Seattle Seahawks' Jake Bobo Marries Mackenzie Cole at Duke, Where They Were College Sweethearts (Exclusive)
Seattle Seahawks' Jake Bobo Marries Mackenzie Cole at Duke, Where They Were College Sweethearts (Exclusive)
Tabitha ParentMon, June 29, 2026 at 2:00 PM UTC
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Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo -
Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole married at Duke University Chapel, where their love story began as student athletes
Their wedding weekend included meaningful nods to Duke, like a rehearsal dinner at the chapel and local favorite meals
The couple is planning a tropical honeymoon after football season and cherishes starting their next chapter together
Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole are married!The Seattle Seahawks wide receiver wed his college sweetheart on Saturday, June 27, at the Duke University Chapel in Durham, N.C., in a touching nod to the roots of the pair's love story. Approximately 240 guests attended the couple's nuptials, which were full of sweet references to their college years.Bobo, 27, and Cole met during the summer going into their freshman year at Duke (where the two were both student-athletes — Bobo, football, of course, and Mackenzie, volleyball), and they tell PEOPLE that the school is the "place where we fell in love and our journey together began."The university has also cropped up at other points during the couple's love story. In 2025, Bobo proposed to Cole in an intimate moment — just the pair of them and a hidden photographer — on the school's East Campus at the location where they had their first kiss.
Mackenzie Cole and Jake Bobo.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
"We have the absolute best memories there and it brought us some of our favorite people," the couple tells PEOPLE. "We were so excited about the idea of bringing all our friends and family to our favorite place."The couple's wedding planning came amid a particularly hectic time for the two.Earlier this year, the Seattle Seahawks made it all the way into the Super Bowl, ultimately beating out the New England Patriots to take home the 60th championship title. If that weren't a unique enough backdrop for wedding planning, Cole shares that another interesting facet of planning their nuptials was the special considerations that went into securing their venue.
Mackenzie Cole.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
"The process of securing a wedding date at the Duke Chapel is quite unique," she explains. "You must be the child or grandchild of a Duke graduate, or you have to have attended Duke University yourself. Then, you must be the first to connect with the chapel exactly a year out from your desired date."She also adds that, before COVID, the process of securing the chapel involved some couples tenting out days in advance to secure their desired date.
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Snagging the special chapel as their wedding location felt like fate, in more ways than one. The couple told PEOPLE about the first time that Bobo ever entered the building during his first recruiting visit, which included the now fortuitous moment that a tour guide turned to him and said, "Who knows, if you go to Duke, maybe one day you can get married here."
The official four-day wedding weekend kicked off at the couple's favorite restaurant in Durham: Cucciolo Osteria, featuring butter chicken and spicy rigatoni dishes that the couple could not wait for their family and friends to sample. "This was very much the 'special occasion' restaurant," the pair tell PEOPLE.
Jake Bobo.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
On Friday, June 26, the bride and her bridal party checked in for a workout class at their favorite studio, Midtown Yoga, before heading out to a rehearsal dinner at the chapel, followed by a welcome party at the Washington-Duke Inn.Then Saturday was the big day — the culmination of all the "love and effort" that went into planning the weekend, which was all done with the help of Premier Party Planners."We had all hands on deck from Boston, to New York, to San Francisco, to Seattle, to make sure it was the perfect North Carolina wedding," Cole tells PEOPLE. In the end, the weekend felt "completely" Cole and Bobo.
Since the moment the two decided they would be getting married at Duke's Chapel, Cole says she dreamed of the moment that the doors opened and she would see Bobo at the other end of the aisle. As for her walk down the aisle, Cole selected a song by perhaps one of her most famous fellow WAGs: Taylor Swift's "Enchanted."
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Mackenzie Cole and Jake Bobo.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
During the ceremony, the couple shared traditional vows with each other in front of their guests, but also made a point to share private, handwritten vows in a "moment of peace" beforehand. Later, the pair shared their first dance to "Everywhere, Everything" by Noah Kahan. "I wanna love you 'til we're food for the worms to eat/'Til our fingers decompose/Keep my hand in yours," the Maine-native croons on the special track.
The two went for a black, white and green color scheme, to achieve a "classy," but still "light and joyful ambiance."
Mackenzie Cole and Jake Bobo.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
"From the moment the weekend began, we were overwhelmed with gratitude and joy," Cole, who wore the Ellery dress by KYHA Studios, says.The food also had important meaning for the couple, with dinner after featuring lobster rolls as a nod to Bobo's New England roots, and a plated dinner with sea bass and filet mignon. The couple's slicing cake was a small Chantilly berry cream cake, and the duo passed out slices of the Washington-Duke's "fabulous" vanilla bean cheesecake to guests later on.
Of course, the most meaningful part of the weekend was "having all the people we love together in one place."
Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
"Looking around and seeing our family, lifelong friends, teammates, and loved ones sharing those moments with us was incredibly special and something we'll never forget," Cole shares. "We were very conscious of how rare and meaningful it is to have everyone together, so we made a real effort to stay present, soak in every moment and appreciate the love surrounding us throughout the entire weekend."The two also reflected on their next chapter, as they step into their roles as husband and wife."The thing I love most about Macka is that she truly makes those around her better," Bobo tells PEOPLE. "She leads with kindness, generosity, and genuine care for others."
Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
Cole echoes her husband, saying that what she loves most about Bobo is "his character" and how he "leads with integrity in everything he does.""He makes me feel safe and deeply loved. I feel incredibly lucky to be marrying him," she says.
Jake Bobo and Mackenzie Cole.Credit: Darby Bobo Instagram/Darby Bobo Photo
As for what's next? Football season waits for no man or wedding, so the pair will head out to Umstead, a nearby hotel and spa location, before Bobo has to return to Seattle. Of course, they're making plans for an extended honeymoon — "somewhere tropical" — once the season is over.
"Right now, we're excited to slow down and enjoy some quality time together in North Carolina before heading back to Seattle for another great football season," they add. "Marriage is the start of an incredible new chapter, and we can't wait to continue growing together, supporting each other's dreams and creating a lifetime of memories."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
