I verified him with the "filet knife" method. Yeah, he could be an immature male that just reached seven inches so fast that he didn't mature yet, or because he's around so many big, dominant males. I think in a typical pond a cuckholder might be more likely to be five to six inches, but in the pond this one was caught at there are tons of really big, robust 8-10 inch males.
I like your observation about the black spots, though. I hadn't noticed it until you brought it up, but there they are!
The pond I caught him in yesterday had other males of similar length that were very vivid in color and seemed ready to spawn.
