By Peter Oh on September 22, 2019

As the new school year begins, many sports are already under way. However, some student-athletes who played with the Cardinal last year are no longer on the Farm. Sophomore basketball player Cormac Ryan is one of them, having transferred from Stanford to Notre Dame.

The guard from New York City was hampered by a left ankle injury last season, averaging 8.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists and a steal in 17 starts and 24 total games with the Cardinal. While the numbers were a nice starting point for the young guard, Ryan shot a horrific 33.3% from the field and 31.6% from three. Being regarded as one of the best shooters of his recruiting class, this was clearly not the result that was expected after he committed to Stanford.

Nevertheless, Ryan was a key contributor to the Stanford team and was destined for a larger role this year with star forward KZ Okpala having been selected by the Miami Heat with the 32nd pick in the 2019 NBA draft. With Okpala’s departure and that of former starter Josh Sharma, Ryan was bound to receive more shot attempts on a depleted Cardinal roster.

Now, Stanford will rely even more heavily on junior point guard Daejon Davis, who averaged 11.4 points, 4.4 assists, and 3 rebounds on 42.6% shooting in his sophomore season at the Farm. The team may also get a strong contribution from the incoming freshman class, which features Tyrell Terry, a four star recruit from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He comes in from De La Salle High School, the same school that produced former Stanford star forward Reid Travis.

Ryan first announced his decision to transfer on June 13 and received interest from Butler, Davidson, Gonzaga, Marquette, Northwestern, Penn, Texas, Villanova, Virginia and Yale. Yale was perhaps the second-strongest competitor for a commitment from Ryan, as his brother Thomas finished his college career with the Bulldogs last year.

Due to NCAA rules, Ryan will have to sit out one year before being eligible to play for the Irish.

He joined former teammate Marcus Sheffield, who, in May, completed a transfer to Elon University, as the second Stanford player to leave the Farm before the 2019-20 season. Sheffield graduated in May and averaged 5.6 points on 40.2% shooting from the field last season.

Contact Peter Oh at peteroh3 ‘at’ gmail.com.

