SAGINAW, MI -- With his teammates from the Central Michigan University football team there to pay their last respects, a funeral was held for Derrick Nash before he was laid to rest Thursday, July 2, at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Saginaw.

His friends, family and teammates will make sure his spirit is never buried.

Services for the former Carrollton High School and CMU football player saw a crowd that nearly filled the Victorious Believers Ministries chapel.

Three charter buses brought the CMU team, giving the church a maroon-and-gold feel that went with the CMU helmet and uniform near Nash's casket.

Derrick Nash

"Derrick never got to wear that uniform in a game, but he's meeting his maker wearing that uniform, and for that I'm truly honored," CMU football coach John Boramego said. "No single player will wear No. 21 this season.

"No. 21 will be rotated among the team. It will be a true honor to wear No. 21 this season and every season as long as I'm the football coach."

Nash led the state in rushing his senior season at Carrollton High School, rushing for close to 2,000 yards. He signed a letter of intent to play for CMU.

But during the spring of his senior year of high school, Nash was diagnosed with leukemia. He fought the cancer and played in the CMU spring game and was an honorary captain for CMU in the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl.

The cancer returned, though, and Nash died June 22. He was 20 years old.

"Before June 22, 2015, NashStrong was a slogan of support," CMU teammate Shakir Carr said. "Now, it's a motto. Because I'm NashStrong, when tested, I don't just get through it, I conquer it."

The Twitter hashtag, #NashStrong, was used for fans to show support for Nash during his fight against cancer. It also became the slogan for blood drives and bone marrow "Be The Match" drives that Nash helped organize.

During his two-year battle against leukemia, Nash's support led to 526 new participants during the "Be The Match" drives.

"Most of the world sees Derrick as a star athlete," Carrollton teammate Justin Fabin said. "Derrick was so much more than that.

"Derrick could dance. People would stop to watch him dance. At his worst point, he wanted to make sure everybody around him would be happy and feel his love."

Carrollton football coach Nathan Wotta called Nash a "true lifesaver" for his work in blood drives and bone-marrow registry drives.

Nash's cousin, Kwame Presley, wrote a poem trying to define what NashStrong meant.

"Nash strong is doing the right thing when it's cool to do wrong. Nash strong is the hashtag for all mothers to hold on. Nash strong is for all the cancer patients who are gone. Nash strong is for every athlete that practiced from dusk till dawn, from morning to night.

"Nash strong is simply doing what's right. Nash strong is gearing up for the fight. Nash strong is walking by faith not by sight. Nash strong is leaving the ground and taking flight. Nash strong is protecting your people from the sky. Nash strong is not about dead or being sad. Nash strong is bigger than us. It's more than a hashtag.

"Nash strong."