Permit me to be blunt.
Eating a bass larger than four pounds is like eating the family dog.
Large bass have beaten astronomical odds to grow large. They deserve a better fate than a skillet.
Look at bass larger than 5 pounds with reverence. Be awed. Not only have these bass eaten a lot, they have avoided being eaten...a lot.
An eight pound bass is probably six years old. It has lived only half its "normal" life.
In a "great" 25 acre trophy bass lake, there are likely fewer than 25 bass larger than six pounds.
Tell your bud to let the fish go, or you are changing friends.
In my most humble opinion, eating a big bass should be a felony.

Teach a man to grow fish...
He can teach to catch fish...