His name is Ryan so it somehow seemed inevitable he would land with the Irish.
And now he has.
Matt Ryan, a 6-foot-7, 220-pound sharpshooting small forward from New Rochelle (N.Y.) Iona Prep, has verbally committed to Notre Dame, becoming the Irish’s first commit for 2015.
Ryan, who will remain at Iona Prep for his senior season, has been unable to play this spring and summer after undergoing two arthroscopic hip surgeries on March 3, but expects to be cleared to play in about a month.
“I have chosen to verbally commit to ND at this time because I saw spots being taken at some colleges and thought I should do the same,” he told SNY.tv. “I have been thinking this through for a couple weeks and because of a great relationship with the coaching staff I am happy with my decision.
“Without playing in any live events I knew I wouldn’t pick up offers from Duke, UNC, Michigan, or Stanford until the fall at the earliest. I recognized that if I waited until then I could miss my opportunity at ND and other players could potentially commit to any of those great programs.
“My family and I are extremely appreciative of all the recruiting I received. We came to the conclusion that ND is an unbelievable fit for me both athletically and academically, and I will have a great opportunity to contribute as a freshman. I will be entering an extremely competitive environment academically and in the ACC but cannot wait for the challenges ahead.”
Ryan averaged 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists in eight games as a junior, and has long been coveted by Irish coach Mike Brey and his staff.
Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter
