Written by Rich Swerbinsky

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Draft Day is finally here. And tomorrow, we celebrate in grand fashion at Panini's downtown by Jacobs Field at The MOTHER Of All Draft Parties. The first 200 people in attendance will recieve one of the t-shirts pictured above, as well as some goodies from Budweiser ... who is co-sponsoring the event with Sportstime Ohio with us. Come and join us bright and early. The doors open at 9 AM tomorrow morning.

It's one of the great spectator events in all of sports.  The NFL Draft. 

For the fourth straight year, I'll be hosting a blowout bash for the event.  Those that have attended these events in the past can attest, they are a helluva time with hundreds of Browns fans in attendance.  New friendships are forged each year, and the beer always starts flowing early.  The sweet sound of the collective ooh's, ahh's, moans, and groans after every selection or trade fills the room, if you can hear it over Mel Kiper piping through every inch of the bar at volume levels that are simply louder than they need to be.  Enough talk about 40 times, bench press reps, and percieved upside by the armchair GM's in attendance to make the casual sports fan nautious.  The geeks with their notebooks, checklists, and personal "big boards".  And the building waves of excitement as each of the Browns first couple selections approaches.

And this year's party promises to be the best yet.

TheClevelandFan.com is teaming with Sportstime Ohio, Budweiser, and Panini's Bar & Grille (the loacation downtown right by Jacobs Field and The Q on Huron) to throw the MOTHER of all draft parties ... tomorrow Saturday, April 28th.  The doors will open at 9:00 AM.  The draft starts at 12 noon, and the Browns have the third overall selection barring a trade up or down in the first round.  Panini's has two gigantic plasma TV's, 16 flat screens, and the ESPN's coverage and analysis will be piping through every square inch of the joint.  It will be impossible for you to not see a TV or hear the action, regardless of where you set your "war room" up that day.

We've lined up a whole host of giveaways, prizes, and promotions.  The first 200 people in attendance will recieve one of the above t-shirts, and a Budweiser beer mug.  Just for showing up.

Discounted food and beer all day.  And again, the bar opens at 9 AM.  $1.50 draft beer specials on Budweiser products.  Panini's has the below beers on draft, and a slew of bottled beers as well, in addition to a full bar and soft drinks:

Miller Lite
Budweiser
Bud Light
Coors Light
Labatt's Blue
Sam Adams White Ale
Sam Adams Cherry Wheat
Harp
Guinness
Dortmunder Gold

We'll also be running food specials, including on the world famous Panini's overstuffed sandwiches pictured below.

      

Budweiser is already confirmed as one of the sponsors for the event.  The Bud Girls will be there from 10-12, and they're bringing all kinds of Cleveland Browns and Budweiser t-shirts, sweatshirts, and golf shirts to raffle away in addition to other Budweiser and Cleveland Browns gear and memorabilia.

In addition, Cavs/Wizards game three is Saturday at 5:30 PM.  And the Indians play right down the road at 7:00 PM.

We've got a thread on the party going in our Browns forum, so check back in there for any updates.  In addition, I'm going to promote the party here on the front page at least once a week as more details on the event get finalized.  And as always, feel free to click on the "Contact Swerb" link on the front page to get ahold of me with any questions.

Should be a great event.  Look forward to seeing many of you there.