Ohio holds giant whitetails, but not every county is a megabuck paradise. Take Hancock. More than 400 nontypicals from other counties in Ohio are bigger than the current Hancock County No. 1, but the bruiser Matt Brunswick shot on Nov. 5 will definitely change that. Running the tape out to 252 inches (green), it will settle in as one of the Buckeye State’s top 20 nontypicals of all time, far surpassing the current top Hancock County buck, a 195 5/8-inch beast taken by a hunter named Harley Heldman 14 years ago.
Two facts about Brunswick will tell you he’s a hunter who can’t fly under the radar. First, he’s a canine officer with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department, which gives him high public visibility. Second, he’s a serious hunter with his name already in Ohio’s Buckeye Big Buck Club four times, and he’s only 35. In 2009, 2010, and 2016 he shot big nontypicals with a bow, all scoring above 160 inches, and in 2008 he took a 150-class shotgun buck. In 2019 he harvested another qualifier that isn’t listed yet and his 2020 buck will be the sixth, easily topping them all.
Because he’s well known, and because he’s so successful, Brunswick must stay a step ahead of other hunters. Last year he had some trail cameras stolen so he decided to find a new location. He started knocking on doors until he found someone willing to give him written permission to hunt. He got busy putting out trail cameras because he had lots of scouting to do. The first card he pulled was on July 3, and this giant buck was on it, in a daytime photo. “I got pretty excited,” Brunswick said. “The picture showed the right side of the rack real well, but I wasn’t sure what the left side looked like. My next card pull had a photo that showed the left side. It was even more impressive and had some palmation, so I named him ‘Moose.’ I knew if I hoped to bring this deer home I needed to keep quiet about it. It would be a once-in-a lifetime deer.”
Brunswick had another reason to keep quiet. The buck was becoming a star in the area. “I started seeing photos of the buck on social media and people were sending them to me by text message, so I was nervous about how much attention he was getting. Then in the early fall more and more treestands and ground blinds started showing up on other properties in the area.”
Some of those photos were daylight photos, and Brunswick didn’t have any photos of this buck after July 13. That told Brunswick the buck was still around, but also that the buck’s core area was not on the property he had permission to hunt. Then starting Oct. 3 he got a few more photos, but only about every 10 days and only in the middle of the night. “If I was going to get a chance at this buck, it was going to be during the rut when the buck was cruising for does,” reasoned Brunswick.
That’s exactly what happened. On Nov. 5 at about 5:22 p.m., Brunswick chose a stand that was positioned well for a warm front that brought southerly winds. The buck made a scrape, scent-checked for does, and walked in front of his camera which snapped the first daytime photo since back on July 8. Brunswick was ready and drew his Bowtech for the 20-yard shot. The Rage 2-blade broadhead went through both lungs and the top of the buck’s heart. He walked only 15 yards and dropped,” said a triumphant Brunswick. “If it wasn’t for the rut I’m convinced he wouldn’t have been moving in this area.”
Brunswick says Deer & Deer Hunting is his favorite magazine, and he watches lots of podcasts on deer hunting. He learned from a Dan Coffman podcast how to plan for what happens after killing a giant. Coffman recommends that when you’re hunting a truly big deer, it’s a good idea to notify wildlife law enforcement. That can help eliminate controversy if you kill it. So Brunswick had shared his pursuit with a trusted friend, Ohio Department of Natural Resources employee Jeremy Berger.
The time for keeping quiet about this buck was over. After killing the buck, Brunswick dialed up the most important person first, his wife Kendra, then called Berger who whispered into his phone because he was hunting with his son Blake. He also called close hunting buddy T. J. Brooks to share the awesome news and to help drag the deer out. Berger and Blake ended their hunt early to come over and see the buck and to help Brunswick get photos of the deer, license, arrow, and everything he could think of to document the kill. A conservation officer couldn’t come to see the deer, but the photographic record helped make clear everything was legitimate.
A few days later Brunswick learned about a hunter who had been watching this buck for four years. He showed Brunswick a shed antler from two seasons earlier, and shared some trail camera photos with him. Judging from the history of this buck, he was at least six years old and he could be older. Despite not getting the buck, this true gentleman sportsman is happy that Brunswick got it.
Brunswick is thankful for all his support and the kindness people have shown him. Everyone deserves credit, from the landowner, to the hunter who has hunted this buck for years, to his friends, and to his family. The love of an enthusiastic and sacrificial wife and the support of his young children played crucial roles in the hunt. Together they butchered, ground, and packaged the meat for family meals they will enjoy around the table in the coming year, while they wait for the buck to be ready to hang on the wall.
— Steve Sorensen (aka “The Everyday Hunter®”) is an avid deer hunter from Pennsylvania and is a frequent sportsman’s dinner speaker.
