By John Johnson
BassFan Senior Editor
After a winless 2023 season on the MLF Bass Pro Tour, Dustin Connell wasted no time in getting back to his trophy-snatching ways as the 2024 campaign got under way.
Connell's victory at Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Louisiana-Texas border was his fifth on the BPT, leaving him just one behind good pal and travel partner Jacob Wheeler for the top slot on the career list. He sat atop the standings after both of his Qualifying Round days, easily moved through the Knockout Round with a second-place showing and then dominated the Championship Round, catching 14 more scorable fish than anyone else in the Top-10 field and winning by more than 44 pounds.
It was a good start to what will be a big year for the 33-year-old from Alabama, regardless of how he fishes the rest of the way. In April, he and wife Victoria will welcome their first child – a boy who will be named Trent.
"I'm really pumped about it," he said of his impending fatherhood. "It'll be all new to me, of course, but I'm excited about it. I'm hoping I've got a fishing buddy coming soon.
"It's motivating me to get my practice time in now because my wife is pretty needy," he joked. "Honestly, we're just praying and hoping that everything continues to go well and that he's healthy."
Although he experienced a shortage of single-digit finishes last year (a 7th at Lake Norman in March was the only one among the Top 10), he doesn't view it a sub-par season. He ended up 15th in the final Angler of the Year (AOY) points standings.
"Nobody really pays attention unless you win or finish in the Top 5," said Connell, who landed between 12th and 20th on four occasions in 2023 and had just one placement outside the Top 40 (a 57th in the opener at the Kissimmee Chain). "I consider the year a success. I just never had all the chips fall into place."
He attributed his latest triumph to all the work he put in during the offseason, when he was on the water three or four times a week while pretty much avoiding deer hunting and golf. His casting and other mechanics stayed sharp and he never lost touch with any of his equipment, which gave him confidence that everything was as good as it could be heading into the first event.
As usual, he was spot-on with his electronics usage. In the era of forward-facing sonar dominance, he's been at the forefront from the get-go.
"The Lowrance ActiveTarget 2 was a huge part of it – it's just phenomenal and I love catching them that way," he said. "The Millertech batteries also played a huge role because I was leaning on the trolling motor hard, looking for those fish, and I didn't have any issues with them."
In water that was continually fluctuating in terms of level and clarity due to recent storms, he pinpointed places that held quality prespawn fish – or places that would after the next change to their environment. He caught them primarily on a Rapala CrushCity Freeloader attached to various jighead sizes and also mixed in a prototype CrushCity offering called the Mooch Minnow, which will be rolled out at ICAST this summer.
He now heads to Santee Cooper Lakes in South Carolina for the season's second event. After that comes the REDCREST Championship on his home water (Lay Lake). He hopes that his native region experiences a spate of warm weather leading into REDCREST.
"If it says cold it'll be pre-spawn and if it warms up they'll be on the beds," he said. "It can be a tricky time of year because the fish are on the move and it can be a challenge for anybody. Guys are gonna have to move around. I can't say that there's one technique or one area where it's going to be won.
"If it warms up and fish are biting all over the place, I'll be able to use some of my local knowledge. If not, it'll be interesting because nobody will be able to count on getting more than seven or eight bites a day."
