TAWAS CITY, MI -- It was a night to remember for Jeff Janis.

Now he's getting an entire week.

The Green Bay Packers wide receiver hauled in a 41-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass Saturday night on the final play of regulation in Green Bay's 26-20 overtime playoff loss to the Arizona Cardinals. Suddenly, he had the attention of football followers across the nation.

Jeff Janis was a Bay City Times Dream Team football player for Tawas Area High School in 2008.

Now the folks in his hometown are offering a reminder that they're still his No. 1 fans.

Tawas City, the small, lakeside town that Janis calls home, is celebrating Jan. 24-30, 2016 as Jeff Janis Week.

Tawas City Mayor Ken Cook issued an official proclamation Wednesday as a way for his constituents to recognize Janis as "one of our own."

"The whole community is behind him every week," Cook said. "Social media is always filled with positive comments about him from people around here. Whenever he gets an opportunity to shine, everybody gets excited."

Cook said Janis is not expected to be home and there are no formal events planned as part of Jeff Janis Week, but he is asking area businesses and residents to put out signs showing their support for Tawas City's contribution to the NFL.

"From the city's perspective, we just want to enjoy the positive feelings we're getting from this," Cook said.

"A lot of people have done great things. Many people have left Tawas and made their mark -- or remained here and made their mark -- but not everybody gets the press time that a sports figure gets. It's exciting that he put Tawas on the map (at the professional sports level)."

Jeff Janis was a two-time All-American during his record-setting career at Saginaw Valley State University.

Janis, a second-year pro whose primary job is kick returner for the Packers, got a golden opportunity in the NFC divisional playoff game -- and he seized it. When starting wide receiver Randall Cobb departed with an injury, Janis was called upon to help the offense.

He quickly caught his first NFL touchdown pass, then went on to bigger things. After entering the game with just 95 receiving yards in his career, he finished the night with seven catches for 145 yards and two TDs.

With Green Bay trailing 20-13 and facing a fourth-and-20 from its own 5-yard line, Janis caught a 60-yard pass from Aaron Rodgers to keep the Packers alive. Moments later, Janis did one better, soaring high above the Arizona defenders to catch the 41-yard desperation toss in the end zone on the final play of regulation.

Arizona would go on to win with a touchdown in overtime, but Jeff Janis had made a name for himself. Within an hour of his catch, Twitter reported more than 30,000 mentions of his name.

Janis is a 2009 graduate of Tawas Area High School, where he played basketball and football. He earned Bay City Times Dream Team honors as a senior wide receiver after leading the Braves to a 2008 playoff berth.

He went on to shine at Saginaw Valley State University, breaking virtually every school receiving record with 4,305 yards and 46 touchdowns in his career while twice earning Division II All-American honors.

He was a seventh-round draft pick of the Packers in 2014, but he remained a mostly unknown commodity until his breakout performance against Arizona.

"My sister and brother-in-law live in Scottsdale, (Arizona) and they follow the Cardinals," said Cook, the mayor who is also the longtime soccer coach at Tawas Area. "I was immediately on the phone with them, saying 'You know who that kid is, right?'

"There was a lot of excitement for the opportunity he got to get on the field that day. Of course, (Janis) seems to take it all in stride. He feels like he's just doing his job. But we're all pretty proud of him."

Ken Cook

Read the official Mayoral Proclamation:

The City of Tawas City is proud to recognize the many accomplishments of hometown hero, Jeffrey Janis; and

Whereas, Jeff was a Tawas City resident while he attended Tawas Area Schools; and

Whereas, Jeff was a member of both the football and basketball teams for Tawas Area High School, and was an all-conference wide receiver and running back who lead the football team in rushing; and

Whereas, upon graduating from Tawas Area High School in 2009, Jeff traded in his Braves football jersey for a Cardinals jersey at Saginaw Valley State University where he was named First-Team American Football Coaches Association Division II All-American in 2013, received First-Team All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honors in 2012 and 2013, and All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honorable mention in 2011; and

Whereas, among the many records he broke while at Saginaw Valley State University, Jeff completed his college career as second in the history of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference with 4,305 receiving yards, and was invited to play in the 2014 Reese's Senior Bowl at Ladd Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama; and

Whereas, Jeff was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round, 236th overall, of the 2014 NFL Draft; and

Whereas, Jeff had a breakout game in the NFC divisional playoff game on January 16, 2016 against the Arizona Cardinals where he scored his first touchdown of his NFL career; and

Whereas, Jeff led the Green Bay Packers' statistics at the same game with seven passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns, including a 41-yard Hail Mary pass from Quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the final play of regulation to bring the game into overtime; and

Whereas, the many residents of Tawas Area, both former and present, proudly join the Mayor and City Council in congratulating Jeff on his many accomplishments in his high school, collegiate, and professional football careers.

Now, therefore, I, Kenneth Cook, Mayor of the City of Tawas City, do hereby proclaim January 24 through January 30, 2016 as

"Jeff Janis Week"

in the City of Tawas City and urge all citizens to join me in recognizing Jeff for his remarkable accomplishments and wishing him well as he continues his career. We're proud to call you one of our own.

Proclaimed this 18th day of January, 2016.

Kenneth B. Cook, Tawas City Mayor