Angling Without an Angle

He always loved fishing. But now Denny Brauer has gone big time with his ESPN fishing show, The Bass Class. Jesus was big on fishing, too. When Jesus takes us fishing he not only shows us where the fish are, but reminds us that it's "no limit" fishing.

Back in 1980, Denny Brauer was earning his living as a mason and pursuing his true passion on the side -- bass fishing. One day he revealed a desire that no doubt shocked his spouse to the core. He announced that he wanted to move from their home in Nebraska to a place where there's "more water," so he could wet his line on a full-time basis.

No more bricklaying for Denny. From now on: professional fishing.

You can just imagine his wife's delight. Yeah, right. As if. Comments Jack McCallum in Sports Illustrated, "Deciding that you wanted to make a livable wage as a bass angler in '80 wasn't quite as risky as deciding that you wanted to make a livable wage as, say, a marble shooter, but it was close."

But guess what? Denny's wife said, "Let's go," and moving to where the fish were was the right move for this fisherman and his family.

Two decades later, Brauer has a Saturday-morning fishing show on ESPN, The Bass Class with Denny Brauer, not to mention two instructional videos...