CYPREMORT POINT — There were some long faces showing on the Southcentral Fishing Association fishermen who fished the SFA Classic on Aug. 20.

Milton Davis of Lydia and Jonathan Rush of New Iberia, a Lydia native, were among those with long faces after a day of fishing for “slot” redfish (16 to 17 inches long) with Davis’ grandson, Layn Davis, 8. The Davises and Rush endured or dodged storms most of the day and their favorite fishin’ holes didn’t pan out until 1 ½-2 hours before the 3 p.m. weigh-in under the pavilion along Quintana Canal.

“We got ’em too late. The Gulf was all rough this morning and we couldn’t fish there. We started fishing in the island (Marsh Island),” the elder Davis said as Rush backed Strickly Bidness, a 23-foot long Nautic Star, up to the pavilion after pulling the boat out of the water at Quintana Canal Boat Landing.

Nearly every Classic contestant bemoaned the poor redfish fishing as they arrived at the site. If they did get bit, each said, the “slots” were on the smallish side.

The moment of truth for all at the digital scale manned by Jacob Fisher shocked the Davises and Rush, however. Their two-fish “slot” redfish limit weighed 10.55 pounds, enough to top a 10-boat field in the season’s last event for SFA.

“I didn’t think we were going to win it. What we had? 10.55? You never know. It feels good, especially with my grandboy there, Thus takes the cake,” Davis said after winning a fourth SFA Classic. “I tell you, it was rough fishing. We had one fish for 12 o’clock. Storms and (south) winds messed us up, beating the banks (Gulf shoreline of Marsh Island).”

Rush was more outspoken about the lack of redfish bites and the win, which was worth a total of $1,905, including $145 for the Calcutta-winning “slot” redfish, a 6.50-pounder.

“I tell you what, I tell you what, 10.55 is not a winner. It was that day. A win’s a win, you know,” said the 34-year-old Palfinger Marine HSEQ manager for the Americas. He noted in years past 10 ½ pounds wouldn’t have sniffed the payout.

“We were driving home and laughing at each other. We know you shouldn’t win with that weight. Nobody should win with that weight,” he said.

Still, he said in the same breath, “It felt good to end the year with a big payload.”

The SFA Classic paid the top three places.

Josh St. Germain and his crew of sons Noah St. Germain, Luke St. Germain and Ethan St. Germain were second with a limit of “slots” weighing 9.75 pounds.

Cody Haas, Caleb Evans, Zack Schaubert and Stephen Guilbeau finished third with two “slot” redfish weighing 9.55 pounds.

Davis, 58, an electrician who owns Short Circuit Repair and does contract work for Gulf Coast International, prefished once the day before the tournament and found redfish on the southern shoreline of Marsh Island. When Strickly Bidness got there after the 6 a.m. start for the Classic that Saturday, it was bad news because of the weather and water conditions.

He went to Plan B.

“We left and fished a bunch of lakes, three to four different holes, in Marsh Island,” he said.

The Classic anglers had only one taker while weathering the storms. One storm at midday, however, changed conditions dramatically for the better, according to Rush.

“At 11:45, the wind switched to the north. We went to the Gulf. It was slick. The fish were there. From noon to 2 o’clock we caught fish,” he said.

Davis said they caught about five redfish, including his 6.5-pounder, and missed a few fish that would “hit it and take off so fast.”

“It” was live mullet he used for bait under a popping cork all day. Rush, who caught the 4-p[und class “slot” redfish, and Layn Davis also used Carolina-rigged shrimp on the bottom.

Rush said the bite should have been “on” because the water was clean, the tide was moving and shrimp were jumping out of the water. He believes something is wrong with the redfish population.

“Conditions like that six, seven years ago we would have caught 100 fish. We’ve done it,” he said, remembering one day aboard Strickly Bidness that he, Davis, Davis’ son, Dusty Davis of Lydia, and his daughter, Brittany Davis of Lydia, caught 150 redfish, keeping their five-fish daily creel limit and releasing the rest.

Dusty Davis, who fishes the SFA tournaments with his father and good friend Rush, was working offshore and missed last weekend’s SFA Classic.

Many Classic anglers, Teche Area anglers and other experienced saltwater fishermen around the state, including Todd “Marsh Man” Masson, agree with Rush’s assessment. Masson, an outdoors writer and lifelong fisherman, talked about it earlier this month in a YouTube video that can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=NM0dlWAAy28.

Basically, Masson believes the redfish population has collapsed. As a short-term measure, he called on the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission in the video to lower the recreational redfish limit.

Rush, Davis, et al, are hopeful the SFA’s membership and tournament participation rebounds next year. Toward that goal, SFA president Brooks Amy has scheduled a year-end supper, tentatively to be held in September.

SFA members can talk about any changes that might help, Amy said before the Classic prize money was handed out.