Will Wade is the new coach of NC State after two seasons at McNeese, NC State announced. The official news Sunday comes one day after McNeese’s second-round NCAA tournament exit with a loss to Purdue, and several days after Wade admitted to speaking with NC State before the NCAA tournament began.
During his press conference before the Cowboys’ first-round NCAA tournament matchup with Clemson on Thursday, Wade admitted that he had spoken with NC State about its opening. He candidly acknowledged that he or his agents have been in contact with the school, saying he “addressed it head on” with his current players because they’re seeing the rumors on social media.
A couple of hours after the presser, Wade had reportedly already agreed to take the job, according to OG Media’s Joe Giglio and ESPN’s Jeff Borzello. However, a contract had not yet been finalized.
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From my sources: NC State has reached an agreement with Will Wade to be its next men’s basketball coach.
There is still the matter of finalizing the deal, and that McNeese is playing in the NCAA tournament, but plans are in place to move quickly when McNeese’s season ends
— Joe Giglio (@giglio_OG) March 19, 2025
“I’ve always kind of been like that,” Wade said, via The News & Observer. “There’s no need to hide it. The guys are reading it on social media. It’s no secret.
“They can read right through the B.S. so you might as well say, ‘Hey, this is what it is. Here we are, and we’ll figure it out,” he added.
Wade will replace Kevin Keatts, who was fired at the conclusion of the season. NC State did not qualify for the ACC men’s tournament with a 5-15 conference record and 13-19 overall mark. The change was made one season after Keatts coached NC State to a Final Four berth.
Wade, 42, has coached McNeese to consecutive Southland Conference tournament titles and automatic NCAA tournament bids. As a result, he’s also been named the conference’s Coach of the Year for two straight seasons. This season, the Cowboys went 27-6 and 19-1 in the SLC.
In his two seasons at McNeese, his teams have compiled a combined 57-10 record and 36-2 conference mark. He has a .705 winning percentage (253-106) in his career, which includes stops at Chattanooga, VCU and LSU.
Wade was fired from LSU after the NCAA ruled he committed recruiting violations. He was given a two-year show-cause penalty and 10-game suspension. However, the violations were for making payments to players, something that is considered legal now under Name, Image and Likeness rules.
No. 12 seed McNeese upset No. 5 Clemson on Thursday, but fell to No. 4 Purdue in Saturday’s second-round matchup.
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