Because 7-year-old Ezra Oettel closed his eyes right before squeezing his rifle's trigger, he missed a dandy 8-pointer on opening day of Indiana's 2016 youth season. Twenty minutes later, he and his dad, David, were able to hit the reset button.
David and Brittany Oettel introduced both their children to deer hunting as soon as the kids were big enough to shoulder rifles. The couple set up a shooting range at their farm, and Ezra and Ella practice often.
On opening day, David hunted with Ezra, and Brittany hunted with their daughter Ella. They were 500 yards apart in elevated box stands next to food plots.
"Both kids wanted to shoot bucks rather than does, which was okay with me," David told Ed Waite, who's writing the story for Rack magazine. In particular, Ezra wanted to shoot a tall-tined monster their trail cameras had photographed.
But he wasn't too picky.
About 7:20 that Saturday evening, a really decent 8-pointer entered the food plot father and son were watching. Ezra, no doubt remembering how his scope smashed into his brow during a recent practice session, closed his eyes and jerked the trigger.
Missed it clean, his father said.
"I tried to reassure Ezra that maybe it was for the best," David said. "I thought I was lying to him when I said an even better buck might still show in the 30 minutes we had left."
Twenty minutes later, a giant 12-pointer was standing right where the 8-pointer had entered the field earlier. The buck was close, only 50 yards away, scoping out the plot before entering it.
David helped Ezra move to the best window and set up the rifle. When boy and gun melded, he told his son to go ahead and shoot.
Silence ensued.
"I wanted to yell ‘Hurry up and shoot!' but I held my tongue. I was really worried because he was extremely nervous from missing the last time," David said.
The shot almost came as a surprise, but David recouped quickly enough to see the obviously hit buck rear up and plow into the brush. Ezra says he saw blood through his scope.
"David and I started texting almost immediately after the shot," Brittany said. "I typed ‘Did he shoot a doe or a buck?' And his reply was ‘Oh, my gosh. He drilled it. I think it is the monster, but I'm not sure. It's at least a big 10. Huge!'"
The family went home at dark, and they returned an hour later to retrieve Ezra's deer, which had traveled only 50 yards. Its BTR composite score is 176 6/8 inches, a perfect 6x6.
— Read Recent Blog! A Testament to Homework: Jacob Lamar / BTR Composite Score: 179 3/8