The Rut Club: 15 Big Bucks Tagged by F&S Readers

Fifteen F&S readers and their trophy bucks from last year’s Best Days

By Scott Bestul | Published Nov 8, 2016 12:50 AM

Hunting

7. JASON STORMO ➞ 2015 F&S Best Day: Nov. 11 State: South Dakota Score: 169 3⁄8" net B&C typical Stormo arrowed this great buck at 18 yards. The spread measurement was an impressive 24 inches. Jason Stormo

Each fall we publish the Best Days of the Rut, which offers tips and tactics for must-hunt dates to be in the woods. These 15 readers not only took our advice and tagged out on one of our 2015 Best Days, but they also managed to fill the freezer with true wall-hangers.

Dan Coffman buck — **1. DAN COFFMAN ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Oct. 26 **State:** Ohio **Score:** 287 5⁄8″ net B&C nontypical If its current score holds up to a routine final review, Coffman’s giant will be the No. 2 nontypical bow kill ever. *Dan Coffman*

North Dakota buck — **2. JALEN WEYKER ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 6 **State:** Wisconsin **Score:** 196″ net B&C nontypical Bucks that gross over 200 inches are rare anywhere, but Weyker took this mammoth on public land. *Jalen Weyker*

north dakota buck wagner — **3. RANDY WAGNER➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 6 **State:** North Dakota **Score:** 195 1⁄8″ net B&C nontypical When this 16-pointer walked in for a shot, Wagner knew that the rumors of a giant lurking nearby were true. *Randy Wagner*

AUSTIN IVES buck — **4. AUSTIN IVES ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 11 **State:** Iowa **Score:** 170 5⁄8″ net B&C typical This buck chased two does onto the 25-acre lot where Ives has hunted since he was a kid. He arrowed him at 30 yards. *Austin Ives*

Michael Ellis buck — **5. MICHAEL ELLIS➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 11 **State:** Michigan **Score:** 161 1⁄8″ net B&C The buck Ellis nicknamed Wide Clyde tallied an inside spread measurement of 21 4/8s. *Michael Ellis*

Kasey Alexander buck — **6. KASEY ALEXANDER➞** **2015 F&S Best Day**: Nov. 11 **State:** Kentucky **Score:** 187 2/8″ net B&C Alexander’s heavy buck has 6-inch bases and carries at least 5 inches of mass all the way through to the last tine. *Kasey Alexander*

DAVID FISCHER buck — **8. DAVID FISCHER ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 14 **State:** Indiana **Score:** 207 6⁄8″ net B&C nontypical Killed on opening day of shotgun season, Fischer’s giant is the biggest ever taken in Orange County, Ind. *David Fischer*

STEVE KAYSER buck — **9. STEVE KAYSER➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 14 **State:** South Dakota **Score:** 195″ net B&C nontypical Kayser’s huge 17-pointer tallied an amazing 454⁄8 inches in mass. We’re talking baseball-bat main beams. *Steve Kayser*

indiana buck collins — **10. ANGIE COLLINS ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov.14 **State:** Indiana **Score:** 190 2⁄8″ net B&C nontypical Having missed this deer on opening day in 2014, Collins calls this 19-pointer her “redemption buck.” *Angie Collins*

ANDY BLEDSOE buck — **11. ANDY BLEDSOE ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 14 **State:** Tennessee **Score:** 177 2⁄8″ net B&C typical Bledsoe’s 7×6 Booner is the sixth-largest typical whitetail ever taken, with gun or bow, in Tennessee. *Andy Bledsoe*

matt coffaro's buck — **12. MATT COFFARO ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 21 **State:** Wisconsin **Score:** 178 3⁄8″ net B&C typical Taken in Wisconsin’s famed Buffalo County, this monster had 15 scorable points and grossed 205 5⁄8 inches. *Matt Coffaro*

buck bust — **13. TOMMY SEARS ➞** **2015 F&S Best Day**: Nov. 21 **State**: Kentucky **Score**: 198 5⁄8″ net B&C nontypical Sears’s father grazed this buck with a bullet on Nov. 20. The next morning, Sears dropped him at 35 yards. *Tommy Sears*

Jody Schmidt buck — **14. JODY SCHMIDT➞** **2015 F&S Best Day:** Nov. 21 **Province:** Saskatchewan **Score:** 180 7/8 net B&C With a gross score of 185 even, this almost perfectly symmetrical Canadian monster had only 4 1/8 inches of deductions. *Jody Schmidt*

Jeff Harrison nontypical buck — **15. JEFF HARRISON➞** **2015 F&S Best Day**: Dec. 6 **State**: Minnesota **Score**: 196″ net B&C nontypical Harrison thought he’d shot “a solid 160” when he pulled the trigger. “He grew a little when I found him,” he says. *Jeff Harrison*

Scott Bestul

Trained as a high school English teacher and coach, Scott Bestul left that lucrative field to pursue another—as a full-time freelance writer in 1990. He sold his first story to Field & Stream a few years later and has been contributing to the brand ever since.

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