The afternoon of September 9, 2017 at CEPSUM Stadium remains indelibly etched in Zacary Alexis’ memory banks.

“I’ve come from a long way away, for real,’’ agrees the Calgary Stampeders’ freshman DB prospect. “A long way away.”

(Hint: He’s not referencing the four-hour flight westward from Montreal).

“I underwent two surgeries. The first one was … bad. The second was to correct nerve damage, my foot couldn’t go up.

“There were tough times. Doctors telling me I’d never be able to walk properly or run again.

“And now look at me. Here I am. I’m with the Stamps. I’m out there running. Top speed. And I have a chance to live my ambition.

“Ain’t nothing going to stop me.”

The rain may have spit down on the first two days of Calgary Stampeders rookie camp at McMahon Stadium but Alexis, at least, couldn’t care less. Why, if it were hailing Titelist 3s or ball pean hammers, no one would hear a peep of complaint, see him scurrying for cover.

“Just being here, being on a team, being out on the field again, playing football means … everything,’’ says the three-year star of the University of Montreal Carabins. “They signed me. The day that happened, I honestly can’t explain how I felt.

“A lot of guys with no injuries never get signed, and I have the chance to be picked up by the greatest team in the league?

“That means a lot. They believed in me. They thought I could play. So I have to work my hardest to back their talk.”

The horrific injury that threw Alexis’s pro aspirations into grave doubt occurred in Week 3 of the 2015 season, on home turf in a game rivals clash against the powerhouse Laval Rouge et Or.

“Do I remember the play?’’ Alexis shakes his head. “Oh, yeah. How could I forget?

“My guy was running a corner route. I think it was supposed to be a post route and then he flipped it to a corner when the quarterback rolled out to the right side of the field.

“I played under-coverage. QB threw the ball, I undercut it, went for an interception and landed on my left side fine, but my right leg didn’t plant properly and (the receiver’s) weight on my back just snapped my knee over.

“At the time, I thought it was just a cramp. I told myself: ‘Get up, shake it off and get back and play.’ But my teammates told me to stay down.

“Then I saw the physios and doctors running towards me and knew it was bad.”

Over three seasons as a Carabin, he’d built up an impressive resume, landing Quebec conference all-star honours in 2015.

“Except for the injury, he was been the best defensive back in the draft last year,’’ lauds Stamps’ secondary coach Josh Bell.

“The very best. Easily.

“And we didn’t have to draft him. So we get a guy who’s got first- or second-round talent for a signature on a piece of paper. Thank you very much.

“He’s exactly what we expected. A guy with explosion that can run. Long, lanky. I’ve been a fan of his, watching film on him from Montreal. I’m excited that he’s here.

“He hasn’t played football for an entire year but I can’t wait to see what else he can bring.

“We give out a championship belt for effort every day and he owned it the first day.”

Alexis can’t properly qualify the amount of support he had as he pushed himself to the point being here, now.

“I have to say thanks to everyone in Montreal who stayed behind me. Guys from different teams, the whole CIS – U Sports, I guess, now – family. So many people were in my corner. I felt the love. And I’m thankful for that.

“It gave me the power to keep fighting.”

The Stamps signed the 26-year-old last Dec. 20.

“It’s a second chance, for sure. I’m happy, glad, they picked me up. Not a lot of teams stayed behind me after my injury.

“I want to be part of the team, be someone, win something. That’s never changed in my mind.

“Even right after the injury, I never thought it was over.

“Never.

“I planted the seed in my head and until I get the full tree I’m not gonna stop pushing hard to reach some goals I’ve had for a long time. I ain’t cutting my tree down.

“Some branches fell. But the trunk, the whole tree, is still solid.

“That’s how I look at it.”