Youth hunter kills 8-point buck in full velvet

8-point buck

11-year-old killed the buck in Calhoun County on Youth Day

Jacob Gearheart, 11-years-old from Lexington, S.C., killed a Calhoun County 8-point buck in full velvet on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2021. The velvet rack is full of character.

The young hunter was sitting in a box stand with his dad on South Carolina’s youth day for Game Zone 3. Killing the mainframe 8-point buck from that stand was meaningful to him. It’s the same stand his dad killed a monster buck from on opening day two years ago.

“And last year, Jacob shot a buck on opening night from that same stand. But we couldn’t find it,” said Shawn Gearheart, the young hunter’s dad. “So this was a bit of vindication for him.”

Aside from the eight mainframe points, the antlers had another nine sticker points on the base. The main beams were 21 inches long and the G2s were 7 1/2 inches. It had a base mass of 6 inches, and carried more than 4 inches all the way to the G3s.

He shot the buck with a Savage 7mm-08 during the evening. And the day didn’t start out as planned. They hunted one property in the morning, having patterned a buck that was showing up every morning four mornings in a row. But unfortunately the buck didn’t make an appearance Saturday.

The evening hunt was much better

They headed to the Calhoun County property that evening, and didn’t really know what to expect.

“We went in there with no expectations. We took the hard way in, through some water, trying not to bump any deer,” said Shawn Gearheart.

The strategy worked. A young 9-point buck showed up, but this deer was too young to shoot based on their club’s standards. As they watched the buck, a doe showed up blowing.

8-point buck

“She probably blew 30 times and took off running. So we kind of felt like that was going to be the end of it,” he said.

But the 9-pointer didn’t leave, so the hunters settled back down, watching and waiting. After about 10 minutes, another deer showed up. Gearheart could tell right away it was a bigger-bodied, older buck. It was a deer he’d seen on trail camera once before.

But the young hunter didn’t have a clean shot at first. He was beginning to get nervous.

The 8-point buck is his biggest so far

“Whenever the 8-point came out, I got super scared. I was nervous that he wouldn’t turn broadside,” said Jacob.

After about 5 excruciating minutes, the deer finally did turn broadside. Jacob pulled the trigger and the deer dropped on the spot.

“I took a big deep breath. And I held it, and I took the shot. And I didn’t talk when I was taking the shot,” he said.

After telling him to shoot whenever he had a clean shot, his dad asked him to give him a “fire in the hole” warning before pulling the trigger.

“I didn’t get a ‘fire in the hole,’” he said with a laugh. Jacob said it would have interrupted his rhythm. “After he shot it, he pumped his fist and said ‘yeah!’”

It’s the second buck the youngster has killed, and it’s his biggest. He’s getting the buck mounted by Jim Stout Taxidermy in Blythewood. And luckily, the buck he shot last year but couldn’t find, survived the wound and has been showing up on trail cameras again. He’s hoping to get another shot at it this year.

About Brian Cope 2726 Articles
Brian Cope is the editor of Carolina Sportsman. He has won numerous awards for his writing, photography, and videography. He is a retired Air Force combat communications technician, and has a B.A. in English Literature from the University of South Carolina. You can reach him at brianc@sportsmannetwork.com.

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