The best-documented Maryland largemouth bass entry currently available from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is an 11.2-pound fish caught by Justin Riley on January 26, 2008. The 2025 Maryland fishing guide lists that angler, date and weight. It is the strongest accessible official listing, but DNR’s records program is divided into Atlantic, Chesapeake, Nontidal and Invasive categories, and the accessible record table does not show which division contains the largemouth entry. An older DNR poster search result shows 11.6 pounds without enough context to establish its species, division or current status. For that reason, 11.2 pounds should be described as Maryland’s current documented largemouth listing—not an unquestionable all-division maximum until DNR confirms the live table.
The documented Maryland largemouth bass record
DNR’s 2025 Maryland fishing guide gives the clearest official record entry: 11.2 pounds, caught by Justin Riley on January 26, 2008. The guide is the most specific official source presently available for the largemouth bass listing.
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| Record detail | Documented value | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| Species | Largemouth bass | DNR listing; scientific name Micropterus nigricans |
| Weight | 11.2 pounds | Weight printed in the 2025 Maryland fishing guide |
| Angler | Justin Riley | Named in the same guide entry |
| Date | January 26, 2008 | Catch date shown by DNR |
| Exact location | Not confirmed by the accessible official entry | A secondary account places it near the upper tidal Potomac in or near Prince George’s County, but that detail is not confirmed by the guide |
This answers the common questions “What is the Maryland state record largemouth bass?”, “Who caught it?” and “When was it caught?” with the information that can be tied directly to the current guide. The guide does not identify the lure, bait, rod, reel, water temperature or precise spot used by Riley.
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Maryland has four sport-fish record divisions
DNR administers records in four divisions: Atlantic, Chesapeake, Nontidal and Invasive. A weight can therefore be a record within a particular division rather than a single statewide maximum across every category. The public records page identifies those divisions, but the accessible page text does not expose the individual rows needed to verify the largemouth bass assignment.
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Until DNR confirms the division attached to Riley’s 11.2-pound listing, a careful article should not call it definitively the largest largemouth bass ever caught anywhere in Maryland. The safe description is “the 11.2-pound largemouth bass listed in the 2025 Maryland guide.” If DNR’s live table places it in the relevant division and shows no higher largemouth entry elsewhere, it can then be stated as the statewide maximum.
What the older 11.6-pound reference does—and does not—prove
An older DNR poster appears in search results with a figure of 11.6 pounds. The available result does not establish the species, division, date, angler, or whether the figure remains an active record. It could represent a different division, an older version of a record, or another species. Treating 11.6 pounds as a largemouth bass record would go beyond the evidence currently visible.
This discrepancy is why a current DNR table row matters more than an isolated image or search snippet. Record programs can revise classifications, separate waters into divisions, or replace older printed material. The live DNR record page and the department’s records contact are the appropriate authorities for resolving the question.
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The official guide establishes three core facts: Riley was the angler, the fish weighed 11.2 pounds, and the catch date was January 26, 2008. A contemporary secondary account associates the catch with the upper tidal Potomac near Prince George’s County. Because the accessible DNR listing does not confirm that location, it should be presented as an attributed report rather than a verified official detail.
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The same caution applies to any claimed ounces beyond 11.2 pounds, length, girth, lure, line, weather or water conditions. None of those details is established by the official entry available here. They should not be used to infer how Riley caught the fish or to recommend a particular technique.
How Maryland validates a potential record
DNR’s rules explain what an angler must do when a fish might challenge a state record. The procedure is designed to preserve the fish’s identity, document the weight and prevent a disputed measurement.
- Keep the fish whole. Do not clean, scale, cut or otherwise alter it. DNR needs the intact fish for species identification.
- Preserve it in ice water. The department says the fish should remain immersed in ice water until it can be officially weighed. This is different from placing a fish directly on loose ice, which can complicate handling and documentation.
- Use a certified scale and a second party. The weight must be measured by someone other than the angler on a certified scale. Record the scale information and the exact weight.
- Document the catch. The application requires catch details, location, weight and scale information. Keep names and contact information for witnesses and the person who performed the weighing.
- Submit the application within two weeks. DNR’s deadline is two weeks from the catch. Waiting beyond that period can make an otherwise eligible fish ineligible.
- Allow species and eligibility review. DNR checks the fish’s identity and whether the method, season, water and weighing meet the program rules before recognizing a record.
Methods and waters that can disqualify a fish
Except in the invasive-species division, a record fish must be legally caught with rod and reel during the open season. DNR disqualifies fish that were snagged, shot, speared, scaled or mutilated. Fish taken from privately owned fee-fishing waters are not accepted.
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How to identify a Maryland largemouth bass
DNR’s defining field mark is straightforward: “Largemouth Bass can be recognized by the lower jaw which extends past the back edge of the eye.” Compare the end of the lower jaw with the rear edge of the eye; on a largemouth, the jaw projects behind it.
DNR identifies the species as Micropterus nigricans and says it occurs in Maryland freshwater and brackish water. Correct identification is essential for a record application because a similar-looking black bass or hybrid cannot be counted as a largemouth bass simply because of its size.
Where Maryland largemouth bass live
DNR describes largemouth bass as favoring large, slow-moving rivers or streams with soft bottoms, particularly where the water is clear. Maryland’s combination of freshwater systems, tidal reaches and brackish habitat means anglers may encounter the species in more than one type of water.
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Bait information DNR publishes
DNR lists live minnows, night crawlers and assorted artificial lures as suitable largemouth bass baits. The list is general guidance for the species. It does not identify what Riley used, establish that one bait is more effective than another, or show that a particular lure contributed to the record.
| Bait category | What DNR states | What is not established |
|---|---|---|
| Live minnows | Named as a good largemouth bass bait | No evidence that Riley used minnows |
| Night crawlers | Named as a good largemouth bass bait | No comparative success rate or record connection |
| Artificial lures | Included among suitable baits | No lure model, color, presentation or claim of superiority |
How the record program developed
Maryland’s record system grew out of the Fishing in Maryland Awards program established in 1963 by outdoor writers and publishers. DNR Fisheries Biologist Erik Zlokovitz described that history in a 2023 account and noted that current state records are posted online. The program’s history explains why older posters, printed guides and the live web table may not look identical: each can reflect a different publication date or record structure.
How to verify the status before relying on the number
If you are writing, filming or entering a contest that depends on the exact Maryland record, use this verification sequence:
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- Open the current Maryland DNR sport-fish records page.
- Check the largemouth bass row in each of the Atlantic, Chesapeake, Nontidal and Invasive divisions.
- Confirm that the species name, weight, angler and date match the 11.2-pound Riley entry.
- Look for any higher largemouth bass weight and note whether it belongs to a different division or a historical category.
- If the table is inaccessible or contradictory, contact the DNR records office, identified on the department page through Keith Lockwood, before calling any fish the all-division record.
This process matters especially when a search result displays 11.6 pounds without surrounding context. A complete row, not a cropped number, is what establishes a record’s species, division and status.
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What anglers should do if they catch a possible record
Use a conservative approach from the moment the fish is landed. Photograph it without damaging the jaw or body, keep it whole, place it in ice water, and arrange an independent certified-scale weighing. Write down the water body and access point, the date and time, the scale’s certification information, the witness’s name and the method of capture. Then submit the DNR application within two weeks.
Do not release a possible record before it has been documented and officially weighed if recognition is your goal. Conversely, do not mutilate or unnecessarily handle the fish for photographs; DNR’s rules require an intact specimen and exclude mutilated fish.
The practical answer
For readers asking for one number, Maryland’s 2025 fishing guide lists 11.2 pounds as the largemouth bass record, credited to Justin Riley on January 26, 2008. That is the strongest current official listing available. The unresolved division assignment and the unexplained older 11.6-pound poster mean the phrase “largest ever caught in Maryland” should remain qualified until DNR confirms the live record table.
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