishments as he will be featured on an episode of Fishing the Midwest with host, professional fisherman and educator Mike Frisch. 

By the way, Drew Graning is just eight years old.  When he was asked why he loves the sport so much, Drew answered like a guy who has been fishing all of his life and that’s because he pretty much has been.

“I just think it’s nice to get out of the house and go catch anything I want,” says Drew, who estimates that he went fishing this past summer well over 100 times.  “It’s also nice in the morning to hear all the birds and sounds in nature.”

Fishing Passion

Graning’s spark to become a fishing enthusiast started when he was just three years old and would jump at the chance to wet his line.  He cut his teeth at the end of the dock at his family’s cabin on Lake Le Homme Dieu, in Alexandria.

Five years later, he’s now known in that area as “The Mayor” and is always the first one out trying his luck each morning.  

According to his parents, Eric and Becky, Drew’s outgoing personality draws quite the crowd of onlookers and well-wishers, as well as some long-time anglers who are looking for the daily fishing report.

“He’s up by six a.m. with his life jacket on and there he is fishing off the dock,” Becky says. 

While his dad Eric provides some help along the way, Drew mostly prefers to do things on his own.

“He was like four or five when he spent an hour sitting on the dock trying to tie his hook,” Eric recalls with a laugh.  “He baits his own hook, ties his own knots, takes the fish off and can pretty much do anything when it comes to fishing.”

Learning

Drew says that his dad told him at a young age that he should watch what other people do in order to learn things, and he took that advice to heart.

He has had a chance to talk with many professional fishermen, while his dad and Grandpa Fred Graning have provided plenty of lessons as well.

And then there’s his perch on the family dock, where he interacts with many anglers who pass by in their boats, many of them fishing tournaments.

“I tell them where to catch the big bass and they tell me where to catch the walleyes,” Drew says. “One time I told a guy where there was a 20 inch bass under a dock and he ended up catching it and finished in like fifth place.”

While his favorite fish to target is bass, his favorite species to catch is northern pike.

“You have to make sure you’re using the right rod and the right line for the fish you’re trying to catch,” said Drew.  “And make sure your drag isn’t set too tight.”

While Drew loves to catch fish, he also enjoys the chance to help others learn something about the sport.  He once helped a youngster from Paris, France learn how to cast, and he also put a young Floridian onto an impressive catch.

“In his first 10 casts, he caught a huge 19 inch bass,” Drews says, noting that he also uses a fishing kayak to find the hot spots.  “I took a picture of him with it and we showed it to his mom and she was shocked.”

Television

The road to Drew’s first television appearance started when he attended a School of Fish class at the Becker Community Center.  Frisch, a former educator of 20 years, combines his love of fishing along with his experience as a teacher to offer the educational classes throughout Minnesota.

“The goal of School of Fish is to educate, equip, and excite the next generation of anglers,” Frisch says.  “We teach kids about the lakes, how to find fish, and how to catch them.  Kids get a rod and reel and tackle so they are ready to fish.”

Since Drew had attended the class, he and Eric followed Frisch’s work online and that is where they saw the opportunity for anglers to register for a drawing for a chance to appear in an episode of the show.

From there, Drew was selected to spend a few hours on August 28 with Frisch and the duo fished on Wall Lake, north of Alexandria. The footage was incorporated into episode four of this season’s show.

“Drew Graning is an excellent angler regardless how old he is!” Frisch says.  “We selected Drew because his passion for fishing really came through in his sign up form.”

Episode four of Fishing the Midwest is scheduled to air on January 23 on Sportsman Channel and will be re-broadcast on select channels, including Bally Sports on January 28.

With his television debut ready to air soon, Drew was willing to offer up a few spoilers - he caught the biggest fish and the most fish.

There was never a doubt.  No one would expect anything less from the “Mayor”.