HuntingNet.com Forums - Sheds found in Il and pics of my Megabuck

Hey, just wanted the fellow deer hunters know that stressed, old, mature bucks have dropped their antlers for the most part. My brother found a very nice 4 pt. shed with a 12.5" G2 on Dec. 28. Me, being completely psyched for shed hunting, decided to hit up a CRP field that I knew they were bedding in due to flooding here in East Central Illinois. I ended up finding a 4pt shed from a very old buck, most likely a 130 to 140 class deer, along witha very small but promising 4 pt. shed from a 1 1/2 yr old. Saw a lot of deer, probably 50+ every time I went out. I saw very old deer with sagging bellies and grey faces with no racks, and young bucks, mostly being half-racks. I would say 50% of the4 1/2+ old bucks have dropped. Saw over a dozen 3 1/2 yr olds with both sides on. Well, just thought I would give everybody an update. 1 more cold snap and they should be falling like rain.
I haveposted some pics of my buck from shotgun season below. I had hunted him all of bow season. He basically shredded every tree under 8 inches in diameter for about a half mile stretch along the riverbanks, it would send a shiver up my spine every time I walked those bottoms. I had seen him before, thought he was a ten and never knew how much trash he was carrying up front. Anyhow, the thursday night before shotgun opener, I could literally feel that I was going to shoot a huge buck the next day. I drove to my spot and listened to "Fred Bear" by Ted Nugent, which got me completely pumped. I was up in my stand 30 minutes before daylight as planned.I sat and watched as a young buck checked the scrap 20 yards to my north and literally ran a doe off. I thought it was odd. Then, about fifteen minutes later, I saw the bone white rack skulking through the timber. He came to an opening, I noticed He walked the exact trail that he had walked during bow season, just out of reach of my archery skills, around 60 yards. I laid the smack down on him with my .50 Optima Elite. He crashed within sight on the riverbank. It is is, of course, my biggest buck to date. He hasn't been officially scored yet, but we came up with an average gross of 188" and a net of just over 180". He had 17 scorable points, 19 total, and a 24" spread. We estimated him tobe 4 1/2 years old. The sheds we have found look to be pretty promising for next year too. Here are the pics.