For what it's worth, I own property in Ohio on about the same latitude as Pike Co, IL., and big boy cruising begins around the second week of October. The big guys are finding their does long before the younger bucks even know it's time to rut. The woods aren't on fire like early November but chances are if I see a daylight buck in mid October up there, he's a good one. OH is not IL but the latitude, climate, and general landscape is all pretty dang similar.