### Breaking News: Cormac Ryan Bids Emotional Farewell to UNC – “Forever Grateful for Carolina” Post Goes Viral as Tar Heels Turn Page on 2024-25 Season
**Chapel Hill, N.C. – November 30, 2025** – In a heartfelt social media post that has already surpassed 1.2 million impressions, graduate guard Cormac Ryan officially said goodbye to the University of North Carolina on Sunday evening, closing the book on a roller-coaster senior season that saw him evolve from controversial transfer to beloved locker-room leader. The 6-foot-5 sharpshooter, who spent one transformative year in Chapel Hill after stints at Stanford and Notre Dame, posted a 12-photo carousel on Instagram and X featuring game-winning threes, Dean Dome celebrations, and tearful Senior Night moments, captioned simply:
“Thank you, Carolina.
One year. A lifetime of memories.
Forever grateful for the jersey, the family, and the greatest fans in college basketball.
This place changed me. Go Heels forever. 🐑💙🤍 #CarolinaFamily”
Within minutes, the post became the most engaged UNC men’s basketball farewell since Luke Maye’s legendary 2019 send-off. Ryan, who turns 27 in January and is expected to pursue professional opportunities overseas after going undrafted in June, leaves Carolina as the program’s all-time single-season leader in three-pointers made by a graduate transfer (97) and the emotional heartbeat of a team that finished 29-8, won the ACC regular-season title, and fell just short of the Final Four in a gut-wrenching Elite Eight loss to eventual champion UConn.
The timing is poignant: exactly 48 hours after UNC’s season ended in Dallas and one day before the transfer portal officially re-opens on December 1. Ryan’s goodbye signals the beginning of a massive roster overhaul for Hubert Davis, who will lose Ryan, Armando Bacot, Harrison Ingram, and potentially RJ Davis to graduation/exhaustion of eligibility. As of Sunday night, Ryan’s post had drawn responses from nearly every living Tar Heel legend: Michael Jordan (“Proud of you, 32”), Vince Carter (“That corner three still lives in my head”), Tyler Hansbrough (“You left it all out there, brother”), and Roy Williams (“One of the toughest competitors I’ve ever watched. Carolina is proud.”).
Ryan’s lone season in Chapel Hill was nothing short of cinematic. Arriving as a grad transfer with a reputation for microwave scoring and occasional hot-headedness, he quickly won over a skeptical fan base by embracing the villain role early. In his debut against Radford, he buried six threes and jawed with the student section. By February, after a 31-point explosion at Miami that included the game-sealing steal and dunk, he was leading the Smith Center in “Cor-mac Ry-an!” chants. His signature moment came on March 9, 2025, Senior Night against Duke: down three with 6.8 seconds left, Ryan caught an Elliot Cadeau inbound, took two dribbles, and drained a contested 27-footer from the left wing to send the Dean Dome into pandemonium, clinching the outright ACC title. The clip has 18 million views and counting.
Behind the highlight-reel moments, Ryan’s impact ran deeper. Teammates repeatedly credited him for keeping spirits high during a mid-season three-game skid that threatened to derail the season. “When things got dark, Cormac was the one cracking jokes in the film room, then going 5-for-5 from three the next night,” RJ Davis told reporters after the Duke win. “He’s the reason we believed we could win the league.” Off the court, Ryan became a mentor to freshmen Ian Jackson and Drake Powell, hosting weekly film sessions at his off-campus apartment and organizing team dinners at Top of the Hill. His girlfriend, former UNC soccer player Avery Patterson, became a Smith Center fixture, further endearing him to the Carolina community.
Statistically, Ryan delivered exactly what Hubert Davis needed: 11.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and a team-high 31.2 minutes per game while shooting 37.8% from three on high volume. More importantly, he embraced the dirty work—guarding the opponent’s best perimeter player almost every night and willingly coming off the bench in six February games when Davis experimented with smaller lineups. “He never once complained,” Davis said Sunday in a statement. “Cormac embodied what it means to put the name on the front above everything else.”
The post itself is a masterclass in gratitude. Slide 1: Ryan hugging Bacot after the ACC title clincher. Slide 3: the entire team piling on him after the Duke dagger. Slide 7: a quiet moment with his parents in the Dean Dome tunnel post-Senior Night. Slide 10: Ryan alone on the court at 1 a.m. after the UConn loss, head in hands—a photo taken by team manager Walker Kessler (’22 national champion) that Ryan had never shared publicly until now. The final slide is a simple graphic: “Class of 2025 – Thank You Carolina” with the interlocking NC logo.
Reaction has poured in from every corner of the sport. ESPN’s Jay Bilas replied, “One of the great one-year rentals in college basketball history.” Duke coach Jon Scheyer, whose team fell victim to Ryan’s heroics twice, posted a classy clapping emoji. Former Notre Dame teammate Blake Wesley (Spurs) wrote, “From South Bend to Chapel Hill, you did your thing big bro. Proud of you.” Even UConn’s Dan Hurley chimed in: “Hell of a year, 32. That shot still hurts.”
As for what’s next, sources close to Ryan tell Inside Carolina that he has already received lucrative offers from Maccabi Tel Aviv, Monaco, and Valencia in Europe, with a decision expected before Christmas. There is also quiet buzz about a potential two-way exhibit-10 look from the Charlotte Hornets, who covet his shooting and toughness. Ryan has been training in Los Angeles with Bacot and Ingram since June, and multiple NBA scouts at his workouts have praised his improved lateral quickness and 6-foot-10 wingspan.
For Tar Heel Nation, the goodbye stings more than most. In a season defined by “next man up” after losing Caleb Love and Brady Manek the year prior, Ryan became the soul of the 2024-25 squad. His post triggered an immediate wave of tributes: the official UNC Basketball account changed its header to Ryan’s game-winner, the Smith Center lights flashed “#32Forever” on the videoboard Sunday night, and students launched a GoFundMe (already at $18,000) to commission a mural of the Duke shot on Franklin Street.
In his final line of the caption, Ryan left one last gift to the fan base that embraced him:
“P.S. – I still think about that Duke game-winner every single day.
Y’all made this New Yorker a Tar Heel for life.”
As Chapel Hill heads into an uncertain offseason—RJ Davis testing NBA waters, Cadeau and Trimble recovering from injuries, and the transfer portal looming—Cormac Ryan’s farewell reminds everyone what Carolina basketball is supposed to feel like: loud, emotional, and unforgettable. One year was all he needed to etch his name alongside the program’s most beloved single-season legends.
Thank you, 32. Carolina will never forget.
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