By AP/KWMU
St. Louis, MO – A medical examiner says former Mizzou running back and St. Louisan Damien Nash died a natural death in February.
The 24-year old collapsed after hosting a charity basketball game. The St. Louis County medical examiner says no drugs or unnatural substances of any kind were in his system.
Nash went pro after his Mizzou days, being drafted by Tennessee two years ago and singing with Denver last season.
Nash had arranged the game at his high school on Feb. 24 to benefit The Darris Nash Find a Heart Foundation, which was named after his 25-year-old brother, who had a heart transplant last year.
A representative from the medical examiner's office said the cause of death was listed as "undetermined."
"It was a natural death of cardiac origin, but we were unable to determine the exact origin," said the representative after consulting Dr. Mary Case, chief medical examiner for St. Louis County.
A friend of the Nash family, Maurice Scott, said the family had anticipated that the autopsy would reveal no drugs.
"It wasn't a surprise that there was nothing illegal in his system," Scott said. "We continue to pray that one day we'll find out what happened to him.
"We continue to mourn his loss every day."
He played in three games for the Titans before the Broncos signed him as a free agent last season. He played in three games for Denver, rushing for 66 yards on 18 carries. In his two-year career, he had 24 carries for 98 yards and seven receptions for 55 yards.
Case said that autopsies are unable to determine a cause of death in only 3-4% of cases.