Sure I have a few contributions on this subject but I'll start with just one.

When the forest regenerated after the massive timbering, we had few deer and a lot of browse, so they had to stock deer from out of state. The browsing stage can support a lot of deer, but only for around 15 years, then it goes to pole timber, which can support the least deer. Oaks start to produce mast crop (which is considered browse, by the way) after around 30 years of age, which blows your theory right out of the water, as the forest has been the same for almost 70 years.

That means the antlerless deer allocation is responsible for the decrease in the deer numbers. But those of us that have been reading your posts over the last few years, know that you want to keep the herd at levels when the mass crop is poor.