Penn Hills coaches, players reflect on PIAA championship run

By: HSSN Staff
Thursday, December 13, 2018 | 11:27 PM

This moment was more than two decades in the making as the Penn Hills football program capped a perfect season by capturing a second state title, defeating Manheim Central, 36-31, in the PIAA Class 5A championship in Hershey on Dec. 7.

Senior Daequan Hardy had a performance for the ages.

He reached the end zone four times three different ways — two receiving touchdowns, a 100-yard interception return and a 84-yard kickoff return.

“It has been 23 years since they won a state championship. Being a coach that played in the state championship and lost, I wanted to get over the hump as a coach. All the hard work these players put in the past two years paid off. It’s very exciting and very happy for the players,” said Penn Hills coach Jon LeDonne, who played for Aliquippa.

The Indians’ road to Hershey started in Steubenville, Ohio in Week Zero when Penn Hills faced the Big Red and escaped with a 21-14 win on the road.

With the adversity faced throughout the season, the Indians (16-0) felt they were plenty battle tested to come back from any deficit they faced during the playoff run.

In their final game, Penn Hills erased an early 7-0 deficit off an interception thrown by senior quarterback Hollis Mathis to bring home Penn Hills’ first state football championship since 1995.

“I don’t want to say I go out there with a gun-slinging mentality, but I have a very short memory. Whenever things like that happen, I know that my defense will have my back and those plays will be made,” Mathis said.

“It was the theme of the entire season. It seemed like no matter what happened throughout the season everybody had each other’s back. We all held each other accountable, but we all made sure we made up with one another.”

Mathis, who committed to William & Marry last week, finished the season with 2,800 passing yards with 40 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Mathis also ran for 468 yards.

Hardy and senior Dante Cephas led the aerial attack as Hardy finished with 817 receiving yards and 22 total touchdowns. Cephas, a Kent State commit, finished with 810 receiving yards with 16 total touchdowns.

Senior Terry ‘Tank” Smith finished with 1,757 rushing yards and 23 total touchdowns.

The Indians offense, which averaged 37.5 points, had plenty of weapons, and opposing defenses had to pick their poison of who to slow down.

“It was a fact of who was hot that day. Dante Cephas had one of the best postseason performances. He was so reliable and totally lights out. It would have been tough to have a performance like Daequan’s if Dante didn’t get us there,” Mathis said.

“It was fun to see who would come out and show up to have their best games. Sometimes it was me. Sometimes it was Tank. Manheim Central was all Daequan there.”

Defensively, the Indians were led by senior linebacker Jordy Boswell, and junior defensive lineman Armand Gustave provided a late spark on the defensive line. The defense allowed just 11.9 points per game.

On the road to the state championship, Penn Hills defeated West Allegheny, 28-18, to capture its first WPIAL championship since 1995.

In the PIAA Class 5A semifinals, the Indians knocked off Archbishop Wood, the two-time defending state champion, 20-13.

“It was really, really well needed for this community. There were a lot of negative things. We were always on the news for something that wasn’t the best things in Penn Hills,” Mathis said.

“The team saw that through the season, and it made us work harder and harder. It was a great experience that brought the community into a positive light.”

As those involved with the football program reflect, they admit they couldn’t have done it without the support from the Penn Hills community and alumni. Many alumni came back to support their alma mater.

Former Penn Hills and Pitt great and current Los Angeles Ram Aaron Donald was on the sidelines at the WPIAL championship rooting on the Indians. Former Indian and current Philadelphia Eagle Treyvon Hester was on the sidelines at the state championship game, providing guidance and encouragement to the Indians.

Also, former Penn Hills and Pitt great Bill Fralic donated money to pay for hotel rooms for the players and staff. Many other members of the Penn Hills community donated to show their support for the football program.

“It really opened up the eyes of the players. You talk about the pride and tradition of Penn Hills football. The program brought together a community that needed it,” LeDonne said.

“To keep building on that is going to be important for us, but to see that support come back this year speaks volumes to the work the kids did and the lives they touched.”

Andrew John is a freelance writer.