Josh Moody (AKA Ocmulgeegreen on Instagram) is a big fan of the bladed jig, and has one tied on year-round. The fall is far from the exception.  

"I’ll throw big swimbaits and get real good bites, I’ll throw jerkbaits and get real good bites, but I’m always going to have a bladed jig tied on just because I feel like I can always catch a fish somewhere on it,” said Moody. 

Moody has been fishing for the majority of his life, but admits the fish still get the better of him at times. So having a bait he knows the fish will bite is key.  

“I’ve been fishing since I was five years old, and I’ll be 40 this year, and I still haven’t figured out a largemouth bass. I just go out there and cast as many times as I can in the allotted time that I have.” 

Making those casts in the fall with a vibrating jig on the other end of the line increases Moody’s odds of getting bit.  

“A lot of Septembers going into October and even into November, that bladed jig, it’ll catch some big fish,” said Moody. 

Many anglers lean towards a vibrating jig in the spring and more towards a spinnerbait in the fall. But Moody has found the bladed jig is the better producer for him as the water temps start to cool.

“I seem to have, over time, gotten more bites on a bladed jig versus a spinnerbait. I mean, I’ll throw a spinnerbait if the situation calls for it. And if I can catch fish on it, I’ll throw it all day. But it’s not one of my top go-to lures that I reach for in the boat.” 

In the spring, Moody goes with more of the red and orange craw color patterns when fishing a vibrating jig, and favors the shad patterns in the fall, typically. But if the water muddies up in the fall, all bets are off.  

“When that muddy water comes along, that’s when I’ll reach for that craw color. That orange and red seems to really get a good bite in muddy, stained water.” 

The Z-Man Jackhammer is a favorite of Moody’s, but this isn’t the only vibrating jig he’ll throw. 

“I’ll have two or three different ones in the boat that I can tie on to see what they’ll bite better. Sometimes they don’t care but sometimes they’re real particular.”  

His trailer of choice for the Jackhammer is the Gary Yamamoto Zako. 

“I will say, on the Jackhammer, it kind of levels out that erratic behavior a little bit. Some people might not want to erase that erratic behavior, but I kind of like the way it evens it out.” 

When fishing around heavy, wooded cover, Moody moves to a different brand bladed jig.  

“I beat the banks in most of the water that I fish, trying to fish around structure. I will say, the Thunder Cricket made by Strike King bounces off the wood better than the Jackhammer made by Z-Man does.” 

Sometimes, the bass aren’t on the shallow cover though. 

“If I can’t get those bites, I might get a little deeper out from the bank and run it a lot slower in deeper water trying to get a bite.”  

Moody also likes to fish topwaters like a buzzbait deep into the fall, but when the bass just want quite commit to it anymore, that’s when he can still use a vibrating jig to catch those fish.  

“I’m not getting a topwater bite but I realize I can wake that thing and draw them up and get a bite like that, I’ll do that all day.” 

Moody’s line selection for the vibrating jig may seem a little unorthodox to some, but it makes sense to him and has many advantages, especially when targeting big bass with a bladed jig around heavy cover.  

“I used to hate braid and gave up on it for a long time. But I’ve gotten to where I throw that Sufix 832 braid, mostly in the 30-pound. I like the way it casts, I can cast a long way with it, and I can boat flip 6- pounders with it.” 

“I can feel it coming through the water good on that braid. I’ve got it on a rod that my cousin just made me specifically for ChatterBaits and Rat-L-Traps. And I like the way that it feels on that rod as far as that braid goes.” 

Sometimes, there are little deals that Moody will key in on to get bit with a vibrating jig, bumping it off cover in the shallows, slow rolling it out deeper and then going with the craw colors in the muddy water. But sometimes, Moody admits that it’s just a crapshoot in the fall. 

Even then though, he believes the vibrating jig is the way to go.  

“Sometimes there ain’t no rhyme or reason, just tie it on and chuck that son of a gun.”