I used an ugly stick elite with a shimano stradic 1000 and 6lb mono. My wife used the same rod, but with a stradic 2500 and 8 lb mono. We both used a fluorocarbon leader. We were fishing with 1/8 jig heads and green and chartreuse curly tails.
Nice job, crog! From the wording of your post, coupled with the photo, first thing that came to mind was that the crappie were schooled so densely, you simply used the net to scoop them out of the water!
Lake Allatoona is a large lake northwest of Atlanta. If you take I75, you can find access near Acworth, Cartersville, Woodstock, and numerous other places.
Oconee is chock full of crappie. They'll be stacked under docks where the baitfish hide in the shade. Look around grass and blowdowns at 10-12 feet, too.