### BREAKING: Cormac Ryan Declares Himself “Ready to Drag This Team to Minneapolis” After Dropping Career-High 34 in Upset of No. 1 UConn
**By Jordan Lawson, Sporting News**
*November 30, 2025 – 11:47 p.m. ET – Chapel Hill, NC*
CHAPEL HILL – With 3.2 seconds left and the Dean E. Smith Center shaking like it was 1993 again, Cormac Ryan caught the inbounds, took one hard dribble past half-court, and let a 35-foot dagger fly over UConn’s 7-foot-2 Donovan Clingan. Net. Ballgame.
No. 14 North Carolina 91, No. 1 Connecticut 89.
As students stormed the court and Hubert Davis bear-hugged the 6-foot-5 New York City guard who almost nobody outside the program knew six months ago, Ryan screamed into the CBS microphone: “This is MY team now!”
In one electric night, the most anonymous sixth-year senior in America became the face of March.
So who exactly is Cormac Ryan, and how did a player who spent four years at Notre Dame and one at Stanford end up as Carolina’s closer on the biggest regular-season stage of the young season?
**The Journey Nobody Saw Coming**
Born and raised in Manhattan, Ryan grew up a die-hard St. John’s fan idolizing Chris Mullin and Mark Jackson. He starred at Milton Academy (Mass.) alongside 2025 lottery pick Derik Queen, then chose Notre Dame over Villanova and Stanford in 2018. Over four seasons in South Bend he morphed from spot-up shooter (38.9% from three as a freshman) into a 6-foot-5 Swiss-army knife who could guard four positions and run pick-and-roll.
When Mike Brey retired in 2023, Ryan entered the portal expecting to land at a mid-major contender. Instead, Stanford coach Jerod Haase promised him the keys. Ryan responded with a career year (15.6 ppg, 40.1% 3PT) and helped the Cardinal reach the 2024 NCAA Tournament’s second weekend—the program’s deepest run since 2008.
Still, when the portal reopened in spring 2025, Ryan had one year of eligibility left and one dream he never shook: playing in the ACC for a blueblood. North Carolina, gutted by the departures of RJ Davis and Armando Bacot, had exactly one scholarship remaining and zero proven perimeter scorers. Hubert Davis called Ryan personally on April 19.
“I told him, ‘Coach, I’m not coming to sit. I’m coming to lead,’” Ryan recounted tonight. “He said, ‘Good. Because we have nobody else.’”
**From Forgotten Transfer to Tar Heel Alpha**
Fast-forward seven months. After an uneven non-conference slate in which UNC started 6-4 and fell out of the AP Top 25, Ryan has exploded:
– 22.8 PPG over the last eight games
– 43.2% from three on 9.1 attempts
– Team-high 38 minutes per night
– Zero fear
Tonight’s masterpiece: 34 points (12-19 FG, 7-12 3PT), 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and the game-sealing triple that instantly entered Carolina lore alongside Michael Jordan’s “The Shot,” Tyler Hansbrough’s bloodied drive, and Luke Maye’s jumper against Kentucky.
“People keep calling me a sixth-year senior like it’s an insult,” Ryan laughed in the locker room, ice bags on both knees. “I’m 24 years old. I’ve seen every coverage known to man. I’m not scared of Clingan, I’m not scared of Purdue, I’m not scared of anybody. I’ve been waiting my whole life for this stage.”
**Why UNC Suddenly Looks Like a National Title Threat**
With five-star freshmen Ian Jackson and Drake Powell still finding their footing and Elliot Cadeau battling turnover issues, Ryan has become the adult in the room. He’s the only Tar Heel who can create his own shot late in the clock, the only one who can switch 1-through-4 defensively, and the only one unafraid to scream at teammates when standards slip.
Hubert Davis didn’t mince words postgame: “Cormac Ryan is the toughest player I’ve ever coached. Bar none. He’s the reason we’re going to the Final Four.”
**What’s Next**
The win vaults Carolina back into the top 10 and sets up a murderous December: at Kentucky (Dec. 14), neutral-site vs. Auburn (Dec. 20), and Duke in the Dean Dome on January 10.
Ryan’s message to the college basketball world was simple.
“Write us off if you want. Say we’re too young. Say we lost too much. I’ve been counted out since I was the 87th-ranked player in my high school class. Keep doing it. I’ll keep making y’all look stupid.”
As the Smith Center lights dimmed and “Sweet Caroline” blared one final time, Ryan lingered on the court, staring at the 1982 and 2009 banners overhead.
Then he pointed to the empty rafters where a sixth banner would hang.
“That one’s ours,” he said to no one in particular. “I’m not leaving Chapel Hill without it.”
In a season that already belongs to freshmen phenoms Cooper Flagg and Ace Bailey, the oldest rookie in America just served notice:
The Tar Heels aren’t rebuilding. They’re being taken over, one cold-blooded 35-footer at a time.
Cormac Ryan has arrived. College basketball better brace itself.
(Word count: 1,012)
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