Damien Nash fulfilled his dream of making it to the NFL. Though he did not play in the league for long, he had the opportunity to play for two different franchises.

Nash enjoyed sports so much that he participated in a celebrity charity basketball game in 2007. After the event, Nash collapsed suddenly and was pronounced dead.

Damien Nash’s football career in college

Nash was a native of St. Louis, Missouri. He was a standout football player in high school, finishing his career with 5,395 rushing yards and 85 rushing touchdowns. Nash also finished with 1,160 passing yards and 10 passing touchdowns. After high school, he attended Coffeyville Community College before transferring to the University of Missouri.

During his career at Missouri, he finished with 253 rushing attempts for 1,254 yards with 12 rushing touchdowns and 36 receptions for 282 yards with two receiving touchdowns. Nash had the opportunity to play for his hometown college and was that much closer to making his dream come true of playing in the NFL.

Damien Nash made it to the NFL

After his career at Missouri, Nash was drafted in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL draft by the Tennessee Titans. In his first NFL season, he made three appearances with the Titans and had 32 yards on six rushing attempts during the 2005 season. The Titans released Nash after one season, and the Denver Broncos later signed him.

Nash spent the first half of the season on the Broncos practice squad and then was given a roster spot as the third-string running back behind Tatum Bell and Mike Bell. He appeared in three games with the Broncos during the 2006 season and had 18 rushing attempts for 66 yards and also had four receptions for 41 yards. His top performance came against the San Diego Chargers in 2006 when he had 10 carries for 52 yards and three receptions for 36 yards.

During his two NFL seasons, Nash finished with 98 rushing yards on 24 attempts and 55 receiving yards with seven receptions.

Damien Nash tragically died at an event for his charity

In February of 2007, Nash participated in a celebrity charity basketball event at a local high school in St. Louis. According to an article from stlamerican.com, the event was held to raise funds for his Brother to Brother foundation, an organization he created to honor his brother Darris to raise money for heart transplant research. Darris received a heart transplant, and Damien wanted to make sure that others receiving heart transplants had the proper research and information.

The game was the inaugural charity event that Damien held. After the event, Damien passed away from an undetected heart condition. It was a tragedy that struck Damien’s family and the St. Louis community. Damien was 24 years old when he passed away. The exact cause of death was not determined when he passed away.

After Damien passed away, his organization was brought back in 2009 to honor his commitment to the community. The Nash Youth Association partnered with 39th Ave. Music LLC and had a charity basketball game and life celebration in Damien’s honor. Damien made an impact in his community, and football put him on a platform to reach many people.