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It was October 7, 2012, and a cold front had pushed through the eastern Arkansas Delta, dropping the temperature into the mid-50s. The low country heat had hovered in the 70s and 80s for the previous weeks, and this was the break that Mike Miller, of Marion, Ark., was waiting for. Just 10 days prior, a familiar old buck had shown up on his trail camera, but, this year, the beast had sprung into an entirely new category of whitetail. The buck was a giant.
Perhaps this was the break that would mark a new era in Mike’s hunting career and his life. In a symbolic sense, it was a much-needed break for Mike after a decade of fighting for his life. He didn’t know it, but he was about to lay down Arkansas’ largest buck of the 2012-13 hunting season.
Two years earlier, in 2010, Mike had seen a narrow-racked buck with numerous stickers while hunting one of his favorite stands, located within 40 yards of the St. Francis River in Cross County. The buck passed through a shooting lane just minutes after Mike had shot a high 140-class class 9-pointer with his slug gun.
The unique buck got a free pass that day, but the image of the young deer stuck in Mike’s memory. He didn’t get any trail camera pictures of the deer that season, but in 2011 he recognized the buck as it tripped the trigger of his Bushnell camera more than once. However, the buck, which was an impressive 180-class whitetail at the time, was like a ghost, only appearing at night and randomly at that.
It was also during this time that Mike continued to live with the after effects of a body ravaged by leukemia. Diagnosed in 2002 at the age of 30, Mike fought for his life as the cancer relapsed three times after intense rounds of chemotherapy. During the struggle, the cancer spread through Mike’s bone marrow and into his spine, and his family began to fear for the worst.
In 2004, the doctors suggested a stem cell transplant in an attempt to save Mike’s life. This is a long and grueling process that is complicated by the difficulty in finding a perfect donor. However, God had figuratively given Mike an ace-in-the-hole—an identical twin brother! Mark was more than willing and was the perfect match for the life-saving treatment.
Growing up in Eastern Arkansas, Mike had always loved to hunt, even before he got sick. The doctors told him that he would likely be confined to a wheelchair for the rest of his life after the stem cell transplant. However, by God’s grace, Mike is able to walk on his own today and has been cancer-free since 2004.
However, the side effects of the battle have weakened him significantly, particularly in his physical stamina and eyesight, but this hasn’t kept him out the woods. Though his brother Mark is very much involved in his hunting, Mike scouts and hunts on his own. He has just been forced to find a new pace.
October 2012
In 2012, the Arkansas bow opener fell on September 15, and Mike didn’t have a target buck picked out for the season. It wasn’t until late September that the narrow-racked-sticker buck would appear for the third year in a row. However, his 2012 appearance was notably more dramatic than the last two. Gnarly antlers filled the frames of the trail camera pictures, and Mike knew the buck had exploded.
He was hunting a large piece of private farm property located inside the levy of the St. Francis River. The property was owned by a close friend, and Mike had hunted it for the last 20 years. Much of the cleared ground inside the levy is now in CRP, planted in water oaks and overcup oaks—the perfect habitat to incubate the maturation process of a low-country monarch.
Mark knew that Mike was having a difficult time shooting his Mathews bow from elevated positions, and he suggested that he shoot a crossbow in 2012. Then, as if by providence, Mike won a drawing for a $1,000 Bass Pro Shops gift card at a bass tournament in May 2012! Mike used the money to buy a TenPoint Turbo XLT crossbow. Unbeknownst to him, the second time he would carry it to the tree, he would drop the string on a giant.
Mike had built a box stand along the timbered banks of the St. Francis River overlooking a 15-acre CRP field where he had seen the big buck the year before. They had strategically cleared three shooting lanes, each approximately 10 yards wide, through the CRP and planted them in Mossy Oak Biologic’s Full Draw blend. Mike could see 200 yards in three different directions from the stand.
In late September, Mike dumped several hundred pounds of culled sweet potatoes, a crop grown in eastern Arkansas, within bow range of the box stand. Hunting over bait is legal in Arkansas and is a common practice that is misunderstood by many. Killing a mature buck over supplemental feed is a significant challenge, period—just like any other style of fair chase hunting.
Unknown to many, deer absolutely love sweet potatoes! The first pictures of the buck appeared in late September 2012, just days after the potatoes hit the dirt.
Mike had hunted the sweet potato stand the day before, on October 6, and had only seen one deer. He planned to hunt another stand on ![]( "mike_miller_box")
the following day, not wanting to pressure the “Sweet Potato Buck.” Mike is not a novice hunter, and he understood that pressuring the deer would be a major mistake. However, because of the recent rains and Mike’s inability to walk long distances, he chose to hunt the stand that evening because of the ease of access. A high-pressure system had moved in and the evening just felt right.
Mike didn’t know it, but as he drove onto the property and unloaded his ATV that afternoon, the buck was making his first-ever daytime appearance in front of his camera. At 4:07 p.m. on October 7, the camera snapped a picture of the giant, trash-horned buck munching on sweet potatoes within 20 yards of the stand while Mike was less than a mile away getting his gear ready!
The deer on the property are familiar with human activity because of all the farming activity in the area. Mike uses this to his advantage and out of necessity, when he drives his ATV to the stand and parks within 40 yards. Behind the stand was a significant drop-off leading to the river. Mike parks out of sight and downwind of the stand.
Mike likely bumped the big deer back into the CRP when he drove in, but the familiar sound of the gas engine didn’t spook him very far. Mike climbed into his box stand at 4:20 p.m.
“It was about 5:30 p.m. when I heard two bucks sparring in the CRP,” Mike recalled. “Within a few minutes, a lone buck popped out into the shooting lane 100 yards away and made his way down the lane in front of the stand. Following the young buck was a second deer, and they made their way into the potatoes.”
By now, it was 5:45 p.m. and Mike noticed more movement about 200 yards away, straight in front of the stand. “My eyes aren’t that good, but I thought I saw a deer stick his head out of the CRP and look directly down the shooting lane toward the stand,” Mike said. “I was beginning to doubt myself after several minutes of the deer not moving, but then I saw his ear twitch. The deer then stepped out into the shooting lane followed by two more bucks and cautiously started to walk towards me. When he got to about 150 yards, I could tell that it was the big buck.”
The Sweet Potato Buck took his time covering the 150 yards down the open shooting lane.
“The buck was so cautious that I dipped my head and would occasionally look under the bill of my hat as he came in,” Mike said. “My crossbow was in my lap and I was afraid to move it.”
Finally, after a grueling 15 minutes, the buck made his way into shooting range, cautiously approaching the sweet potatoes while munching on the Biologic. However, Mike’s bow was still in his lap! The big buck had the two other smaller bucks with him and three pairs of cautious eyes had him afraid to move.
“I was sitting there with the buck in range but afraid to move,” Mike explained. “About that time, I heard gravel popping. A truck was driving down the levy several hundred yards in front of the stand. Every one of the deer stopped and turned to look back towards the noise, and when they did, they all turned broadside at 25 yards. I pulled up the crossbow and shot!”
The two-blade Rage broadhead hit slightly high but behind the shoulder. The shot looked good to Mike. He listened as the buck busted out into the CRP but never heard him fall. Immediately, Mike texted his brother Mark, who was hunting on the farm some distance away. Mark warned Mike to stay in the tree until he and Lance, a friend and the landowner, got there.
After they arrived and Mike climbed down, they immediately found the crossbow bolt stuck in the ground. “The arrow wasn’t coated in blood like you would like,” he said. “We started looking around and we couldn’t find any blood. Finally my brother found a speck going into the CRP.
It took him 30-40 minutes to trail 40 yards; the buck wasn’t bleeding at all. Finally, we got up to a spot 100 yards into the CRP and found where the buck had stopped and there was a pool of blood. From there, he ran another 50 yards and piled up. The shot was a little high and he had to fill up with blood.”
When the brothers and Lance reached the giant buck, they couldn’t believe their eyes. First of all, the buck had superb mass and the rack was covered in points! The brow tines were extremely tall and the buck had two droptines! However, the most notable trait was the buck’s main beams crossed each other in front. The buck was obviously mature, with a live weight of 219-pounds, 21 scorable points and a net non-typical score of 215 6/8 inches.
The flood of emotions that overtook the men as they admired the buck was overwhelming, especially, considering all the factors that played into the overarching picture of the hunt. The first and most significant factor was that Mike was still alive and healthy enough to hunt after his struggle with leukemia.
Secondly, it was extraordinary that a buck of this caliber even existed in the area Mike was hunting. The region is known for big deer, but this was by far the biggest they had ever hunted. Third, the buck, previously only seen at night, made his first daytime appearance in 2012 that very day! Finally, Mike was able to share the recovery with his twin brother, who had played a significant role in saving his life.
During Mike’s treatment, he spent 356 days in the hospital and had more than 50 spinal tap chemotherapy treatments. “I was just a normal 30-year-old,” Mike recalled. “Played golf, softball and hunted. Never went to the doctor and never got sick! I didn’t even really understand what leukemia was until I was diagnosed with it. My world changed over night.”
Despite the doctors’ predictions, Mike has overcome tremendous odds and gives all the credit for his life, his current stable health and the Sweet Potato Buck to God. Mike’s body may be weaker than it once was, but his mind and heart are strong and his attitude toward life is extremely positive. He is passionate about his family, his hunting and his faith. A 200-inch-plus whitetail has never fallen to a more deserving hunter.
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Aaron Joliff
As a winter front pushed through northwest Arkansas on Dec. 12, 2011, the gray and ominous clouds hung low in the winter sky, drizzling rain. Days like this are exactly what Aaron Jolliff, of Bella Vista, Arkansas, has always loved to hunt—and for good reason. So began Joliff's 2011 hunt, which ended with a lifetime 170-inch buck. Read more at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Aaron Milliken
Aaron Milliken caught up with this massive Kansas whitetail after repeated attempts to track down the 194-inch trophy. For the details, make sure to check out NAW's Deer of the Day entry..
Barry Turner
After an off-season spent drooling over trail cam pics of the deer he'd come to know as "Big Show," Barry Turner came face to face with a Missouri giant. The rest of his story—and his 217-inch trophy—are enshrined in NAW's Deer of the Day.
Bill Winke
Bill Winke has earned himself a spot as one of the best Midwestern whitetail hunters of all time, with a recent buck to prove it. To read more about this massive double G4 Iowa giant, check out NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Bo Cocannouer
Two years ago Bo Cocannouer fell from a treestand fracturing his back. Most hunters aren’t lucky enough to walk away from a twenty-foot fall, and the ones that do don’t normally get to hunt from one ever again. But Cocannouer did just that, and he came home with this 194 gross non-typical Oklahoma buck.
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Brian Herron
Brian Herron fought numerous obstacles and setbacks in 2012 to bag this 184-inch bruiser. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Brian Hollands
After many years of chasing the same buck and coming up empty, Brian Hollands' luck finally turned around. On a fateful morning in 2012, Hollands not only found a lost little girl wandering the back roads of Missouri, he also found the buck of a lifetime. Check out the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Carter Rice
Carter Rice is another first-time hunter that had huge success in 2012. Carter killed this buck in Pettis County Mo., with his father at his side . "I had not experienced that type of excitement since my 15-year-old son Seth was that age," wrote proud dad Rusty Rice.
This photo was submitted to NAW Editor Gordon Whittington earlier this season via e-mail.
Dorothy Shaffer
Iowa native Dorothy Shaffer has only been hunting for a couple years now, but she already has the buck of a lifetime with this 196-inch giant, her second buck ever.
At about 5:30 p.m. Nov. 1, Shaffer arrowed this bruiser through both lungs, dropping it near one of her husband's stands.
For more info, check out Shaffer's Deer of the Day entry.
Dylan Beach-Bittner
Have you seen the (almost) Turdy-Point Buck?
Taking a cue from the popular folk rap song, 12-year-old Dylan Beach-Bittner, downed a 27-point Minnesota monster scoring 241 green.
For more info, check out Beach-Bittner's Deer of the Day entry.
Fred Swihart
You need only skim the pages of the record books to understand why the majority of hunters pick the November rut as the prime time to hunt giant whitetails. Mature bucks are never a pushover, but they are more vulnerable when their nose is glued to the ground trailing an estrus doe. Fred Swihart proved, however, that you can have success outside the rut—sometimes it's just a matter of persistence. Check out the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Garry Greenwalt
Garry Greenwalt teamed up with North American Whitetail's Gordon Whittington to kill this amazing Washington buck, known to Greenwalt as "The Ghost." Greenwalt spent a good deal of time tracking down the amazing 172-inch Washington giant, but it was all worth it. Read the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Garry Morris
It was mid-afternoon on Nov. 13, 2009, and Gary Morris of Winslow, Ark., was heading south out of Iowa. Driven by a haze of internal frustration, he was headed back to Arkansas six days early. The last three years of planning, anticipation and excitement for his Midwestern hunt had been stolen by an encounter with a 170-inch behemoth buck and a blown 12-yard “chip-shot.” After his miss, Morris thought about giving up bowhunting altogether. But it's a good thing he didn't. Read about his unlikely comeback—as well as his 221-inch monster—in NAW's Deer of the Day.
Jay Price
Like any bowhunter who has chased mature whitetails, Jay Price is proof dedication and tenacity are often factors to success. On a fateful day in Kansas, Price once again went through his scent-masking ritual and headed to a treestand that was positioned in the hedgerow deeper into the property. It hadn't worked until that moment, but things were about to change. Get the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Jeff Danker
Jeff Danker of Major League Bowhunter is no stranger to trophy bucks, and on Oct. 3 Danker proved his prowess. He killed this 183 5/8-inch typical buck in Kansas' Rice County after following him all year.
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Jeff Iverson
Earlier this year, Jeff Iverson killed what might be the new non-typical record for a Minnesota whitetail. This is the third season that Iverson hunted this particular buck. Two years ago, when the buck was a six-by-six typical, he missed a shot at it with his bow.
For more, read the rest of the story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Jordan Dressler
On the first hunt of her lifetime, Jordan Dressler killed this amazingly wide whitetail in Iowa. Now all she has to do is hunt the rest of her days in search of another buck like this one.
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Josh Barnard
As a dedicated whitetailer, Josh Barnard has had his fair share of ups and downs. This year was a high point, as Barnard killed this monstrous 192-inch trophy buck in Ohio. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Joshua Earp
Joshua Earp's Georgia giant scored 187 inches green, weighing in at 235 pounds, and was a great October surprise.
"“I’ve hunted 25 years for this," Earp said. " I give all thanks to God and my father for teaching me and introducing me to this sport I’m addicted to.”
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Lindsay Groom
With the help of her husband, Kevin, Ohio resident Lindsay Groom scouted this buck for two weeks before coming across its path again on Nov. 7. Lindsay shot the buck with her crossbow at about 10 yards, but was unable to locate the buck.
After watching the kill shot again on film, the couple decided to track it the next morning, finding the deer just 30 yards away from where they stopped looking the night before.
For more info, check out Groom's Deer of the Day entry.
Lucas Cochren
Lucas Cochren killed an amazing 238-inch Kansas trophy, but it all started with a blood trail gone cold. Fortunately, Cochren stuck to it and bagged the trophy of his lifetime. Check out the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Matt Ford
Abingdon, Ill., resident Matt Ford downed this monster buck in the early evening of Nov. 4; the Knox County beast scored 219 1/8 inches green.
“I still can’t believe it. I thought my 145-inch 8-point was big until this,” Ford said. “I never thought I would see a deer this big, but getting to kill one this big never crossed my mind.”
For more, check out Ford's Deer of the Day entry.
Michael Morgan
Michael Morgan killed this amazing double drop-tine giant in Kansas. After watching in agony in 2011 as the monster buck walked just out of range, Morgan found success in his second attempt at the bruiser. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Mike Giarraputo
Mike Giarraputo set a New York state record with this 210-inch non-typical bruiser. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Mike Moran
Mike Moran's Saskatchewan buck was a dream come true for the hunter who'd spent 27 years looking for a deer of that quality. He finally got his wish on Thanksgiving day, an experience he won't forget. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Paul Keller
Having chased whitetails in Wisconsin since 1978, Marion bowhunter Paul Keller is no stranger to monster bucks, but this year was decidedly different. Keller dropped a 229 2/8-inch buck that will challenge for the top of the record books when all is said and done.
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Payton Mireles
Payton Mireles, age 10, of Ind., killed her first buck in 2012, a 154-inch bruiser. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Pete Alfano
After a two-year quest to track down the massive deer known as "Mufasa," Pete Alfano finally struck gold with this 215-inch Kansas buck. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Randy Walk
It's pretty safe to say Randy Walk, president of Hoyt Archery, knows a thing or two about bowhunting.
Nevertheless, the 225-inch Kansas beast shared by Hoyt's Facebook page stands alone as the biggest buck he'd ever seen, he said.
“He is a giant buck. Eighteen points total with nine on each side. He has been green scored at 225 inches and some change and is clearly the largest whitetail deer I have ever seen on the hoof or on the ground for that matter."
For more info, check out Walk's Deer of the Day entry.
Rich Baugh
For years, Rich Baugh carefully managed his Iowa property to maximize whitetail trophy production. After several years at it, Baugh finally capitalized in 2011 with this monster 177-inch trophy. Read more about his process—and his amazing buck—at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Richard Buker
Richard Buker has been hunting his family's property in Vermillion County, Ind., for over 20 years, and on Oct. 28, he finally got the buck of a lifetime.
That windy evening, he spotted the massive 170-inch buck working the treeline before heading across the field toward him. At 35 yards, Buker stopped the buck with a grunt, placed his shot perfectly behind the shoulder and squeezed off a shot. After running 75 yards, the buck then dropped within sight.
For more info, check out Buker's Deer of the Day entry.
Robert Gramoll
Robert Gramoll killed his 202-inch Juneau County, Wisc., record in 2012. Having deliberated about staying for the last evening of rifle season, Gramoll doesn't regret that he did. Read the full story in NAW's Deer of the Day entry.
Ryan Dietsch
After a sleepless night and an unsuccessful afternoon tracking a blood trail, Ryan Dietsch was sure he'd squandered the opportunity of a lifetime. He and friends went back to track the deer he thought he'd hit, but couldn't find so much as a drop of blood. His luck all changed, however, and the rest—along with his 219-inch trophy—is history. Check out the full story at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Shane Frost
Whitetail fate played its hand for Arkansas’ Shane Frost on January 23, 2012. The setting was in the big-timbered, fertile ground of the Black River Bottoms in Clay County in northeast Arkansas. The ancient oaks and sloughs, in all their years, had likely never witnessed a more epic bowhunting scene. So began Frost's whitetail season, which ended with a 216-inch trophy on his wall. Read more at NAW's Deer of the Day.
Stanley Suda
Southern Ohio turned in another giant earlier this season when Stanley Suda shot this buck which is estimated between 235 and 240 inches.
"The shot was perfect," he said. "I watched my dream buck run across the field and pile-up about 20 yards inside the wood line. This was definitely my finest moment in the treestand.”
For more, read the rest of the story in this Deer of the Day entry.
Travis Trimmer
Travis Trimmer of Varina, Va., killed this monster buck on Oct. 27 with a crossbow at 15 yards. The brute weighed in around 159 lbs. and was reported to have a 27-inch wide inside spread.
For more, read the rest of the story in this NAW Community entry.
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NAW's Best Bucks of 2012
It was October 7, 2012, and a cold front had pushed through the eastern Arkansas Delta, dropping the temperature into the mid-50s. The low country heat had hovered in the 70s and 80s for the previous weeks, and this was the break that Mike Miller, of Marion, Ark., was waiting for. Just 10 days prior, a familiar old buck had shown up on his trail camera, but, this year, the beast had sprung into an entirely new category of whitetail. The buck was a giant.
the following day, not wanting to pressure the “Sweet Potato Buck.” Mike is not a novice hunter, and he understood that pressuring the deer would be a major mistake. However, because of the recent rains and Mike’s inability to walk long distances, he chose to hunt the stand that evening because of the ease of access. A high-pressure system had moved in and the evening just felt right.
