For panfish and largemouth bass (unless I am pretty sure I will find a lunker) I use a TFO 7'6" 3wt. or a Quarro 7'6" 3 wt or a White River 7' 3 wt.

All these rods are softer (slower) than even a 9' in the same weight but they are excellent for all occasions with these fish. They are 3 and 4 piece rods because I travel a lot and I want them packable.
I use exclusively BassPro's White River HC1 reels because they are under $40 and are ultra light and do everything necessary for warm water.

Short rods? Thing about it. You are not going to be casting 60' and you will not have to mend.

The one drawback for big bluegill and medium bass is that the rods lack some backbone for hook setting. These fish require a HARD hook set and I probably miss 10% of the bass that hit a popper due to lack of rod stiffness.

But catching a 6" panfish on one is so much fun I would not trade it for that 10%.