The past few weeks have been special for Ryan Creemens, a nine-year-old from Richmond, Kentucky.
On March 30, Creemens finished his final session of chemotherapy, nearly a year after he was diagnosed with cancer. During his treatment, Creemens, a big fan of the Kentucky Wildcats, was befriended by members of the Kentucky football team. And on Friday night, a few weeks after being declared cancer free, Creemens led the Wildcats out onto the field for their spring game.
A very special moment before the @UKFootball Spring Game…
9-year-old cancer survivor Ryan Cremeens leads the team out of the tunnel. pic.twitter.com/qtc3Q8dM59
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) April 14, 2017
Ryan’s dad, Eric, told ESPN.com that Ryan’s doctor has friends inside the Kentucky athletic department and shared Ryan’s story. Soon after, some UK players were at his side during the first session of what ended up being 42 weeks of chemotherapy treatment.
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On the night of his first bout of chemotherapy, Ryan was greeted by various players from Kentucky’s football team. The visits and the support didn’t stop, as the players became part of his life.
“It was very comforting to Ryan because these guys that Ryan looks up to were coming up and telling him to be strong and do great,” Eric said. “As a family, it made us feel good to see them put a smile on his face.”
Players such as tight end C.J. Conrad (who invited Ryan to a Kentucky scrimmage earlier this month), running back Boom Williams and quarterback Drew Barker came to visit Ryan. Defensive lineman Denzil Ware even spent Thanksgiving with Ryan and his family because Ware couldn’t get home.
@Hupernikao9s Ryan is flying his #NoMoreChemo cape! #SuperHero #Bears pic.twitter.com/nGmujUfk0B
— Eric Cremeens (@ECremeens1366) April 14, 2017
@ejhs18 @_KingOVO hope you guys CJ and the rest of the guys are ready to keep up with Ryan, coming out of the tunnel Friday night ???????????????????? pic.twitter.com/ThNgLtq5xP
— Eric Cremeens (@ECremeens1366) April 12, 2017
Thank you @ECremeens1366 for sharing this story about your son and UK football playershttps://t.co/bDU99mHdwV@UKCoachStoops @boom_that_guy pic.twitter.com/6ca9OVpg65
— Vaughts' Views (@vaughtsviews) April 4, 2017
For more Kentucky news, CatsIllustrated.com.
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Sam Cooper is a writer for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
