Former Penn Hills standout receiver Cephas returns to form at Kent State
In the case of Dante Cephas, it appears history is starting to repeat itself.
Back when Cephas was in high school, it was his breakout stretch over the latter half of the 2018 season that helped pace Penn Hills to its first WPIAL and PIAA titles in 23 years.
Remember the WPIAL semifinals that season, when Cephas’ two touchdown catches — one right before halftime and another in the fourth quarter — fueled a 14-point Penn Hills comeback win against Peters Township?
Or how about a week later in the WPIAL Class 5A championship, when his 144 receiving yards, two scores and blocked field goal pulled the Indians out of a 10- point deficit to emerge victorious against West Allegheny in Bob Palko’s final game?
Then, in Penn Hills’ PIAA semifinal bout with Archbishop Wood, Cephas threw a 37-yard touchdown pass on a trick play to seal the win. And to cap it all off, he posted a team-high four receptions for 66 yards in the state championship victory against Manheim Central the following week.
Cephas’ contributions to that storybook Penn Hills season may only be remnants of a past life now, but he’s back to filling up stat sheets and lighting up secondaries ... only this time at the Division I level. Now a redshirt sophomore at Kent State, Cephas is amidst a career year as the primary replacement for 2020 firstteam All-MAC receiver Isaiah McKoy — totaling 50 receptions for 683 yards and six touchdowns over eight games for a Golden Flashes team (4-4, 3-1) tied for first in the MAC East division.
“I’m just trying to be consistently good, not occasionally great,” said Cephas, whose six scores rank first among all MAC receivers. “I’ve been focusing more on my job and on improving weaknesses. ... With Isaiah leaving, me stepping up is a big role. My coaches told me before the season to be prepared and be ready because you’re the guy this year.
“I know if I keep working, good things will come my way.”
Cephas isn’t wrong. Five of his six touchdown grabs have come his way over the past three games alone. On Kent State’s opening possession against Ohio last weekend, the 6-foot-1, 178-pound receiver with a slender frame that earned him the nickname “Slim” instead channeled his inner-Rob Gronkowski, bulldozing an incoming defensive back after a catch across the middle en route to a 33-yard score.
He was nearly unguardable in a 48- 38 shootout against Buffalo on Oct. 9, finishing with 13 catches for 186 yards and three touchdowns — all of which were career highs — while resurrecting his Mr. Clutch tendencies from high school. Cephas and Kent State quarterback Dustin Crum connected for two of those scores in the fourth quarter after the Golden Flashes had relinquished a 21-point lead and trailed by four, ultimately leading a critical come-from-behind win that has since set the tone for their conference slate. The display was yet another example of a quarterback-re -ceiver duo that has grown into quite the tandem for opposing defenses to stop.
“[Cephas and Crum] realize that this doesn’t come easy and lean into the work,” said Kent State coach Sean Lewis after the Buffalo game. “Work works, you know? Production on a night when you get 18 targets, 13 catches, 186 yards and 3 touchdowns — they ain’t selling [that] on TV for $19.95. You’ve got to put in the work day in and day out and do it when people aren’t watching. Not just on Saturday night in prime time.”
For Cephas, putting in the work beyond his typical extra reps after practice meant getting faster in the offseason to improve his yards- after- catch ( YAC) rate, as well as sharpening his technique on contested catches in order to attack the ball at its highest point. His 2021 production is largely due to improvements in both areas.
However, it also meant developing the mental fortitude to weather bouts of adversity, which doesn’t always come easy for young college receivers in his shoes. For example, Cephas struggled in Week 2 against VMI, finishing with just two receptions and a pair of dropped would-be touchdowns.
“After that, I knew I had to lock in, re-focus and do my job to the best of my ability,” he said. “If you dwell on mistakes or whatever the case is, you’re not going to be at the best of your ability to make the next play.”
Two weeks later against Maryland, Cephas exploded for 10 catches for 151 yards and a touchdown on a Big Ten secondary.
“Ever since that Maryland week of preparation, he’s really been practicing at a higher level,” said Lewis. “It’s great to see that preparation, his work ethic, and not getting frustrated with the lack of early success in the season. [He’s] putting his chin to his chest and really going to work, and has really reaped the benefits of that hard work. Week in and week out, he’s gone about it the right way.”
Cephas and Kent State will take on Northern Illinois Thursday night in front of a national audience on ESPN2.