It’s not every day a hunter shoots a 150-inch buck in Lauderdale County with a bow and arrow.  However, for local bowhunter Sam deGeneres, that dream became a reality last week.

 

The quest for the buck that became known as “The Freak” has a lot of plot twists along the way, but none more life-changing than what occurred on Sept. 30, 2024.

 

Sam has hunted the location on and off for around seven years.  Early on in his time there, he discovered a natural ridge crossing with a forked oak tree that provided good cover for stand placement.  Little did he know that several years later this discovery would prove to be “the spot.”

 

Last season, he found several big rubs along the trail near the forked oak, and, within days, he had his first pictures of a young deer with unreal genetics and an unbelievable rack featuring a split G2 tine.  He hunted the buck on and off but was never able to get within bow range.

 

He was ecstatic when the first pictures this season showed an even more impressive rack.  With the buck back in his core area, deGeneres began making plans.

 

“My strategy was to place a couple of permanent stands and also utilize a saddle setup to move sites throughout the season,” he explained.

 

His goal was to catch the old buck by surprise as his tendency was to go nocturnal or disappear entirely with the slightest pressure.  As it turns out, the pressure was real.  Several neighbors were also hunting the deer, even as far as 3.5 to 4 miles away.

 

An afternoon picture of the buck on Sept. 29 gave deGeneres the intel that he needed for a new stand location, and the next day he left his friend Robby Brady planting a food plot while he went to hang a ladder for his saddle-hunting setup.  It would prove to be an afternoon he will never forget.

 

After hanging each ladder section, Sam climbed down, unhooked from his safety belt and looked up to inspect his work.  He noticed that the second set of steps was offset from the others and looked unsafe.

 

He quickly made the decision to climb back up without a safety belt.  It was a decision that would cost him dearly.  As he moved up the tree from the first set of steps to the second, the ladder stick kicked off the tree and he began to fall.  His left arm caught the last steel step on his way down.

 

“I ruptured my bicep, a distal bicep tear at the elbow, and it retracted into my upper arm,” he explained.  A visit with orthopedic surgeon Dr. Lane Rush confirmed the extent of Sam’s injury and the need for surgery to repair it and to prevent loss of mobility in the arm.

 

Rush also assured deGeneres that with the surgery and physical therapy he would be able to return to shooting a bow again by mid-January.  His hopes for the big buck were still alive.

 

Following successful surgery, he started physical therapy with Chris Morgan and Bo Bilello at Synergy Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine and was cleared by his physical therapy team and Rush to return to light duty the week before Christmas.  That “light duty” would most definitely include drawing a compound bow.

 

During all this time, the big Lauderdale County buck had disappeared; however, he began showing again in his usual nocturnal pattern in early January.  Finally, on the morning of Jan. 13, the deer “daylighted” for the first time on camera, and deGeneres decided to make his move.

 

Settled in his stand in the forked oak the next day, Sam watched a big group of does come through early followed by a young buck around 9:45 a.m. After the buck passed, deGeneres says he was faced with another providential decision.

 

The fork in the oak forced him to hang his bow on either the left side or the right.  The left side offered several clear lanes for shooting while the right provided only two narrow windows.

 

“Something told me to hang my bow on the right side,” he said.

At 10:30 a.m., Sam looked up to see the big buck walking directly toward him.  “He was so cautious. I’ve never seen a deer more aware of his surroundings.”

 

Coming within range, the monarch paused twice to check the wind before sensing that something was amiss.

 

“He turned to leave, and I had one small window at 22 yards with him quartering away from me,” deGeneres said.

 

As he released the shot, the buck turned to walk straight away from him.  Fortunately, his shot clipped the femoral artery, and the buck ran only forty yards before falling.

 

After sitting for an hour to calm himself before climbing down, Sam called his friend Ross Goodin to help retrieve his trophy.  The buck, which scored 153, ended up being his best deer with a bow which says a lot for the avid bowhunter who has hunted whitetails from Illinois to Wisconsin.

 

“On Sept. 30, I didn’t know if I would be able to pull a bow back or climb a tree ever again,” deGeneres said.  “Walking up on that deer, the flood of emotions and the gratitude to the good Lord for getting me back and the people that helped me get back, and then having one of my best friends with me for the recovery, it was an unbelievable story.”

 

Lt. Col. deGeneres is a pilot with over 26 years of service in the Air Force and Louisiana and Mississippi Air National Guards.  He is also the Chief of Safety at the 186th Air Refueling Wing at Key Field.  As such, he makes safety a top priority.

 

“I made a split-second decision and within four seconds of making that decision, I was falling.  If it can happen to me, it can happen to anybody,” Sam said. “The takeaway is stay attached to the tree until your feet are on terra firma, no matter how high it is.”

 

Sam told me that he’s probably the happiest bowhunter in Mississippi right now.  After hearing his story, I’ll also say that he’s one of the most blessed, and he knows it.

 

“This deer has been such a blessing for so many of us and has brought so many people together.  It was the ultimate team effort.  I’m the one that got to pull the trigger, but I had a lot of good people that helped me get there,” he said.

 

Until next time, stay safe, count your blessings, love your friends and neighbors, and don’t stop chasing your dreams in our great outdoors.