Connell closing in on second Redcrest title after big round
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Dustin Connell of Clanton, Ala., won the knockout round Saturday at Lay Lake in pursuit of his second Redcrest Bass Fishing Championship title.
Connell, who won the 2021 Redcrest, finished the two-day qualifying round Friday with a total of 63 pounds, 4 ounces. He weighed and released 18 bass Saturday that weighed 52-15.
Gerald Spohrer of Gonzales, La., finished the day in second place with 20 bass that weighed 52-14, followed by Ron Nelson (17/51-12) of Berrien Springs, Mich., Michael Neal (18/48-12) of Dayton, Tenn., Alton Jones Jr. (19/488) of Waco, Texas, Cole Floyd (17/45-14) of Leesburg, Ohio, Takahiro Omori (17/44-15) of Yokyo, Japan, Jacob Wheeler (17/44-6) of Harrison, Tenn., Jesse Wiggins (17/42-13) of Addison, Ala., and Nick Hatfield (14/ 38-14) of Greenville, Tenn.
Those anglers will fish today in the championship round for the top prize of $300,000. They will start with zero weight, making the championship round a new tournament.
Connell, who caught nearly as much weight in one day as he did in the previous two, said he did not try to make a statement or intimidate the other anglers with such an impressive performance. He said he did it for survival.
“I think I had 43 pounds, and I was in the lead,” Connell said. “I asked [my official] what was 10th place, and he said 38 pounds. So it was like 43, 42, 42, 42, 41, 40, 40 and 38. And I’m like, I’m only 6 pounds away from missing the cut.”
Only 40 minutes were left in the day. “I was like, if them guys are still catching them, then here in 20 minutes I might be in 8th,” Connell said. “We were all one bite away from being in 8th place. And I was like, Dude! So I went to catching two big ones and I was done.”
Connell said it’s a good position to be able to dial up a couple of big fish in a short window when he needs them, but he said the other competitors can do that, too. The difference, Connell said, is that he has a productive shallow pattern and a productive deep pattern. He said he believes he will need both to win.
“This tournament is going to be forward facing sonar versus traditional fishing,” Connell said. “I’ve been trying to traditional fish, but tomorrow I’ve got a feeling I’m going to mix both in and win this thing.”
Connell said his success Saturday occurred in the upper part of the lake in strong current. He said he used a Rapala Crush City Freeloader swimbait on a Scrounger jig to catch spotted bass offshore and a spinnerbait for largemouth bass against the bank.
“Mostly they were reaction strikes in 7 to 10 feet,” Connell said. “I was throwing on a rockpile or a seam, and they hit it coming out. The water was really clear, so they needed something moving. They wanted to chase something down.”
Spohrer finished the day 1 ounce behind Connell. He also made a big move late for survival, but he said he wanted to make a statement.
“I was a little close to the cutline,” Spohrer said. “I made one more move and found some fish in the last 20 minutes, and I caught a few to make sure I was safe. I checked on the leader and said, ‘I’m going to put a little pressure on the leader so he’s not thinking that he’s just blowing us all away.’ So I caught a few more just to tap on his shoulder a little bit.”
Like Connell, Spohrer said it’s a confidence builder to know he can dial up fish when he needs them.
“I feel like I have a legitimate shot of winning this tournament now that I found those last two groups of fish,” Spohrer said. “They told me that I have four or five more places in that area that I haven’t checked yet. Today they decided they wanted to be there. It’s like a staging area before they go to spawn.”
Spohrer said he caught his fish Saturday on a Nomad Design Swimtrex Max, a 1/2-ounce lipless crankbait that he said is ideal for catching spotted bass. He threw it in current breaks at island heads and points.