Former NFL superstar Randy Moss continues to make impressive catches, though now they’re happening on the water rather than the football field.
The legendary wide receiver, who holds the second-highest touchdown reception record in NFL history, has discovered his true calling after football involves pursuing freshwater bass from a fishing boat.
“That’s my passion right now. That’s my hobby. That’s my getaway. That’s my therapy,” Moss said.
After spending approximately nine months primarily at home receiving chemotherapy and radiation treatments to fight cancer, Moss gained a renewed appreciation for outdoor activities. Following the completion of his medical treatment last fall, his uncommon cancer type — located in the bile duct connecting the pancreas and liver — was declared to be in remission. Since then, Moss has frequently been found with fishing equipment in hand.
This longtime interest has evolved into what could be considered Moss’s third professional pursuit, alongside his return to ESPN as an NFL commentator for the 2025 season.
“I’m just excited to be able to showcase my talent and go out there and show people that I have something else other than football that I love,” Moss said.
World Bass Enterprises recruited Moss to work as an ambassador for “The Champions” competition scheduled for this fall in Hendersonville, Tennessee. This debut five-day tournament, located near Nashville, aims to crown a definitive champion in a sport currently split between two rival circuits. WBE was established this year by Brian Bird, a Texas entrepreneur and recreational fisherman who has become Moss’s fishing companion.
Meanwhile, Moss and his business associate, Andrew Grein, have been producing a documentary series called “Chasing 10.” The show features Moss fishing alongside famous guests as they hunt for the coveted 10-pound largemouth bass while sharing techniques and personal stories. Each season, he auctions a specially designed boat to support the Children’s Cancer Research Fund in Minnesota.
“I had to take a year off to be able to get myself back right, but my health is great,” Moss said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “I still have my quarterly checkups every four months, my scans, but I just think that now that I’m back outside, this is one of the things that I couldn’t wait to see. I have the bass waiting on me, so I’m just a kid in the candy store having fun, man.”
The Champions tournament features a record-breaking $3.25 million total prize pool, with the victor earning $1.25 million from a field of 50 competitors — the top 25 from each of the sport’s two major organizations.
The Bass Anglers Sportsman Society — abbreviated as B.A.S.S. — operates the Bassmaster Elite Series. Major League Fishing manages the more recent Bass Pro Tour. For seven years, similar to the PGA and LIV divisions in golf, the world’s elite anglers have been separated into two competing groups. Moss has joined Bird’s mission to help reunify the sport and bring it to a broader audience.
“We both are trying to bring something that’s really positive to the sport of bass fishing,” said Bird, who sold his electrical construction services company three years ago and has invested his own money into the launch of the tournament. “It’s a good way for a family to spend time out in nature.”
The initial episodes of Chasing 10 were released on YouTube this week, featuring an energetic trip with the Kelce brothers and a gathering of former Minnesota Vikings receivers including Cris Carter and Jake Reed. During another filming session with Bird at a Texas lake, Moss excitedly landed the prized 10-pounder, likening the nervousness he experienced to the anticipation before a football play when he expected to receive the ball.
Moss initially learned fishing techniques while growing up in West Virginia alongside his older half-brother, Eric Moss, who passed away in 2019. Shortly after beginning his NFL journey in Minnesota in 1998, he met professional angler John Laub, who taught him bass fishing on the St. Croix River near the Wisconsin border.
“My first actual bass experience, I caught 20!” Moss said. “John, he was glowing. That’s the man who showed me bass fishing, and I haven’t looked back since.”
