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“If I told you my parents were my biggest fans, I would be lying,” Darian Durant said. “My uncle Mike was my biggest fan in the whole wide world and he travelled to Canada more than Mom and Dad did to see me play. Every East Coast trip, he was there.”

Durant appreciated Gordon’s support throughout his football career.

“I called him my father beside my father and he was definitely my father figure,” said Durant, who had a copy of a photo from Gordon’s memorial service taped to his locker at Mosaic Stadium. “He was also my mom’s baby brother. Seeing her go through (Gordon’s death) was tough.”

Durant said that Gordon had made trips to Regina and other CFL cities to watch him play since the quarterback joined the Riders in 2006.

“It’s hard to explain or put into words how blessed am I,” Durant said. “For him to be able to travel …

“We all know that the most expensive flight in Canada is probably coming into Regina. He never asked for a penny and he did it on his own dime. He would fly to Regina and he would fly to Hamilton. He would fly to Buffalo and then drive to see us play in Toronto or Hamilton. For him to support me in my early years wasn’t about football. It was all about love.”

Durant’s last contact with Gordon was via text message after the Riders beat the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 20-18 on Sept. 24 to improve their record to 3-10.

“He congratulated us and let us know that we still had a chance to make a playoff run,” Durant said.

The Riders (3-10-0) are still mathematically in the hunt for a post-season berth entering Friday’s game against the host Ottawa Redblacks. A Riders loss or a win by the Edmonton Eskimos (7-7-0) would eliminate the Riders from playoff contention.

Durant, meanwhile, didn’t suffer any ill effects during the bye week from a head injury that he suffered late in the third quarter of the win over Hamilton. He was kept out of the remainder of the game as part of the CFL’s concussion protocol. Durant said he wanted to return, but remained on the sideline while Mitchell Gale led the Riders to the win.

“I’m fine,” Durant said. “It was just doctors being smart and making sure that we did everything right with the concussion protocol.”

mmccormick@postmedia.com

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