Jeff,
I completely mis-understood your initial post. Pre-rut (to me) is the week +/- before actual breeding. It would not inlcude the time from the opener (13 Sept in this case) all the way to the breeding season. Anyway... I concur that the does may shift food sources considerably from the opener to rut. Beans and corn will both disappear as an option during that time here in NC.

If I sat twice and saw no bucks during (what I call) early season, then I would move to another spot that would support my buck-only endeavors - as constrained by wind direction, property limits, hunters, stand availability etc.