Hunter kills 10-point, 140-class buck in Cherokee County

Same stand produced 9-point buck the previous day

Dylan Rogers of Clay County killed a 9-point buck on opening day of rifle season in Cherokee County, and he topped that feat by killing a 10-point, 140 class trophy the very next day, Nov. 22. Rogers was hunting a 29-acre tract of family land and first saw this deer on trail cameras in October.

“It’s not a very big piece of land, and it’s in Cherokee County, which isn’t typically known for bucks of this caliber. I got that 9-point on Nov. 21, and after getting out of class the next day, I saw the wind was favorable to sit in that same stand, so I went there for an evening hunt,” said Rogers, who is studying Fish and Wildlife Management.

Rogers was hunting from a ground-based shooting house overlooking a field that his family keeps cleared by bush hogging.

Although the conditions were favorable, Rogers wasn’t having any luck, and daylight was dwindling. With about 20 minutes left before sunset, he began to get his things together, preparing to leave. But then things got interesting.

“A doe burst out into the field, and a buck came out chasing her. They ran around for about 5 minutes, then finally settled down. The buck was standing broadside at about 160 yards, and I took a shot at it with my Winchester .280. I was sure I was dead on, but the buck just stood there looking around like it was trying to figure out where the noise came from. I waited for it to fall or run off, but it didn’t do anything but stand there like it wasn’t even hit. Then it started chasing more does,” he said.

Rogers had that sick feeling in his stomach that most other hunters get when they miss a perfectly makable shot, but he didn’t give up. The buck was still in range, so he waited for another opportunity to shoot.

“He finally settled back down and gave me another shot. I didn’t miss this time. It ran about 35 yards and piled up,” he said.

Rogers called his granddad to help him retrieve the deer, and once they began cleaning it, he realized that he had not missed his first shot after all.

“There were two holes through the lung. They looked like snake eyes. That buck was just so hyped up after those does that he didn’t even realize he was hit the first time,” he said.