Dude, check out this fish!

That's Eugene Cronley, and he pulled in this monster, 131-pound blue cat last week after a 40-minute fight on the Mississippi River near Natchez, MS.

Look how happy that man is!!!

You love to see it!

Cronley called this big boy the "catch of a lifetime," and after that 40-minute fight he "could hardly get him on the boat."

I imagine so...

That fish is nearly as big as he is!

The blue cat broke the Mississippi State record and came in just 12 pounds short of the world record set in 2011 at Virginia's Kerr Lake.

FYI, Cronley was using a skipjack herring as bait.

And if that doesn't get you in the mood for opening day, I don't know what will!

P.S. Now check out our latest video 👇