Nash named honorary captain of CMU football team for Bahamas Bowl

nash1 — The CMU football team announced Thursday that Nash would be joining the squad when they travel to The Bahamas on Saturday and will serve as the Chippewas honorary captain for the Dec. 24 Bahamas Bowl game against Western Kentucky.

Though he has not played a down this season, to the Central Michigan University football players, freshman Derrick Nash has been the most inspiring member of the team.

"He's incredible. He is a tremendous motivation to all of us," said junior defensive end Blake Serpa. "What he has been through is amazing."

Nash was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in May, 2013. He underwent chemotherapy and was back on the field for the Chippewas' 2014 Maroon vs. Gold Spring Game in April. It appeared Nash was healthy and would soon claim a spot on CMU's 2014 roster.

But Nash's cancer returned this fall. The Saginaw-native has been in treatment for the last two months.

The CMU football team announced Thursday that Nash would be joining the squad when it travels to The Bahamas on Saturday. Nash will serve as the Chippewas' honorary captain for the Dec. 24 Bahamas Bowl game against Western Kentucky.

“Our team loves him," Head Coach Dan Enos said. "He’s part of our family. He’s been through a lot obviously and I think our team loves to have one of our own as a captain, but a guy like Derrick who we draw so much strength from just watching how courageous he is every day and what an inspiration he is to our entire program.”

Senior linebacker Justin Cherocci said watching Nash battle through his second round of cancer treatment has been eye-opening to the entire team.

"If we think we've got it so bad out here in practice, we should look at what he is going through," Cherocci said. "He's a fighter. That's the kind of guy you want with you in the trenches."

Enos said the team needed to file a waiver with the NCAA to clear Nash to travel with the team, since he is not enrolled in any classes. Next, Nash's doctor's cleared him to take the trip with his teammates and "family."

"He was so excited," Serpa said. "He was just here telling us about it. He is seriously the most positive person I've met."

Other CMU football players took to twitter to share their excitement that Nash would be taking the trip with the team.

During the season, Serpa said some members of the CMU football team would spend off days driving to Ann Arbor to visit Nash at the hospital.

"Even when he was sick, he would hit people up before games and try to give them motivation," Serpa said. "He was at the hospital fighting for his life, not fighting for a win."