I grew up and lived in Wisconsin for 27 years. Hunted all over the state for 16. I moved to Iowa in 2013, and whitetails had a big role in that. I had been traveling down to Iowa for 7 or 8 years prior to the move, to shed hunt and go to the deer classic. I fell in love. The difference in quality of deer at the Iowa classic vs. the Wisc show is unreal. Also, I could find as many sheds in 1 or 2 days here in Iowa, as I would in an entire season of walking in Wisc.
The deer herd in the northern half of the state is in very bad shape. There are very few deer up there now due to predators, a couple bad winters, and over harvest. Many of the guys always toss blame at the DNR, which may have a role in it, but at the end of the day they aren't the ones pulling the trigger. Hunters never seem to want to take accountability. Its always the DNR, or the Wolves, or the neighbors fault. My favorite are the guys that say they only saw 1 deer all week, and killed it. What?! Go buy beef.
The deer herd in the southern half of the state, the farm country, isn't what it used to be either. There are still some pockets and areas of higher deer densities, but many of the guys that drove up the interstate every year to hunt "up nort" are now staying south and hunting closer to home, therefore adding more pressure and killing more and younger deer in that half of the state.
This doesn't apply to all, but in my opinion, the older generation is harder on the deer numbers and quality in Wisc than the younger generation. They are the "brown its down" "if i dont kill it, my neighbor will" "I killed a buck" have-to-fill-a-tag type. Whereas the younger generation seems to understand how to manage a little better for deer numbers and especially quality. So maybe there is a little hope for them. It definitely has the genetics and the potential to be a top 5 state.
Can you kill big deer in WI? Yes, absolutely. Is it comparable to Iowa? No Way! The one thing Wisc tops Iowa with is the respectable outdoorsman. The trespassing down here is ridiculous. Im not sure if the law is a lot stricter in Wisc or if people are just more respectful of others property, but its A LOT worse down here.