You know him best as a supremely gifted athlete who can make a big play at any moment. But that’s not the only cool thing about Lemar Durant! From his college days at Nevada where he caught passes from a pretty well-known quarterback to his Grey Cup heroics with the Calgary Stampeders, the pride of Coquitlam certainly has more then a couple of impressive notes on his resume. With more, we present 5 things to know about BC Lions receiver Lemar Durant.
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From Colin Kaepernick To SFU Stardom
After turning heads at Centennial High School, Lemar began his college football career at Nevada where he caught balls from an intriguing NFL prospect named Colin Kaepernick in 2010. From there, he transferred home to SFU where he was a two-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference All-Star and also tied a conference record with 93 catches and 17 touchdowns in 2012 while scoring four majors in a win against Dixie State. Durant’s SFU credentials earned him NFL tryouts with the Seattle Seahawks and New York Giants.
Lemar Was Most Valuable Canadian In The 2018 Grey Cup
He was drafted in round two by the Calgary Stampeders in 2015, but it took Lemar until his final year in Cowtown to finally sip from the Grey Cup. And he did it in style by being named the Most Valuable Canadian as Calgary took down Ottawa 27-16 in the 106th Grey Cup in Edmonton. He was given the Dick Suderman Trophy after recording four catches for 30 yards and a touchdown as the Stampeders captured their eight Grey Cup title in team history. From there, he moved home to the West Coast where he…..
Enjoyed His Best Season To Date In 2019
Lemar put pen to paper on a free agent contract with the Lions in February of 2019 and would not disappoint in his first season playing in front of family and friends. He racked up 57 receptions for 810 yards and five touchdowns, all of those totals new career highs. He scored touchdowns in each of the first four regular season games and enjoyed a season-best 108-yard performance at Winnipeg on August 15th. If not for a foot injury on October 5th that ended his season four weeks early, Lemar very likely would have eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark. All in all, it was a brilliant first season in orange.
Lemar Enjoys Giving Back To The Community
Along with preparing for a possible return to play, the receiver has spent a lot of time during COVID-19 serving as the Lions’ ambassador for Purolator’s Tackle Hunger program where he encourages people to help give to those in need.
“Being part of something for my own city and hometown is huge,” Durant told bclions.com back in May.
“I know so many people in this community that I want to give back to. When I was growing up, I had friends who weren’t as fortunate as me. Now that I’m in a position where I’m comfortable, it feels good to give back.”
Since the program launched in 2003, Purolator and the CFL have delivered the equivalent of 13-million pounds of food to those in need.
He’s Also A Star In Madden
Lemar’s love of the Madden video game franchise started with the 1993 version on Sega Genesis. To this day, he plays the game religiously, as it has grown into a worldwide phenomenon. He has gone on to be successful in the online gaming world. Lemar has defeated six-time Madden champion Drinki Gkoka and was also invited to play in the Madden Bowl but ended up not taking part due to a previous commitment. Lemar’s love of the video game franchise was chronicled nicely by JJ Adams of the Province newspaper earlier this year. Hey, we got ourselves quite a multi-talented Canadian receiver. We can’t wait to see him hit the field once again.