Whole?......yes, especially if you can keep them alive. If they're dead, you may chunk them, but don't be afraid to throw them on whole,... in a rip or current...and twitch them in the rip imitating an injured Herring. Fresh dead herrring still rule...over frozen. Just twitch, and wait for the bumps.....
P.S. If you plan on hooking them whole (dead) ..hook them thru the eyes or nose. That way, as you twitch them.....they'll be twitching in the right direction.....
....you're gonna be surprised at the size of the fish you'll hook, using them whole.....a 24" schoolie will inhale a 12" Herring...its NUTZ!!!...so imagine how a 24 POUND Striper looks at that herring...
....but if you can keep them alive.....

WATCH OUT!!!
...ya can't beat LIVE BAIT!!....
...and as far as......"are the big fish here yet?"
....if they're catching LARGE fish in South County...and they're catching LARGE fish in the Canal....we're smack dab in the middle....you figure out the rest.....
....at any given time......
BAMM!!