Cooper Gains Redemption at Governor's One-Shot Turkey Hunt

By DAVID RAINER, Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Luke Cooper had to wait two long years for an opportunity for redemption at the Alabama Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt, which showcases Alabama’s great outdoors and southern hospitality every two years. Landowners from across the state host hunters from diverse corporate and industry backgrounds to enlighten the participants about the opportunities available in Alabama.

In 2024, Cooper was hunting with Justin Rock of Riverview Farms near Tuscaloosa when, unfortunately, Cooper’s shot was off target and the turkey fled with every feather still intact.

During last week’s hunt, Cooper’s shot was true, and a big gobbler hit the ground. It was big enough to win the title of Grand Champion. Cooper’s bird weighed a whopping 24.2 pounds, which is not unusual for Riverview Farms, where Rock helped Linda Powell win the 2022 Governor’s Hunt with a 25.13-pound gobbler. Cooper’s bird had spurs of 1 1/4 and 7/8 inches with a beard length of 10 7/8 inches. The gobblers were scored on the National Wild Turkey Federation scoring system of total weight, 10 times the total spur length and two times the beard length, which put Cooper’s bird at 67.2 points.

“It was an amazing hunt,” said Cooper, an investment banker from Baltimore, Maryland. “I had great guides in Justin and the Hudsons. We pulled through in the end. It was the fourth quarter, and we put up a good shot. This was only my second time hunting, but the first time I killed one.

“I went through a range of emotions. After we killed it, we weighed him, and then I just sat there and admired the bird. It was an incredible bird with a lot of charisma. I think the key emotion was gratitude. After we killed it, we said a little prayer being thankful for its great life and all the things in nature that are contributing to our health and wellness.”

Rock said the Riverview team went to a little extra effort to ensure Cooper, who was hooked at that point, was prepared in case another bird cooperated this year.

“We chased them hard two years ago, drew it up perfect and he missed one,” Rock said. “He got the bug and requested that he come back and hunt with us again. He’s a great guy, and he was much better prepared this year. We shot when we got to the farm to get him comfortable.

“We had a turkey scoped out, and he did what you hope they will do. The turkey flew down into a road, walked about 30-40 yards into gun range. He shot and there was no question about it this time. We sat on the same tree. He started gobbling, flew down and walked right to us. It was a classic turkey hunt – the kind you want.”

Benton Blain was runner-up but had to catch a flight back to Charlotte, North Carolina, and missed the trophy presentation that was accepted by sponsor Chris Ross. Blain bagged his bird at the Moss Hammock Hunting Preserve in Montgomery County. The bird weighed 20.54 pounds with 1 1/4-inch spurs and a beard length of a little more than 9 1/2 inches for a total of 64.665 points. After the bird was bagged, they had to get back to Prattville before the check-in closed at 11:30.

“Jared Lowe was the guide, and we chased birds around all morning,” Ross said. “This one answered about 9:30 and just closed the deal at 10. During that 30 minutes, he put on a show. He strutted the whole way and gobbled the whole time. Jared is an aggressive caller, and he talked him in to about 25-30 yards.”

A name that is probably familiar to SEC football fans over the years finished in third place. Eddie Gran, an assistant coach with now Senator Tommy Tuberville at Ole Miss and Auburn, bagged a bird with Dan Moultrie in Chambers County. Gran’s turkey weighed 19.75 pounds with spurs of 1 3/16 and 1 1/8 inches and a beard that measured 10.25 inches for a total of 63.375 points.

“We looked at a bunch of them that morning, but none were very big,” said Moultrie. “Then we started cutting and running. At 10 o’clock this turkey answered. We cut 100 yards on him, and he started coming to us, but Eddie didn’t see him coming. I was thumping my fingers to get his attention. I was afraid he was going to get by us, so I cut again. He was way too close to be cutting at him, but I cut and he gobbled. Eddie turned and made a great shot and killed him. The turkey was on his left, but Eddie is a good hunter and made the shot.”

Gran, who is currently on the University of Kentucky football staff, said he heard Moultrie snapping his fingers and was trying to figure out what was going on.

“It was a phenomenal mid-morning hunt,” Gran said. “We heard him gobble and cut the distance about 100 yards, which was awesome because I never would have gone that far. He gobbled and Dan said, ‘Sit down; he’s coming.’ I was pointed one way and thought that gobbler was right in front of me, but he made a circle and was coming up on the left. All I heard was Dan snapping his fingers. So, I knew he had seen the bird. He probably wouldn’t have called, but he needed me to look to the left. He called one more time, and I was able to swing around and shoot. It was awesome.”

Max Vaughn took the third runner-up title with a 20.5-pound bird with 1 1/16 and 1 1/8-inch spurs and a 10 1/8-inch beard for a total of 62.625 points. Vaughn said the first birds they heard gobble had hens take them away but another bird soon answered.

“Things started happening pretty fast then,” Vaughn said. “We kept moving a little closer, easing our way in. Then the bird started coming to us. We backed up and sat down. A few minutes later, he poked his head out, and that was all she wrote. We were done before 7 o’clock.”

The list of hunters included corporate CEOs, corporate presidents, outdoor celebrities, media representatives and sponsors. The prospect list to fill the hunt slots comes largely from recommendations by the Governor, the Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) and the Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. The event raises funds that benefit the many projects of the Alabama Conservation and Natural Resources Foundation, including contributions to scholarship funds at several state universities, Hunters Helping the Hungry, Adult Mentored Hunts, Youth Dove and Duck Hunts, Becoming an Outdoors-Woman and other programs. 

Chris Blankenship, ADCNR Commissioner, handed out the trophies to the winners and praised the efforts of Governor Kay Ivey to revive the Governor’s One-Shot Turkey Hunt.

“I want to thank all the hunters and especially the landowners who donated so much of their time and resources to be able to put this on,” Commissioner Blankenship said. “It has been a fantastic event. When Governor Ivey came into office, sometime in 2018 she called me and said, ‘Chris, I want you to get that Governor’s Hunt going again.’ I said, ‘Yes, Ma’am.’ We tried to do it in 2020 but we had COVID. We tried again in 2021 but there were still restrictions. So, 2022 was the first year we were able to do it under Governor Ivey’s administration. I think it was a little better in 2024, and we made changes based on feedback after that event, so I think the One-Shot is getting better every time.”

The Commissioner applauded the efforts of the ADCNR staff, including Billy Pope, Assistant Deputy Commissioner, for coordinating and executing the event. 

Commissioner Blankenship also enjoyed the camaraderie of the hunters and landowners and listening to the stories of the successful hunts and the ones that got away.

“One of the things that is so great about hunting, fishing and the outdoors is the camaraderie and the relationships that are built,” the Commissioner said. “I hope you will appreciate the connections you made with the people you hunted with or visited with at the Fly-Down Social. That is not just a fundraiser for our foundation; those connections will hopefully lead companies to do business in Alabama by using the outdoors to bring people together.”

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