The guy they call Doubles feels as exhilarated as if he just cleared the light standards in the deepest part of centre field.

And this year he plans on touching all the bases on his way back to home plate.

Each and every one.

“These,’’ DaVaris Daniels is saying, waving a hand to take in his Stampeders brethren, conducting post-practice media obligations, “are your friends.

“These are your buddies. These are the people you grow up with, hopefully grow old with.

“Your brothers.

“Being hurt, being on the outside looking in, man, you don’t really feel the same kind of connection. You’re around, sure, but still somehow distanced from everything going on.

“So just to be able to come to work again, hang out with these guys and be able to compete with them the way you have; to have another chance to finally win a championship with them, after what we’ve gone through the last two years …

“It means … everything.”

With the West Final versus the Eastern interlopers from Winnipeg only three days away, the Stamps are buoyed by the return of one of their home-run hitters.

Through hard work and sheer willpower, after being on the mend since mid-September, Daniels is available and eager to hang Jordan-like in the air and pull Bo Levi Mitchell passes down out of the Sunday afternoon sky.

When it matters most.

“It’s great having DaVaris back out here,’’ says receivers coach Pete Costanza. “He has fun in practices, he’s an energetic guy, knows the offence.

“It’s great to see him out here running around, getting ready to play football again.”

The outlook for that seemed pretty grim back on Sept. 15, during the first quarter at Tim Horton’s Field in Steeltown, when Daniels sustained an injury to his left shoulder, the latest in the litany of hits taken by the Stamps’ receiving corps.

The diagnosis: A busted collarbone.

“It’s always a tough process,’’ he acknowledges. “The second you get hurt, the first thing in your mind, the very first, is: ‘How fast can I get back?’

“You want to take all the necessary steps to do that. But it’s definitely long, definitely hard. Everything is happening without you out there; you have no control.

“That sucks.

“But that’s what drives you in the process to get back out here.”

Only a month later, it’s showtime, folks.

“I always felt good about getting back because I broke my collarbone before. I know the process. I know how the surgery works. I know how my body responds to it.

“So I felt I had a good chance. At least that’s what I kept telling myself.”

The quest for a title is what stokes his fire, following a loss with Notre Dame to Alabama in the 2013 BCS National Championship Game and the past two heartbreaking Grey Cup finishes.

“None of them,’’ says Costanza, “sit well with him. But the one thing about Doubles is that he rises to occasions.

“No game, no situation, is too big for him.

“For him to be back, healed up and looking good in practice is a big relief for him, and for us. Because I’m sure the chance to win this year and get a little redemption was, I’m sure, in the back of his mind.

“His dad (Phillip, defensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles) goes and wins a Super Bowl last year. So I’m sure DaVaris believes that now it’s his turn.

“So you better believe that Doubles is definitely up for the challenge.”

That first instalment of the two-game challenge goes Sunday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. (insert ticket link here).

“You only get knocked down so you can show you can get back up,” reckons Daniels. “Hopefully, no matter what happens, there’s something good at the end of the tunnel. You’ve always got to believe there’s something better on the other side.

“Hopefully this is the year we get it done and I get to wear that ring.”

Does he feel that those finicky football gods owe him one?

“Oh, yeah …,’’ is the quick reply. “Oh, yeah. Most definitely.

“But you can’t really do anything about it. You just give everything in your power and play the cards you’re dealt. Everything happens for a reason and I’m hoping the reason for the last two years is this year.

“Who knows? With everything I’ve gone through, maybe this time it is in the cards.”

Asked if he fancies himself a fair-to-middling card-player, Doubles shrugs.

“I’m pretty good at blackjack. But that’s luck. Blackjack is a game of chance, right?”

Right.

And neither he, nor they, want to leave anything to chance Sunday.