I agree with the bigger bait theory, even on small fish- I've had quite few nights catching 1-2 lbers. on the 9" Slammer or AC Plug that completely outfished a 6" worm on the same size fish- plus you definetly have the advantage if a big girl is hungry. At least the rats will boost your confidence to keep chucking the bigger baits. I know quite a few guys whose idea of throwing a big bait is tossing a 7" Slammer on their heavy jig rod for 10 minutes, probably not the best recipe for success. Not that I have the big fish to back me up, but I'm slowly figuring out the best ways not to catch them!!