Following the blast, the two deer disappeared. Cuozzo remembered that a cornfield lay behind him and figured the deer would run in that direction, so he went up to find if could see them.

After waiting about five minutes, he saw nothing. So he went back to where he had shot at the deer. When he got back, his friends had completed their drive.

Cuozzo went down to where he had shot at the buck, and found a small bench where the deer had been standing. He followed in the direction he thought the deer must have gone after the shot, but to his dismay, he saw no blood or hair -- no sign whatsoever.

An experienced hunter, Cuozzo knew that he needed to keep his cool and calmly continue to look for sign. He walked another 15 yards, but still found nothing.

Then another 15 paces later, Cuozzo saw his buck. The first thing he noticed was the huge rack sticking up from the leaves. He was surprised at how big it was.

He immediately thought of his dad.

As Cuozzo and his friends looked over the great buck, he still didn’t fully appreciate how big it was. The other guys seemed far more impressed with it than he was, but despite their enthusiasm, Cuozzo still didn’t think it was that big. But the more everyone talked about the buck, the more Cuozzo began to understand just how big his buck was.

After getting the buck out of the woods and back to the barn, Cuozzo took it over to show a neighbor, who said that he had seen that buck several times and even seen while walking his dog. The deer had been tearing apart trees on his property.

Later, after the buck’s photo was put out on the Internet, and after word spread around town, he learned that some neighbors had three years’ worth of the deer’s sheds, all from the left side.

He also learned that one of his hunting partners had taken photos of the same buck the previous summer! So as it turned out, this monster buck had been quite visible and willing to show himself throughout the year.

The next day, Cuozzo brought the buck to his taxidermist, who gave him the name of New York State Big Buck Club scorer Merritt Compton. Merritt green-scored the buck at 212 gross Boone and Crockett points, and 206 4/8 inches net.

Later, measurers from the NYSBBC, the Northeast Big Buck Club and the B&C got together to panel-score the deer for all three organizations.

On the all-time list for bucks from New York, this buck ranks very high. It is the Northeast Big Buck Club’s largest buck from 2006, and ranks at the top of their listings for non-typicals killed with a shotgun. It surpasses the great 17-point non-typical killed in Ontario County by Andy Hall in 2005, which scored 201 6/8 gross B&C points.

The NBBC also reports that according to their most recent records, it is the largest gross-scoring buck killed by a hunter in the entire Northeast during the 2006 season.

Many other great bucks were taken during New York’s 2006 season, some of which you will see featured in upcoming issues of this magazine. Some of the bigger bucks scored by the NBBC for 2006 include the amazing Lewis County 17-point non-typical that James Mastroianni killed with a bow. That buck gross-scored 187 7/8 points and 166 5/8 net Pope and Young points.

Mastroianni also shot a 163 6/8-inch 10-pointer with his shotgun during the 2006 gun season!

Speaking of shotguns, Stephan Bailey took a great 17-point non-typical in Wayne County that scored 183 2/8 gross and 177 1/8 net B&C points. That buck dressed out at 215 pounds.

Muzzleloader enthusiasts will enjoy Frank Waltman’s Livingston County typical 10-pointer that grossed 168 1/8 and netted 161 5/8 B&C points.

Be sure to watch for future issues of this magazine to see more about these and other great bucks from 2006 in New York!

FOR YOUR INFORMATION
For more information about the Northeast Big Buck Club or to purchase Northeast Trophy Whitetails V, their new hardcover record book, call (508) 752-8762, visit the club’s Web site at www.bigbuckclub.com, or e-mail jbhunts@aol.com.