Mayor Neil McKinnon III
Appearances
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
It wasn't till the end when it was over and the winners were announced that in the four or five years that we have done this, it wasn't whispers anymore. People were visibly frustrated and verbally frustrated.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
These guys fish competitively, and when they're not fishing competitively, they're practicing. So there's not a professional walleye team that doesn't have more fish in their freezer than they know what to do with. On the last day, these two guys, who are as accomplished as anybody and have been on such a hot streak, they didn't donate their fish back.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I'm thinking, you just won this tournament, you just won all this money, you just got all this recognition, and you want to take those fish home and clean them? Look, I love walleyeing as much as anybody, but if I win $10,000, I'm not cleaning fish. I'm going to eat lobster. Am I wrong? It didn't make sense to me, and I thought it weird, but that was it.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I've been here my entire life, and when you love a city like I love this city, it's not enough to just be here. I want to be able to give back.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I was already looking towards next year's tournament, how to make that bigger and better. You know, I really wanted to grow this tournament from plus or minus 50 teams to 150 teams. And again, not to repeat myself, I wanted food trucks. I wanted live entertainment, beer garden, activity for kids. I wanted to make this the biggest walleye tournament on planet Earth.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
The walleye come right through Rossford. They go up to Perrysburg, all the way up to the dam, and they spawn. And every year that brings tourists not only regionally, but nationally and internationally. If you're an avid fisherman, the walleye run would be on your bucket list. That's even if you lived in Germany or a European country.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I wanted all the trappings, all the bells and whistles. And the more people that came to Rossford, the better. I mean, I wanted to do food trucks and a beer garden. I wanted to bring one or two national acts in to headline and to have some local acts open up. I wanted to turn it into something national. I wanted to make this the biggest walleye tournament on planet Earth.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
You know that old saying, this isn't our first rodeo? In 2017, it was our first rodeo.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I think we're really good to the fishermen. Basically, whatever the entry fee was back then, you got twice that back in freebies.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
even if you didn't win anything. Bass Pro was the consummate host, and I thought the visitors at Convention Bureau did an amazing job of taking care of the fishermen.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
We were growing, and this isn't arrogance or ego. We want this to become the biggest and most famous professional wildlife tournament on planet Earth. That really was our goal at the beginning. We were getting up there. The feedback we were getting from the fishermen was amazing. And all of a sudden, there were certain corporate sponsors that were showing up that were never there before.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
So we thought we were either on the launch pad or we were launching.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I think because of the tournaments that they had won, they were on everybody's radar screen. Here's Mayor Neal again. I would compare it to a local charity golf outing. You never want to win it because there's always suspicion. You want to come in second because nobody cares who came in second. And you still get a couple of prizes.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
So I heard the same whispers and the same animosity towards them more than I did hear from anyone else. I just thought it was jealous.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
We have a dinner, registration, a welcoming, food trucks. The attitude of the fishermen the night before was excellent. It was like a tailgate party, but everybody's rooting for the same team. I'm obviously very biased, but I loved every second of it.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
You know, everybody's optimistic. Everybody can't wait to get on the water.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
I thought it was the right move for the tournament, especially the right move for the fishermen. Them being closer to the lake where they're actually going to fish, I was more than fine with it.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
The mood had definitely changed. There was no excitement with it. There weren't a lot of trophy-sized fish. A lot of the teams, I think, were pretty much beat up and tired. The conditions weren't that great, and it was a long 48 hours. I think most of them were just ready to go home.
Big Time
Dead Fish Tell No Tales: Part 1 | 2
Walleye fishing is a big deal in all of northwest Ohio and southeastern Michigan, and we're right there on the front lines of it. My name is Neil McKinnon III, and I'm the mayor of the great city of Rossford, Ohio.