Nebraska big whitetails? This first photo was sent to me after the 2007 deer season and shows again the state’s reputation for spitting out contender-sized bucks. Included in the message were details of the hunt, but no confirmed name of the hunter except for the first name Brandon. Sorry Brandon whoever!
From the information in the message the Brandon and a friend set ground blinds overlooking their hunting area spaced approximately 200 yards apart. Apparently the friend briefly saw the buck on Monday as the buck chased a doe down a nearby canyon. Later on Thursday the buck showed itself again and the friend watched it for 10 minutes through a binocular (that will give you a case of buck fever) and although the buck was shootable at 200 yards, it was on the wrong side of the fence.
The story continues that on Saturday at 9 a.m., after nearly 40 hours in the ground blind, Brandon’s luck changed. The buck was again chasing does and passed by Brandon’s ground blind at approximately 80 yards. Two quick shots later with his .300 WSM the buck was down for good. According to the friend’s data the buck is a typical 7x6 with a kicker point and an extra “bump.” The buck grosses 181 3/8 inches. After deductions the buck nets 169 2/8 inches just barely missing the Boone and Crockett all-time listings. The friend ends the details with this quote about the fact that it didn’t make the book. “Who really cares, he’s an awesome buck!” I agree. 
The next Nebraska giant was sent in by Jon A. with a simple note: "I killed this buck back in October of 2007 with a bow. It grossed scored 221 2/8 and net scored 212 5/8 it is third in the state for archery."
Incredible buck, Jon. Congratulations.—Mark Kayser
Okay, I know this is the Big Buck Zone, but we here at Outdoor Life have been known to get a little excited about bears, too. Heck, Executive Editor John Snow is so into shooting bears (he’s not the only one of us) that he just got back from hunting them for a week in Alberta, Canada. Well, while he was in Canada, wildlife officials in northern Passaic County, New Jersey—about 45 minutes from John’s desk in Manhattan—captured a 726-pound black bear dubbed Bearzilla by the Newark Star Ledger.
The bear was trapped and then released into the wild where officials believe that it might weigh as much as 900 pounds by fall. At last report, Snow was heavily lobbying New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine to make sure that Jersey has a bear hunting season in ’08.
So, okay, call me a freak, but I really wish I was one of the guys in the crew employed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources called upon to decrease the deer herd in northwestern Minnesota over the past few months.
According to the Minneapolis Star Tribune, sharpshooters shot 962 deer in a 164-square-mile area in an effort to stop the spread of bovine tuberculosis. The “hunt” started in February and ended last Friday. Two of the deer have tested positive for the disease.
So what do you do with all that venison?
“Most of the deer were given to individuals who requested venison,” said Paul Telander, DNR regional wildlife manager in Bemidji.—Gerry Bethge
Nebraska doesn’t receive the big buck coverage like its neighbors Iowa and Kansas, but it does have the right stuff when it comes to growing big whitetails. This photo made it into my inbox earlier this year and certainly represents why you would want to take a second look at the Husker state for a big whitetail.
If you have information to add to this photo, please send it in. According to the attached information, this bruiser was shot north of Grand Island near the small town of Wolbach. The name of the hunter on the E-mail was Matt Steenson, but the E-mail lacked a score. It doesn’t matter. This buck scores enough! It’s most unusual characteristic is the fact that it sports a typical antler on the right side and a bizarre, double main beam nontypical antler on the left.
Nebraska claims several nationally known bucks including the Del Austin buck, which held the world record for a nontypical bowkill for decades with a score of 279 7/8 inches. You might also recall a famous pair of matching sheds found in Nebraska dubbed “The General.” Had these sheds been on a deer taken during a legal hunting season, they easily could have been a new world record with an estimated score of more than 218 inches. If that’s not enough to sell you, in 1983 hunter Vernon Virka downed a 199 5/8 typical whitetail so Nebraska definitely deserves a long second look.—Mark Kayser
The stories from the Big Buck Zone’s “Blue-Collar Bucks” come from everyday hunters who work hard for a living, but hunt even harder during their free time. These hunters do their homework and don’t rely on guides or fences to get the job done. Take Michael Thompson, for example. Mike works fulltime as a mechanic for the Locart Jet Company in Texas. However, when deer season is open you can bet the farm that Thompson and his friends will be in a treestand somewhere. Thompson hunts a lot in his home state of Texas and he also enjoys chasing the monster bucks of Kansas when he has the opportunity to miss work. 
Check out this giant Texas buck Thompson nicknamed “Hoss” that he dropped with his bow during the rut. While in the stand, Thompson was surrounded by deer and observed several small bucks chasing does. With all the activity he decided to mix things up and hit the deer with some grunts and estrous doe bleats. Seconds later, Thompson heard heavy splashing in the creek below his stand and caught a glimpse of a tall-tined bruiser chasing a doe. He told himself to stop looking at the massive rack and clipped on his release. The doe passed by his stand with the rut-crazed buck right on her tail creating the perfect shot. According to Thompson, this was the biggest buck he had ever encountered with his bow and it really put his nerves to the test.
“I could see the buck with my peripheral vision following the doe right toward my stand. As he came into my shooting lane, I gave him a baaap and he threw on the brakes. I touched my release and watched as the fletching disappeared behind the buck’s shoulder. I was shaking so badly that I probably would have fallen out of the tree if I had not been strapped in with my safety belt. I had worked so hard for this deer and probably spent over 82 hours in the stand before finally getting a shot, but it was all worth it in the end. The buck had G2’s that measured right at 13 inches and G3’s that were just over 11 inches long with a gross score of 164. 
Talking with Thompson and covering this story has made me want to put away my shotgun along with my turkey calls and grab my bow. I know it’s just April, but I am already fired-up and thinking about September. Thanks Michael for sharing this remarkable story and trail camera photos and reminding us all of how much fun it is to be in the woods during the rut!—Travis Faulkner
Some hunters prefer a buck with long symmetrical even points that make the perfect typical rack. While others dream about non-typical bucks with thick headgear sporting kicker points, a lot of trash and even drop tines. As for me, just about any type of big whitetail rack can kick my adrenalin and heartbeat into overdrive. However, for whatever reason, I love looking at bucks with odd or unusual racks that have some type of distinguishing characteristic that separates them from others. With that being said, checkout this highly unusual buck that I dropped during an October muzzleloader season a few years ago.
When I shot this unique buck it was making a rub on a cedar tree on the next ridge over from my stand and it appeared to have a typical rack with four nice points on its left side. However, upon recovery I was floored by the opposite side of its rack. It only had one long main beam with no points. In fact, the main beam measures right at 23 inches in length and looks like a medieval knight’s lance used during jousting matches. I guarantee this mountain buck was bad news in a fight with no eye guards or other points on its lance-like main beam. This buck also has bases that measure well over seven inches on its massive chocolate colored rack, but only has five total points. My friends named this unusual deer the “jousting buck” and out of the 28 whitetails I have in my trophy room this strange racked bruiser gets most of the questions.—Travis Faulkner
It’s been nearly four years since Brian Andrews’ massive bow-killed 253 1/8 Iowa state non-typical record whitetail mount was stolen from his family's Buchanan County home.
Andrews was only 16 when he used a borrowed compound bow to take the 26-point whitetail—the second largest taken with a bow in the entire country for 2003. It was less than a year later, on June 18, 2004, when the spectacular trophy was taken.
Since then, there have been no substantial leads in the case and no arrests have been made.
Thanks to the efforts of Les Davenport, a Mt. Sterling, Illinois hunting writer who has taken a special interest in the Andrews’ case, outdoor gear mega-retailer Bass Pro Shops has stepped forward to offer $5,000 in products for information leading to the recovery of the deer mount.
“Bass Pro Shops listened to my story about this young man’s deer and without much hesitation agreed to offer a $5,000 Bass Pro Shops gift card to anyone with information leading to the return of Brian’s buck and the arrest and conviction of the person or persons who stole it,” Davenport said.
Combined with a $5,000 cash reward already being offered by the Andrews family and Buchanan Wildlife Association, it is hoped that Bass Pro’s announcement will be the incentive needed for someone to step forward with information on the case.
Davenport also hopes to bring attention to other missing trophy Iowa buck mounts believed stolen. While it is unknown if the thefts were related, it is indeed ironic that numerous outstanding deer heads disappeared in The Hawkeye State in recent years.
The Springfield (MO) News-Leader notes that other thefts of Iowa trophy whitetails in 2003 included the Deaton buck, with a 198 1/8-inch mainframe, and Jack Bell’s 235 7/8-inch non-typical. In September 2005, eight whitetail mounts were stolen from the cabin of Leroy Brinks near La Porte City. More recent thefts include a 192-inch non-typical stolen from Jim Nagle of Evansdale and in March of this year Jamie Aikey of Waterloo had a 16-point non-typical stolen from his business.
Persons with information about the Andrews buck are asked to contact the Buchanan County Sheriffs Department in Independence, Iowa, at 319-334-2567. Information on the other missing Iowa whitetail mounts may be forwarded to the Iowa State Police at 515-725-6090.-J.R. Absher (The Newshound)
Over the years, I have seen some pretty wild looking whitetail buck racks, but nothing like the headgear on these two bruisers. Both of these bucks have an extra brow-tine or point located smack dab in the middle of their racks—like unicorns from some mythical fairy tale. The first buck was taken by Johnny Anderson during gun season and sported a total of 18 points with all of the kickers, stickers and trash on its massive rack. This giant field dressed just over 210 pounds and was taken on a spot-and-stalk hunt in November right on the Tennessee and Kentucky state line. I don’t know about you, but I would love to have this unique rack hanging on my wall.
Hunter Rocky Moses took the second buck and it also has a strange point located right in the middle of its rack. Moses had hunted hard for five days in a row with little to no success and was close to passing up the last evening of gun season. Fortunately, he decided to give it one more try and was rewarded with this unusual buck on a hunt in southeastern Kentucky. The perfect 8-point rack matches up evenly on both sides with the one odd point in the middle. I really enjoyed looking at both of these strange-racked whitetails and would love to add a buck like either of these to my collection.
-Travis Faulkner
I first met Mike “Tater” Haviland about 10 years ago while on a Kansas whitetail hunt with good friend Brad Harris. Back then Tater was shooting video for Lohman Game Calls. All the hunters in camp took an instant liking to the youngster for both his enthusiasm and knowledge of hunting giant deer. Well, that knowledge paid off in spades last fall when Tater hammered a Kansas giant with enough trash on his head to surpass the 200-inch mark. Here’s Tater’s tale…
—Gerry Bethge
After about 3 hours on the road toward north-central Kansas, I received word that I wasn't going to be able to hunt a piece of property as planned on the Kansas opener. However, I wasn't too concerned. I have had quite a bit of luck hunting on the various WIHA (Walk-In Huntng Areas) the state has to offer.
My friend, Brian Godfrey, and I decided to take time on the opening morning to do some scouting. We were excited when we found a piece of property with a lot of fresh sign and spotted a nice 10-point in a bottom. However, after hunting the first afternoon and the second morning without seeing one deer, we felt it was time to make a change.
We called a local landowner after lunch and he granted us permission to hunt his 160-acre parcel for a couple of days. The plan was to meet him after lunch and he would show us the property line. After visiting with him, we learned that he was a hunter also and he had spotted a couple of 8-pointers the previous evening. He gave us the low-down on the property and without hesitating Brian and I decided to quickly unload our gear and set up close to a pond overlooking a some cedar thickets.
About a half-hour before dark we spotted three does headed our way. They knew something was up when they approached within 40 yards of our blind. As they were giving us the eagle eye, I noticed the rear doe kept looking behind her, down in the bottom near the closest thicket. I was fairly certain there was a buck in the area, but would he be a "shooter?” After playing peek-a-boo with the does for 15 minutes, they finally returned to the thicket. Now, any hopes that I had of laying my eyes on a Kansas monster had vanished. We were about to call it quits, when, out of the bottom ran a doe with a nice buck hot on her trail. She stopped on the other side of the pond and he stopped and started making a rub while facing away from us.
One look through my binocular was all I needed to determine that he was a great buck. All I had to do was wait for a broadside shot and I would have my hands on a 160-inch, 10-pointer, at least that's what I thought. After about 2 minutes he started to walk to the right, toward his doe, I bleated at him, and he stopped for a perfect shot at 160 yards. He dropped in his tracks.
When I walked up to him I about passed out. At the moment I pulled the trigger I didn't realize Brian and I had harvested a 200-inch monster! After a closer look, he ended up having 16 scorable points and measured out at 208 1/8. I have to say thanks to my dad, Troy Haviland, for sharing with me his love of hunting and Brian Godfrey for sharing this experience with me. It was truly the hunt of a lifetime.
Okay…okay, I’ll admit it—I’m a softie for those “kids-first-deer” stories and when there’s a hunter who actually practices what he preaches, well, we need to talk about it—loudly. The Big Buck Zone heartily congratulates Kelsea Kelley on her great buck and also provides a BBZ slap on the back to her uncle Brandon Burkett. Hey guys? The kid was just 8-years-old! How awesome is THAT?
—Gerry Bethge
 This great Alabama buck was taken by my 8-year-old niece Kelsea Kelley. Brian, her dad, and her little brother and sister were all sitting in a shooting house on a Greenfield when this buck came out of the woods about 400 yards away. The buck walked onto the field and stood broadside at 130 yards. Brian told Kelsea that it was time to shoot. She was very calm, took aim with her .223 and fired. The buck ran about 50 yards. It’s an 8-pointer with a 19.5-inch inside spread with 7-inch brow tines. It weighed 193 pounds which is a very big deer for Alabama. That’s how to get your kids involved in the outdoors.
The Big Buck Zone is fortunate enough to receive numerous photos of trophy bucks, giant bucks and just plain bizarre-looking bucks. Tony Wilkins e-mailed us a photo of a cool-looking buck that fits into the latter category. Here’s Tony’s tale of his white-faced freak.
—Gerry Bethge
 I was actually done hunting for the day when I decided to sit on the edge of a large thorn thicket waiting on my son to return from his stand so that we could go to camp. I saw a doe bounding from the thicket and knew from years of hunting that she was acting as if something was pushing her. I raised my gun in preparation for what was to come and guess I was in the right place at the right time. The buck stepped out, nose to the ground, not 20 yards from me. The deer is a 29-point and in addition to the white streak across his nose, had four stocking-white feet.
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Nebraska big whitetails? This first photo was sent to me after the 2007 deer season and shows again the state’s reputation for spitting out contender-sized bucks. Included in the message were details of the hunt, but no confirmed name of the hunter except for the first name Brandon. Sorry Brandon whoever! 
The next Nebraska giant was sent in by Jon A. with a simple note: "I killed this buck back in October of 2007 with a bow. It grossed scored 221 2/8 and net scored 212 5/8 it is third in the state for archery."
