Big Ten deer hunting rankings? Minnesota isn't the powerhouse you'd expect.

— Giving you a shot at a monster buck

In 2022, hunters in the Badger State killed 340,282 deer. That was second overall in the Big Ten and far greater than Ohio's deer harvest of 211,000. But Ohio outclassed Wisconsin in terms of hunter success. For instance, 41% of Ohio deer hunters shot at least one deer during the 2022 season compared to 27% in Wisconsin. In another measure of success, hunters in both states excelled at bagging trophy bucks.

In terms of typical and nontypical whitetail deer registered as trophies by the nonprofit Boone and Crockett Club, from 2012 to 2022, Wisconsin clearly was No. 1 overall with 655 registrations. Ohio registered the second-most number of monster bucks among Big Ten states, with 560. Bucky (not Brutus Buckeye, the Ohio State mascot) also scored high with a first-place finish in the category of deer hunters per population. Where Wisconsin boasts 117 deer hunters per 1,000 residents age 10 or older, Ohio ranks eighth with 22. With 93 deer hunters per 1,000 residents age 10 or older, Goldy Gopher flexes second-best.

4. Pennsylvania

— Home of the biggest hunt

The Keystone State dominates the Big Ten′s overall deer harvest by taking almost 25% more whitetails per season than any of its peers. In the 2022-23 season, the year of our comparisons, Pennsylvania shot 422,960 whitetails, second nationally only to Texas. Over the past 10 years, Pennsylvania has fielded an average of 887,000 deer hunters per season. In 2022, 40% of those hunters shot at least one deer. The performance was fourth best in the conference regarding hunter success, but the intense hunting pressure hasn't equated to a ton of trophies.

According to Boone and Crockett, Pennsylvania ranks ninth among the conference's 11 states in trophy bucks shot by firearm from 2012 to 2022. Still, Pennsylvania hunters show a strong preference for shooting antlered bucks. Where the national average for buck harvest is 1.7 per square mile, Pennsylvania averages 3.7 bucks killed per square mile. In terms of deer hunting tradition, about 56 of every 1,000 residents age 10 and older buy a deer license in Pennsylvania, good for sixth place.

5. Minnesota and Iowa (tie)

— A split decision with different strengths and weaknesses

Where Minnesota's virtue as a deer hunting state lies with its sizable public land mass and its popular quest of putting wild venison on the table, Iowa came up the power rankings by virtue of scoring well in four of the six judgment categories. As previously suggested, Iowa is dead last in the Big Ten for public land. Less than 1% of land in the state is open for public hunting. But the Hawkeye State is second only to Michigan in hunter success with 42% of its hunters shooting at least one deer. In a recent state-administered survey of Iowa deer hunters, 74% of respondents said they were satisfied with the quality of deer hunting their state.

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