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What do you call a draft party without being drafted? For Jalen Coker: "Awesome"

Jalen Coker draft party

CHARLOTTE — The key to a good party isn't the food, even though there was plenty of that, including a hot dog station and a never-ending parade of wings every time the doorbell rang.

The key to a good party isn't the beverages, though they were well-stocked on those, too, including three signature cocktails specific to the event.

It's not about the decorations, even though they were all in place well in advance. (It is important, however, to keep receipts. More on that later.)

It isn't even important to tie a successful event to a particular occasion.

Because for Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker, not even not being drafted could ruin his draft party last year.

Jalen Coker draft party

The crowd at his parents' house in Sterling, Va., on Saturday, April 27, 2024, showed up early and stayed late, and not even the fact that the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh rounds passed without the guest of honor hearing his name called could spoil things.

But instead of being awkward, a bunch of people milling around and avoiding eye contact, Coker said the community spirit made him feel embraced long before the Panthers called with a free-agent offer when the draft was over.

"I think it helped," Coker said this week, thinking back on the roundabout start to his NFL career. "I didn't want to, you know, disappoint them by them coming and thinking that something's going to happen, and then it doesn't. But you know, getting picked up after still had the same effect. I mean, I'm still going to play in the NFL.

"It wasn't the way everyone wanted it to go, me included. But I mean, it ended up working out, and I wouldn't trade it for anything."

The story of that day, and that party, started weeks before, when the Coker family started talking about how to commemorate his draft weekend, not knowing at the time he wouldn't be drafted.

The Holy Cross wide receiver had drawn some attention by setting a school record with 31 touchdowns. And he was getting mentioned as a sleeper by a lot of draft analysts, including Panthers legend Steve Smith. But there are no sure things during draft season, and when a hamstring injury just before the combine led to a slower-than-expected 40 time (4.57, 28th-best among receivers when he had been running sub-4.5s before the injury), there were some doubts.

Holy Cross wide receiver Jalen Coker runs in the 40-yard dash during the NFL football scouting combine, Saturday, March 2, 2024, in Indianapolis.

Still, they expected him to go at some point, so about a month before the draft, his mom started making plans (she might have had a head start).

There were a few people over Friday night to watch the second and third rounds, just in case a team really wanted him. But that was a casual one since they didn't necessarily expect it to happen. So it wasn't a big disappointment, and they all just went to bed to get ready for the next day's festivities.

"Nervous, hopeful," Jalen recalled when asked how he felt as he called it a night on Friday. "But at the same time, I knew that it was going to be a possibility that I didn't get picked, but I knew that I was confident that even if I didn't, I would land somewhere and that's all I really wanted."

And Saturday was the day they were all thinking about anyway. Because, once Mom got to working on it, it was going to be a party.

"As soon as he gave me the green light, so maybe a month out," Jenny Coker recalled when asked when she started planning. "When he was OK with doing it, I wanted to make sure he was comfortable with it, and then once he said let's go for it, it was just like, OK, let's get the list of people together.

"I was so amazed at how many people wanted to be a part of this with him. It was incredible. I mean, coaches throughout his life, friends, families of those friends, our family. I mean, a ton of people came in from out of town. It's just like this village that has just watched him and his whole journey to that day and now obviously to be on the Panthers, but it was, it was amazing, it was amazing."

When asked about the size of that village, Jalen said he thought maybe 50 or 60 people were there. He didn't really notice since he was glued to the couch watching television coverage.

"Yeah, probably more like 100," his mom said with a laugh.

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Which was fine. The more, the merrier.

At least until it rained.

"Unfortunately, that day of all days, it decided to rain," Jenny said. "So we had the signs outside, we decorated inside, outside, we had a huge backyard, it was gonna be perfect for this inside-outside thing. I had TVs outside so we could have people milling around. And then it rained all day. So then it was like, OK. Now, everyone's going to want to be inside. We have a covered porch on the back, so we were able to still have some people outside, but really, everyone stayed inside and no one left.

"It was crazy. I thought it'd be like you stop in, you tell him you're wishing him well, you stay for a little bit, and then you leave. But not only did no one leave, they kept coming."

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Why not stay? This was a happening.

Jenny started with the "tailgate food," dialing up the take-out and the crock pots — from the hot dog station to the Chick-fil-A trays. And people kept showing up with more.

Jalen felt like he should contribute, so he and his girlfriend made a Buffalo chicken dip.

"Just a little something," he said humbly.

"Yes, he can make a really good Buffalo chicken dip," his mother confirmed. "He's become quite the cook. I've been very impressed.

"That is not my forte. I'm the get-it-catered kind of person, but he's a really good cook, and the Buffalo chicken dip is quite, quite good."

Kickoff Punch

But watching a football event requires a few beverages as well, and in the spirit of the entire day, the village delivered again.

"My old 7-on-7 coach came, and he brought his mobile bar and everything," Jalen said.

"I mean, he actually created three signature drinks for the party, all in kind of spirit of Jalen and what he can do," Jenny said. "I remember Touchdown was one of them, but yeah, he had signature drinks on hand. It was just such a wonderful gift of self, you know, to be able to do something like that."

That gift of self started expanding as the day went on, and more selves kept arriving.

"I mean, there were neighbors that were just like coming by walking the dogs saying, 'Oh my gosh, is this about your son?'" Jenny said. "We did have this big sign in the front yard, and in this area, Jalen's been a big story. It's just been incredible to see the amount of support that he's had his whole life, but it's just continuing to grow as people are just like, they're just amazed at his journey, and all they want to do is just support him and cheer him on.

"I mean, I had people not even knowing that they were bringing stuff, walking in with trays of wings just to be part of it. They just wanted to contribute."

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There were some nerves as the rounds went on and nobody called. But the party continued.

At a certain point, his mother put together a display table with 32 hats, one for every NFL team, just to be ready no matter who drafted him.

As you might imagine, even in the D.C. suburbs, it's not always easy to find them all.

But Jenny was able to secure 26 of them (including a Panthers hat; Hooray for regional merchandising in Commanders country) at the Lids store at the nearby Leesburg Premium Outlets. The other six, she quickly sourced online, so there would be one for whichever team called.

About those hats.

Finding 32 officially licensed NFL hats is not an inexpensive proposition, especially when 31 of them are going to end up unused. But Jenny, being a professional parent long before her son was a professional football player, had that part taken care of.

"Yes, I kept the receipts, and all of them got returned on Monday," she said with a laugh. "I mean, let me say that was a big part of the budget, right? Because 32 NFL draft hats, I mean those were not inexpensive. I even made a deal with the Lids guy. Like, you know that I'm probably going to be returning a bunch of these.

"And he was of course disappointed because he was making this gigantic sale. But I explained the situation, and he was like, 'Wow, OK, what an incredible day.'"

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Day, and then night.

The fourth round starts at noon on Saturday, and people were in place in case the Panthers wanted to use the 101st overall pick on Jalen instead of tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders. It's well past 6 p.m. when the seventh round wraps up, and then the furious game of telephone as teams race to secure their preferred free agents.

Coker doesn't remember much about that part of the day; it was a bit of a fog after spending more than six hours on the couch facing the TV — "I was pretty locked in," he said — while a party with 100 guests swirls around you.

There were five or six teams that made quick offers, but he and his agent assessed the situation, realized the Panthers needed receivers, and, as he ducked out of the living room to conduct a little business, made his own call. The NFL might not have called him. But he got to choose his own destination.

It's still a little raw in that moment, because he was hoping to be picked by anyone. But getting to make his own decision carried its own sense of pride.

"Especially seeing the last pick go, and you not being one of them, and then you see a lot of guys go, and you're like, I could have played there, I could have been at that spot, I'm better than this person," Jalen recalled. "That's how it goes, so I was a little disappointed and then my phone was just ringing and ringing and ringing.

"Definitely a blur in that moment, but you know, we made a great choice."

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And when he emerged with an agreement to come to Carolina, the party hit another gear, and Coker caught a second wind.

"I was tired before, and right after it, I was tired," Jalen said. "Then it all just kind of hit me at once, and I was just like so exhausted. But you know, I wanted to make sure I was present for everyone that was able to come. People were coming from a lot of different places, and I wanted to be sure that I was a good host for them as well."

He might have returned to the moment and started thinking about being a good host, but everyone else was losing their minds, including his father, Jamal.

"I don't think I really realized how many people were there until I watched the video, and then when it was over, I was standing in front of everyone," Jalen said. "I was like, oh my gosh, there are a lot of people here."

And even though they had been going for six or seven hours, the party did not stop then.

The village was ready to take it up a notch.

When asked when it began to subside, Jalen laughed.

"Oh, like 2 in the morning," he said. "It was a good time for a long time. It definitely was, 100 percent."

"Some of the younger people definitely stayed around," his mom added. "But the majority, I think, were out by, like, I don't know, 8:30 or 9."

A few of the stragglers pitched in and started straightening up, but you don't clean up an all-day party in a couple of moments, and it was getting late.

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The remnants of the ever-growing buffet and the empties could wait until the morning, when the village did what the village does and took care of the rest.

"Most everything was gone by the end of the day," Jenny said. "There were certain things like the vegetable platter; we probably didn't need three of those, they weren't as popular. But then we ended up having a cleaning party the next morning.

"Because honestly, having done the whole college thing, it's been a while, but it smelled like a frat house when I woke up."

But the promise of the leftover food and another chance to be together was enough, so about 15 to 20 of Coker's buddies and some friends and family rolled back in for the fourth day of draft festivities, which came with a mop.

"It was just all those people and drinks everywhere, and it was a big-time cleaning event," Jenny said. "So all the rest of the food got eaten during that. It worked out perfectly because then I could feed all the helpers who were helping to clean, so it was wonderful.

"There were a lot of Jalen's friends, which is so awesome, and such good guys. A lot of the young guys came back, and then my friends came back, some family came back, so it was just another great day."

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In addition to a lot of trash bags — and maybe some air freshener — the next thing they needed was some sleep.

And eventually they all did, and the dream of becoming an NFL player was a reality.

When Coker got to Charlotte, he paired up with the patron saint of undrafted receivers, Adam Thielen, and had a solid rookie season. He caught 32 passes for 478 yards and two touchdowns, carving out a role for himself after initially getting cut and climbing from the practice squad.

Jalen Coker

And it all started with a day that never seemed to end, which didn't go the way he planned.

As the sweat was still dripping off him this week from an offseason workout, you couldn't wipe the smile off Coker's face when he started talking about the Un-Draft Party. As the football people say a lot, it's not where you start, it's where you finish.

So all that waiting and wondering went away in an instant, and all that was left was the warmth of being surrounded by so many people.

Coker was asked what he'd tell another guy in his position this weekend, who may or may not hear his name on TV.

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"I'd say just be prepared to not get picked up and just be ready to work whenever you get here," he said. "But I mean, first, second, third-rounders, I feel like it's the same for everyone. They're going to expect you to come in and produce, and if you don't do that, I've seen high picks get cut. People move all over the place, so you just want to keep your nose down; don't let it get too big.

"Getting drafted is a great thing, but once you're here, that doesn't matter anymore. Your checks might say different, but the coaches don't care. It's head down and work and just prove why you deserve to be here and why you got picked where you did or why you didn't."

Oh, and one other thing.

Whether there's certainty about your draft status or not, there are two things that every prospect ought to have at the ready.

A village. And receipts for all those hats.

"The whole weekend was awesome," the guy who never heard his name called said with a wide smile, a year removed from a draft party that didn't actually include a draft. "I wouldn't change a thing."

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