Staff Writer

FOLKSTON -- Kicking off ESPN's 10-hour coverage of the 1999 National Football League Draft on Saturday, announcer Chris Berman bragged on the exhaustive coverage his network would provide. With cameras in 27 of the 31 NFL cities, he surmised, ''If you have a Rand McNally atlas, we've got you covered.''

But for the 2,245 residents of this Southeast Georgia hamlet on the fringes of the Okefenokee Swamp, the fact that Berman and his crew were nowhere near here Saturday is what made it so special. This was Georgia cornerback Champ Bailey's day, and he couldn't have lived it anywhere but here, with anyone but his people.

So Bailey didn't follow the lead of the nation's other top-rated players like Kentucky's Tim Couch, Oregon's Akili Smith and Texas' Ricky Williams by going to New York City for the NFL's official draft party. On a day defined by decisions, this one was easy for Bailey.

''When they told me I had a choice, I was like, 'I'm going home,' '' Bailey said Saturday. ''I knew they would do something real nice for me, and it doesn't get much better than this.''

This was nothing less than Bailey, at age 20, rejoicing in a ''This is Your Life''-type moment at home, surrounded by those he has known childhood. Here, in what some would consider a run-down lot in a not-so-pretty neighborhood just off Long Street, Bailey heard the words that will make him the richest man in town (he's already the most famous): ''With the seventh pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, the Washington Redskins select Champ Bailey, cornerback from Georgia.''

That announcement by NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue on national television ignited a roar from the crowd of a few hundred that had gathered to fete Bailey on the biggest day of his life.

Black and white, young and old gathered in a lot that had previously held two vacant, dilapidated houses. Saturday, new wood chips coated the tree-lined lot, with a humble stage (built on the foundation of one of the razed residences) to one side and a huge tent to the other. A pair of cable-wired televisions hung from poles so all could watch the proceedings as the scent of fried fish, barbecued ribs and seasoned chicken drifted by.

This was not Madison Square Garden, and nobody wore a suit. But how could the Bailey family throw any other kind of party but this?

''Obviously, the NFL and ESPN would rather Champ had been in New York, to parade him out, and he chose to be in his hometown with his family and his friends,'' said UGA Assistant Athletic Director Freddy Jones, himself a Folkston native. ''To me, that shows you how much the community means to Champ and how much Champ means to the community. It's a big day. But this is why Champ is the player he is, because he's never forgotten his roots, and the whole family's been that way.''

Indeed, everywhere one turned Saturday, there was a Bailey. From Champ to younger brother Boss to mother Elaine to father Roland, Sr., to an endless array of cousins, aunts and uncles. The only missing piece was older brother Ronald, who had a big day of his own Saturday, making his NFL Europe debut as a cornerback with the Frankfurt Galaxy.

Even though Champ said he was disappointed that his brother and former Georgia teammate couldn't be here for the party, there were enough hugs and high-fives to make up for Ronald's absence.

''It's a big accomplishment, somebody finally doing something positive,'' said 23-year-old Sylvester Bailey, Champ's first cousin. ''It reflects on the whole community. It's nice to see somebody finally make it, and it just happens to be my cousin. I'm proud of him.''

Sylvester wasn't alone. As Champ fielded call after call on his grandmother's cordless phone and two cellular phones wielded by his agent, Jack Reale, kids would timidly approach their hero and ask for an autograph, which he happily provided. Adults would appear quickly to shake his hand or clap him on the shoulder like long-lost relatives in a close-knit family -- which, in this town, they really are.

Somehow, the celebration of Charlton County's favorite son turned into an affirmation for the entire community, which like the Bailey family is not particularly rich or glamorous -- a fact punctuated by the roosters happily wandering down Long Street, oblivious to the party. Things are not always easy in a town like this, as Sylvester Bailey alluded to. There is unemployment and there are those who struggle with drugs and alcohol.

But Saturday, there was simply happiness, and everyone shared in it.

''I think in any community, when one of your own does well -- and this is really considered doing well -- you've got to be real excited and real pleased,'' said Charlton County High School football coach Rich McWhorter, who was lucky enough to coach all of the Bailey brothers and several other players who went on to major colleges. ''Any time a positive happens in these days and times, you've really got to celebrate it.''

How giddy was everyone here Saturday afternoon? Even Gators were welcome.

University of Florida wide receiver Travis Taylor, a childhood friend and opponent of Bailey's, hobnobbed with Georgia players Tony Gilbert, Quentin Davis and Terin Smith at the party, proving that this day transcended just about any kind of rivalry.

''It's great to see Champ going seventh overall in the draft,'' said Taylor, who played against Bailey's Charlton County teams as a standout at Camden County High School in nearby Kingsland. ''It's just great to see somebody you know and played against and played with doing good things.''

Perhaps that's what drew everyone here in the first place -- the famous Bailey family humility. Among those at the party, it was hard to find someone who didn't want to see Bailey succeed.

''He deserves everything he gets,'' said Gilbert, a freshman linebacker at UGA. ''I hope God blesses him and he has a good career in the pros.''

Not that anyone expects Bailey to fail -- he never has, going back to when he first played football as an 8-year-old.

''I always thought he would (make the NFL), even in high school,'' said Sylvester Bailey. ''Man, I knew that ever since he was playing for the Folkston Falcons in Pop Warner. When he was little -- I'm a couple of years older -- and me and his brother, Ronald, we always used to play and make him and Boss play against us. He was making us look bad then. Track, football, basketball -- it didn't matter.''

It still doesn't for the man Georgia coach Jim Donnan calls the best athlete he's ever been around. Champ Bailey has always been dominant in any sport he tried, and he's never sought any other goal than the one he achieved Saturday.

''That's a football player's dream, to make it to this level, and if you don't think you can do it then (as a kid), you probably won't do it,'' said Champ. ''It's just like I tell these kids now today that I see, they can make it. I see a lot of potential. Even if they're not playing now, starting tomorrow or next year even, they can do it.''

It was an unusually strong statement for the normally soft-spoken All-American. His eyes even got a bit watery as he delivered those lines. But it was just one of those days, one few people here will ever forget.

Just after 2 p.m. Saturday, the line for home-cooked food grew longer as Bailey continued to field calls from well-wishers. At the back corner of the stage, the disc jockey turned on his sound system and pumped out the first strains of music to keep the party rolling into the evening hours.

The first song?

''We Are Family,'' by Sister Sledge.

Nothing else would do on this day.