If I shot a record book Bull/Stag/Buck..etc and I was faced with a situation where I only had one choice on carrying out the choice cuts or carrying out the trophy. The trophy would win every time. (Nice if you can do both.)
In my situation there' s always plenty of opportunity to take another animal for meat, as we don' t have limits/tags/seasons etc.
I' m sorry, but to shoot an animal and leave the meat is wrong, regardless of where you live, what your tag limit is, or how big the antlers are. If you have to make a choice, take the meat. You can try to hide the head if it' s that important and come back for it later.
I hunt mainly for the meat. If that meat happens to be attatched to a nice rack, all the better!