Quintez Cephus photo

Quintez Cephus had 59 receptions for 901 yards and seven touchdowns in his final season at UW.

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GREEN BAY — As nicknames go, Quintez Cephus gives a less-than-enthusiastic endorsement of “Q,” something plenty of his teammates and friends at the University of Wisconsin called him during his time on campus.

Quintez Cephus mug

Cephus

“I mean, people call me ‘Q’ all the time, so it’s fine. Literally, everybody calls me ‘Q,’ so it’s not that big of a deal if you want to call me ‘Q,’” the former Badgers star said with the verbal equivalent of an eye roll during an interview on ESPN Wisconsin Friday morning. “With my family, I have a bunch of nicknames, but ‘Quintez’ is fine.”

As long as an NFL team calls his name during the April 23-25 NFL draft — the earlier the better — Cephus will be happy. And if that team is the receiver-needy Green Bay Packers, he said, all the better.

“Personally, I would love to play for the Packers,” said Cephus, a Macon, Georgia, native who is training in Arizona in advance of the draft. “I’ve always watched Aaron Rodgers growing up, and I’ve always studied Davante Adams. So it wouldn’t matter what climate I’m in. it’d be a blessing to play with those caliber of players.”

The Packers surely could use the help.

In what continues to be viewed as perhaps the deepest wide receiver class in the history of the draft, scouts believe starting-caliber receivers can be found well into the fourth round. After adding only Devin Funchess at the position during free agency and allowing Geronimo Allison to depart, the Packers figure to add multiple receivers among their 10 picks in the three-day draft, and could even use their first-round selection (No. 30 overall) on a receiver — a move that would mark the first time the franchise would have used a first-round pick on the position since coach/general manager Mike Sherman took Florida State’s Javon Walker in 2002.

Cephus measured 6-foot-0 7/8 at the NFL scouting combine in February and weighed in at 202 pounds. While he ran a disappointing 4.73-second 40-yard dash, he performed well during the on-field drills.

“My combine experience was great. I did great in the interview and I had great field work,” Cephus said. “I didn’t run as well as I wanted to, obviously, but I knew I would have another chance to run, and luckily I did get the chance to run at pro day.”

Added UW coach Paul Chryst: “I know ‘Q’ didn’t run maybe as well as he would’ve liked to, but I thought all the drill work, it looked like you’re watching ‘Q.’”

Cephus then shaved a full 0.1 off his 40 time by running a 4.62-second time during the Badgers’ pro day on campus shortly before the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out most other schools’ pro days and turned the NFL offseason upside down along with the rest of the sports world.

Cephus said after his disappointing time at the combine, he made some adjustments to his sprinting style and concentrated on doing the little things to improve his time — even though he believes his game speed is plenty fast to set him up for NFL success.

“When I was there, I was just thinking I was going to be free and run. But my style of running is to stand straight up, so I went back and gave myself a couple cues to help me stay down, and I was able to run better, as we know,” Cephus said. “I was thankful for that.”

Cephus also seems to have effectively answered teams’ questions about the sexual assault allegations for which he was acquitted in August. The charges led to his suspension from the team for the entire 2018 season and his expulsion from school before the not guilty verdict allowed him to be reinstated.

Asked Friday how he answered personnel executives’ questions about the incident and ensuing experience, Cephus replied: “A lot of the questions I got were how did I handle adversity — because I had a lot of it. Who were my go-to people and how did I go through it and how did it shape me.

“Everybody did their research on me, and they know the kind of man that I am. They just wanted to hear me open up and really get to know me just by listening to how I present myself. It wasn’t that challenging. I enjoyed sharing my story.”

Cephus returned to action last fall and finished his final season at UW with 59 receptions for 901 yards and seven touchdowns. With a year of eligibility remaining, Cephus, who turned 22 on April 1, declared for the draft shortly after UW’s loss to Oregon in the Rose Bowl.

“I just felt like I was ready for it. I felt like I’m at the top of my game — mentally and athletically,” Cephus said. “I had a chance to play against some really great guys and I was able to go out there and show I can play with the best of them. I was just mentally ready for the change.”

Cephus has ample size, a large catch radius and the ability to snare contested passes in traffic — all qualities the Packers value. General manager Brian Gutekunst said earlier this offseason that adding to the position was a priority and that there are a wide variety of types of receivers for teams to choose from in this class.

“There’s some pretty big dudes in this receiver class, as well. But I think if you’re looking for something specific, all types are out there,” Gutekunst said. “You’re always bigger, faster, stronger if you can be. But it’s really about the football player, whether they can play. And so, every player has different attributes that makes them who they are.”

And what are Cephus’ best attributes?

“My ability to make plays, I would say my ability to go up and make tough catches when the coverage is tight,” he replied. “And just being reliable on big downs like third downs and in the red zone, always being reliable for my team and coming up in those moments. And my physicality. I’ve been able to use my strength to create space.

“Honestly, for me, I understand that I’m not a track guy, I’m not an Olympic sprinter. But I’m a football player. And I have what it takes to be a great football player at the end of the day.”

This article originally ran on madison.com.

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