‘I was shaking.’: Mississippi teen deer hunter arrows trophy-class buck in velvet

‘I was just waiting for him to make a little turn where I could make the shot. He turned quartering to me and that’s when I pulled back.’

A Mississippi teen had a good buck on camera and on opening day of the early archery season for bucks, the hunt came together like clock-work and ended with a trophy-class buck in velvet and a trip to a taxidermist.

But it wasn’t without its challenges.

“We first knew about him a week ago,” said Matthew McKinley, 16, of Brandon. “We put the camera out two Saturdays ago.

“Dad told me, ‘I think we’ve got a pretty good deer.’ I was like, ‘I really want to shoot this deer. He’s coming out in daylight and he’s coming often.’”

The buck was captured on camera walking on a heavily used trail in a bottom near a creek. There was thick cover nearby where the deer apparently bedded. McKinley said the buck was coming through around 5 o’clock in evenings, leaving, then coming back about 7 o’clock.

He was never alone, either. McKinley said he was always with a big 8-point.

“He was doing that every single day last week,” McKinley said.

This deer hunt had potential problems

Given the buck’s set pattern, the potential for harvesting him looked good. However, there were potential problems. The land McKinley was hunting was in an area of Copiah County with poor cellular service. So, he and his father, Tom McKinley, couldn’t use a camera that transmitted photos to a phone.

So, by physically going into the area, they could spook the deer and change his routine. Then there was another problem. There was no hunting stand in that area. That left the McKinley’s father going into the area to hang a stand three days before the Sept. 15 opening day which could also alarm the buck.

“It was a gamble,” McKinley’s father said.

Then there was yet a third issue. The opening day was on a Friday and McKinley had to go to school. That put him getting to the area much later than he would have liked.

“I was a little nervous because I got out there at 4:45,” McKinley said. “I thought he might be in there already, but he wasn’t.”

It was an evening with plenty of deer activity

McKinley got in his stand and the action started immediately.

“I didn’t even have my bow up yet and two does came out,” McKinley said. “I thought it was going to be good because it had cooled down and there was a lot of movement.

“I heard a bunch of walking, but it was thick in there. So, it was hard to see. I finally spotted the 8-point about 6:15. He was a little nervous, but he settled down, cruised around and walked off.”

Then he heard more noise and it wasn’t hard to guess what was making it.

“When I heard something walking, I thought it had to be him,” McKinley said. “I was hyped up when I saw him.”

The buck was about 40 yards away and headed toward McKinley. McKinley managed to remain composed as the deer fed on browse and slowly got closer.

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Bowhunter makes the shot count

“I was just waiting for him to make a little turn where I could make the shot,” McKinley said. “He turned quartering to me and that’s when I pulled back.”

McKinley let his arrow go and made a solid shot.

“He ran about 50 yards,” McKinley said. “I heard him stop; I heard a big crash and then the woods got quiet.”

McKinley quietly left the area and returned about 30 minutes later. He found his arrow and saw blood on the ground. When he looked in the direction the buck ran he saw antlers.

“I was shaking,” McKinley said. “I was really excited.”

The 9-point had a 14 1/2-inch spread, 20-inch and 21-inch main beams with kickers on both G2s. He scored 139 1/2 inches.

A shoulder mount of the buck will soon be hanging at the McKinley home.

“It was nice because I know the work my Dad has put in and I’ve put in shooting my bow,” McKinley said. “I’ve always wanted a velvet buck.”

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Do you have a story idea? Contact Brian Broom at 601-961-7225 or bbroom@gannett.com.