Wake Forest Athletics
Dream Become Reality for Garnes
4/30/2024 8:52:00 AM | Football
After a strong day at Wake Forest’s annual Pro Day, Chelen Garnes secured a contract with the Detroit Lions.
The Wake Forest ties for defensive back Chelen Garnes are strong. At North Point High School (Waldorf, MD) he played alongside Demon Deacon teammate Caelen Carson, and just a year ago Garnes was preparing for his senior season of football as a leadership trio in the safeties room with Nick Andersen and Malik Mustapha.
In late March, Garnes and Mustapha were two of the five former Demon Deacons who worked out in front of representatives for all 32 NFL teams at Wake Forest Pro Day.
"It went very well," Garnes said about his performance. "I feel like I prepared well. I feel like I went out there and did my thing. I was where my feet were at. Just trusted God and trusted my trainer."
While Garnes prepared vigorously for his pre-draft workout in Winston-Salem, he planned to immediately reward himself for his hard work.
"I was training every day, twice a day," he said. "It was very hard, rigorous training, but it was worth it. I had a very strict food diet. I lost a lot of weight, but it was fun. It's what I wanted to do. The next couple months, well first I'm going to eat well. Wherever I go after this, I'm going to eat well, but just recovering, going back to my training in Maryland and just wait for the draft."
That wait ended Saturday afternoon when immediately after the draft concluded Garnes signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Detroit Lions and will head up to his new home for rookie mini camp at the beginning of May.
After finishing up the 2023 season with 61 tackles, two tackles-for-loss, 1.5 sacks and five pass breakups, Garnes immediately got in the gym to work on his measurables, and he's seeing a positive impact.
"I feel like I've improved all parts of my game — mentally and physically," he said. "I feel like I'm stronger, faster and more explosive. I'm mentally getting into the playbooks and watching more film. I've been talking to different scouts and coaches, so it's been good. It is a very, very wholesome moment right now.
"I keep hearing that and I did better than I thought I would too, so just all glory to God. When I first heard that all 32 teams would be there, I just knew it was a blessing. I just trust my training, trust my God, and give thanks to my mother. She helped me through this process and can't wait to see what's next."
After starting his collegiate career at Navy, Garnes played 33 games in four seasons at Wake Forest, grabbing 145 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 10 pass breakups.
"I would just say the culture coming from a smaller school than Wake Forest put a chip on my shoulder," Garnes said. "I had something to prove and I got brought in by these people, took us in one of our own and the culture. Coach (James) Adams helped me excel the last two years as my safety coach and the defense team coach (Brad) Lambert, so I feel like it was just the right position at the right time, all time, God's time. So it was great."
In addition to participating in Pro Day, Garnes got the chance to take in a couple of Wake Forest Spring Camp practices while in Winston-Salem.
"It was amazing," Garnes said. "I was out there at practice watching them and it is crazy. You get to see your teammates and coaches every day. This is the one sport. You see somebody every single day and then go cold turkey, not seeing them at all. It's kind of wild. So I was happy to be back, happy to be here and I'm happy they cheer me along."
In late March, Garnes and Mustapha were two of the five former Demon Deacons who worked out in front of representatives for all 32 NFL teams at Wake Forest Pro Day.
"It went very well," Garnes said about his performance. "I feel like I prepared well. I feel like I went out there and did my thing. I was where my feet were at. Just trusted God and trusted my trainer."
While Garnes prepared vigorously for his pre-draft workout in Winston-Salem, he planned to immediately reward himself for his hard work.
"I was training every day, twice a day," he said. "It was very hard, rigorous training, but it was worth it. I had a very strict food diet. I lost a lot of weight, but it was fun. It's what I wanted to do. The next couple months, well first I'm going to eat well. Wherever I go after this, I'm going to eat well, but just recovering, going back to my training in Maryland and just wait for the draft."
That wait ended Saturday afternoon when immediately after the draft concluded Garnes signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Detroit Lions and will head up to his new home for rookie mini camp at the beginning of May.
After finishing up the 2023 season with 61 tackles, two tackles-for-loss, 1.5 sacks and five pass breakups, Garnes immediately got in the gym to work on his measurables, and he's seeing a positive impact.
"I feel like I've improved all parts of my game — mentally and physically," he said. "I feel like I'm stronger, faster and more explosive. I'm mentally getting into the playbooks and watching more film. I've been talking to different scouts and coaches, so it's been good. It is a very, very wholesome moment right now.
"I keep hearing that and I did better than I thought I would too, so just all glory to God. When I first heard that all 32 teams would be there, I just knew it was a blessing. I just trust my training, trust my God, and give thanks to my mother. She helped me through this process and can't wait to see what's next."
After starting his collegiate career at Navy, Garnes played 33 games in four seasons at Wake Forest, grabbing 145 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 10 pass breakups.
"I would just say the culture coming from a smaller school than Wake Forest put a chip on my shoulder," Garnes said. "I had something to prove and I got brought in by these people, took us in one of our own and the culture. Coach (James) Adams helped me excel the last two years as my safety coach and the defense team coach (Brad) Lambert, so I feel like it was just the right position at the right time, all time, God's time. So it was great."
In addition to participating in Pro Day, Garnes got the chance to take in a couple of Wake Forest Spring Camp practices while in Winston-Salem.
"It was amazing," Garnes said. "I was out there at practice watching them and it is crazy. You get to see your teammates and coaches every day. This is the one sport. You see somebody every single day and then go cold turkey, not seeing them at all. It's kind of wild. So I was happy to be back, happy to be here and I'm happy they cheer me along."
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