Fishing tourney launches Saturday on Lake Jacksonville

The inaugural JEF Pete Lammons Fishing Tournament launches 6 a.m. Saturday on Lake Jacksonville, with proceeds from the event to fund scholarships, incentives and classroom grants for students and staff of Jacksonville ISD.
Two-man teams will compete for a $1,500 grand prize, with a $750 second place prize also awarded. A $100 prize will be awarded for best team name, along with assorted prizes and gift card drawings.

Entry fees are $150 per team, with registration held the morning of the event and sign-in at the concession area on Byrd Road.

The tournament is named in honor of Pete Lammons, a longtime supporter of the Jacksonville Education Foundation. Lammons was a 1961 JHS graduate who contributed to the national championship win for the Texas Longhorns, then enjoyed a successful NFL career, including as part of the New York Jets, the winning Super Bowl III team.
He was an avid fisherman, who recently passed away during a fishing tournament on Lake Sam Rayburn, according to a JEF release.

“Pete loved his hometown of Jacksonville, and generously donated his time to JEF events. He was the first of two ‘stars’ when the annual Evening With Our Stars event kicked off in 2012, and more recently when the Foundation honored all NFL players who started their careers in the Historic Tomato Bowl,” the release stated.

The Tomato Bowl was special to Pete, and his name is proudly displayed on the Corridor of Champions wall inside the stadium. He also was one of the first to purchase Tomato Bowl bricks for his two brothers, Mike and Frank, as well as for himself. His family requested honorariums made in his name be sent to the Foundation to continue the Pete Lammons Scholarship Fund, which the Lammons brothers started in 1959 in memory of their father, Pete Sr. The annual scholarship has been awarded to a JHS graduating senior athlete since 1959, the release stated.

For more tournament information, please visit jisdfoundation.org, or email stephanie.mcneill@jisdfoundation.org.