7mag's deer head had 1 or 2 in it when I skinned it out, just like you described...

Those are nasal bot fly larvae... not maggots. (although they do look like it!) Most deer have them. They hatch from eggs laid by bot flies near the nostrils and grow in the nasal cavities until they are sneezed out.... Then they pupate and become bot flies themselves.

thats why deer are always sneezing when i see them..

I was watching "Elk Country" last night on the Outdoor Channel. A wildlife biologist was talking about a "brain worm" that is effecting elk herds. She said that the worm is common in whitetails and is not fatal to deer but it is to elk. Do you think these maggots could have been the brain worm?

sounds like good catfish bait to me...

They are called nose bots and are deposited by the female bot fly. I have found them in 2 of the 3 skull mounts I've done, and countless numbers of does to show people who have never seen them. They pose no threat to animal or human. Don't show them to the wife though, they will never eat deer meat again.

Google "Nose bots" and you will get all the information you want, and then some.