TOPEKA (KSNT) – A Missouri angler has broken a more than decade-old catfish record in Kansas by nearly 20 pounds.
The Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) reports on its website the record for blue catfish was broken on May 15 this year by a man from Agency, Missouri. He caught the big catfish using a rod and reel with common carp used for bait.
The new state record, caught on the Missouri River, weighs in at 121.1 pounds and measures in at 59.75 inches. The previous record, caught by an Olathe man using a rod and reel with cut bait on the Missouri River in 2012, weighed in at 102.8 pounds and measured in at 56.75 inches.
Daniel Mayer holds up the new Kansas state fishing record blue catfish he caught on the Missouri River in May, 2025.
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27 News got in touch with the angler, Daniel Mayer, who shared details on how he landed the big fish and how he feels about setting a new state fishing record. Mayer described his catch as “truly just a fish of a lifetime” that he caught while fishing with a Big Cat Fever rod on the Missouri River late at night before an upcoming tournament.
“I really struggled to get her into the boat myself,” Mayer said. “It was all still setting in like ‘oh my gosh, this is a true giant.'”
Mayer said he was wrapping up fishing on the river that night when he hooked the blue catfish. He was shocked by the size and weight of his catch as he reeled it in.
“I didn’t realize until I tried to lift her up and into the boat just how big she was,” Mayer said. “At first I thought my net was stuck on the side of the boat. Then I realized it’s just a really, really big fish. I got her into the boat finally like ‘holy cow, she takes up half of the bottom of my boat!'”
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Mayer said he started making phone calls to try and find out how to get the catfish weighed on a certified scale and determine which side of the state line his catch was made on. He eventually got his catch weighed at a business in Kansas City and verified by staff with the KDWP’s fisheries division.
“It was just a lot,” Mayer said. “Everything started hitting, the process of getting it weighed and everything.”
The KDWP told Mayer his fish was around 23-years-old after he brought it in. He said he tried to keep it alive as best he could but thinks the process of reeling it in put too much stress on the fish.
“What I didn’t understand was a fish that big and that old just doesn’t have the reserve capacity,” Mayer said. “The fight just wore her out so much she didn’t recover.”
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Mayer said he wants to try and get a replica made to commemorate his record catch. He shared some advice for other anglers looking to land a potential trophy catch.
“One of the biggest pieces of advice that was given to me and took to heart is you’ve gotta put the time in,” Mayer said. “You take that advice and mold it to what you believe. You can ask all the advice in the world but you have to get out there and put it to use. It’s just time on the water.”
The last state fishing record to be broken in Kansas was a Redear sunfish caught in 2023. You can learn more about what it takes to set a new state fishing record by clicking here.
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