PROVIDENCE, R.I. — McNeese coach Will Wade confirmed Wednesday there has been communication between him and his representatives and North Carolina State about the Wolfpack’s head coaching vacancy.
Wade has his team in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season as Southland Conference champions. The Cowboys are a No. 12 seed in the Midwest Region and face fifth seed Clemson, Wade’s alma mater, on Thursday in Providence.
The 42-year-old Wade said he has been upfront with his players about his possible departure from the school.
“I lay it all out there to my players, and my players have laid it all out there to me. We are transparent. We’ve shared it all with each other,” Wade said.
Wade figures to be one of the hottest commodities on the coaching market with a career record of 253-106 and seven NCAA appearances in 11 years, with previous stops at Chattanooga, VCU and LSU.
Wade was fired by LSU in 2022 after the school received a notice of allegations from the NCAA detailing multiple major recruiting violations during his tenure, including several uncovered during the FBI investigation into corruption in college basketball. NCAA investigators said Wade arranged for, offered and provided impermissible payments to numerous recruits and family members or associates of recruits to get them to come to LSU.
Now the NCAA and major conferences are awaiting final approval of a settlement of three antitrust lawsuits to pave the way for a new revenue-sharing system that will allow schools to directly pay athletes.
“I think it’s evolving,” Wade said about the move toward direct payments to athletes. “It doesn’t affect us as much at McNeese as it does at other places, but I think it’s slowly evolving, unfortunately, through the courts. It would have been better, probably, if it was done not kind of piecemealed through the courts like we have now. If we had a little foresight on some things. But I’m all for the student-athletes having opportunities and having the ability to move around.”
Wade was out of coaching for a year before landing at McNeese in Lake Charles, La. He has gone 49-8 with the Cowboys.
While he acknowledged mutual interest with NC State — simply answering “Yes” when asked if he or his agent has spoken to NC State — Wade could also draw interest from West Virginia. The Mountaineers’ job opened Tuesday when coach Darren DeVries left after one season to take the Indiana job.
Wade has a buyout in his contract with McNeese that would cost another school $1 million to hire him away.
NC State is in the market for a new coach after firing Kevin Keatts, one year after he led the Wolfpack on a surprising run to the Final Four.
Wade said he doesn’t begrudge the increased player movement that has come from loosened transfer rules and opportunities to make name, image and likeness money by switching schools.
“I told our coaching staff last year I don’t want to hear any complaining about calling kids in the portal while we’re in the NCAA Tournament,” Wade said. “Half the coaching staff around the country — those assistants are trying to get other jobs, too. If they’re trying to get other jobs, why can’t the kids? That makes intuitive sense to me.
“I think it’s moving in a good direction with the revenue share, and I haven’t followed it all that closely. I know there’s going to be a clearinghouse with the NIL deals so it seems positive. We’re going to share the revenue and make sure the NIL is actually NIL, for the most part. I think it’s moving in a good direction.”
(Photo: Christian Petersen / Getty Images)
