Sid Ortis cheered for a different team than the Alabama cheerleading squad. But that didn’t keep the Crimson Tide’s spirit squad from showing its support for the die-hard LSU fan.

Just a few minutes before Saturday’s Alabama-LSU game, the Alabama cheerleading squad displayed a sign showing support for Ortis, the 16-year-old LSU fan who lost his battle with cancer on Oct. 31.

Some things are important enough to put an intense rivalry aside. The fight against cancer is one of them.

Ortis made headlines after forging a friendship with LSU head coach Les Miles during his 14-month battle with bone cancer. In March, Miles contacted Ortis, prayed with him and told him, “Life is not how long you live, but how well you live it.” He then invited Ortis to be his guest at a home game at Tiger Stadium in September. Once it became clear that Ortis would lose his battle, Miles called him again and said to him, “When you get to Heaven, save a spot for me.”

Miles invited Ortis to be his guest at Saturday’s game in Tuscaloosa, Ala., but sadly the young fan passed away before he could attend the game.

Ortis was a native of Mountain Brook, Ala.