Whenever the Whitehall offense needs a big play, they’ll often draw up something that involves Dez Boykin, utilizing the senior receiver’s knack for rising to the occasion when his number’s called.

With Liberty poised to get the ball back after controlling much of the action in the second quarter, Whitehall was staring at a 3rd and 27 deep in their own territory. The ’Canes had cut the Zephyr lead to 14-7, and with the way they were running the ball, it seemed like they could march down the field once again if they got the Zephs off the field in that third and forever.

But enter Dez Boykin. The nightmare matchup for defensive backfields across the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference. The Liberty defender was locked in single coverage against Boykin as he raced down the field, and when quarterback Ethan Parvel released the ball, Boykin made the right adjustment to square his body to the ball to haul it in for the 29-yard reception.

That catch put him ahead of Tyler Artim for the most career receptions with 138.

But Boykin had more magic in store during that drive as once again that pair connected, this time for a 34-yard TD, giving the Zephs a 20-7 lead, and placing Boykin tied for fifth in career TDs with 32.

Those big plays helped the Zephyrs stay undefeated as they knocked off the visiting ’Canes 41-20 last Friday.

Boykin has a habit of making big plays against Liberty. Last year it was his 25-yard TD catch and run with just under two minutes remaining that lifted them over the ’Canes, 28-21. Boykin finished Friday’s game with three catches for 91 yards, including a TD.

But it was his two first half catches that established him as the premiere receiver at Whitehall that will be long remembered.

“It’s a crazy accomplishment, really a childhood dream,” said Boykin. “Always as a kid I thought about that, holding a record, and I finally did it.”

Boykin has also had the benefit of being around coach Teddy Street who joined the staff this year as a receivers coach. Boykin said that Street, whose son Devin has played professionally in the NFL, while Darian is a freshman at Pitt, has had a big impact on him. Those two often converse on the sidelines during the game,

“He’s helping me out a lot, and I really appreciate it,” said Boykin.

Gilbert knows what Boykin means to the offense. It’s been that way for two years now. And he sees that work ethic on a daily basis. That’s why these records are coming his way.

“He puts in so much time in the offseason, and he works on his skills, he works in the weight room, and he’s been doing it since his sophomore year,” said Gilbert. “It couldn’t happen to a better kid.”

Boykin knows he’ll be counted on throughout the game to make a play, and he’s more than willing to take that responsibility.

“I got to make big plays for my team,” said Boykin who now has 22 catches for 262 yards this season.

Boykin wasn’t alone in making big plays for the Zephs. Braxton Marrero also played a key role in the win, rushing for 113 yards on 11 carries, including a TD. He also caught a pass for a score on Whitehall’s opening drive, hauling in a 36-yard pass from Parvel for the score.

Marrero now has 542 yards on the season. He was also able to help the Zephs regain the momentum in the second half once the Hurricanes trimmed the lead to 20-13 at the half by stringing together some big runs in their early third quarter drive that basically iced the game for them as they scored on a Parvel 2-yard run to make it 27-13.

Parvel was another piece in that dynamic triumvirate that makes them hard to defend. The junior signal caller had 103 rushing yards and passed for 172 yards, including two TDs in the win. He’s at the helm of one of the most explosive offenses in the EPC that’s averaging 47 points per game this season.

They definitely needed those three and their big play ability as Liberty began to assert themselves in the second quarter. After converting a turnover in a TD late in the first quarter, they controlled the ball through much of second period, gashing the Zephyr defense with a scorching running attack led by Nasir Legree. Legree finished the first half with 134 yards rushing, the lion’s share coming in the second when he was making dazzling cuts through the line, making defenders miss as he created six Legrees of separation.

He also had a huge kickoff return that set up their second score, giving them the momentum as they went into the break after he capped that drive with a 4-yard run.

But the Zephyr defense buckled down as they got pressure on Liberty quarterback Tristan Reinart who replaced an injured Todd Erney. They managed to sack him a few times and limited that ground game in the second half.

Still, Gilbert said that they needed to address how Legree was able to tear through them, especially early. He said each game brings up something different for them to work on during the week.

“Our run defense tonight was it, last week it was our pass defense,” said Gilbert. “We’ll keep working on it.”

Now the Zephs will prepare for Easton. Gilbert said that it will be a big test and he foresees Easton passing the ball more when the two meet this Friday.

Boykin knows that preparation and attention to detail will be crucial if they want to stay undefeated against Easton.

“We just need to keep our head on straight and make sure that we have no flaws, and just keep pushing,” said Boykin.