NC State Men’s Basketball Head Coach Candidate: What does Will Wade’s Resume Look Like?

NC State is in hot pursuit of a new Men’s Basketball Coach after news broke yesterday that Kevin Keatts would not be returning in 2025-26.

McNeese St.’s Will Wade and VCU’s Ryan Odom are probably two names that are near the top of NC State’s wish list at this point. Obviously, the Wolfpack’s wish list is filled with many more names than Wade and Odom, and we will break down other candidates as time permits.

Wade’s name is probably the most interesting because he was at the top of NC State’s wish list when they were looking for a Men’s Basketball coach back in 2017. He was Debbie Yow’s #1 candidate to replace Mark Gottfried; Yow was the Athletic Director at that time. As far as I understand it, the job was his for the taking, but he wanted to see if the job at Clemson, his alma mater, was going to open up. His exploration of the possible Clemson opening led Yow to choose her #2 candidate, Kevin Keatts.

Here we are in 2025, and Wade is likely near the top of the wish list once again.

He has spent the past two years as the head coach at McNeese St. In 2023-24, Wade led the Cowboys to the Southland Conference Regular Season and Tournament Championships, finishing with a 30-4 overall record, and a 17-1 conference record. McNeese earned a spot as a #12 seed, losing 65-86 to #5 seed Gonzaga in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. In his first year in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Wade earned the Southland Conference Coach of the Year Award. For context, the year prior to Wade’s arrival, McNeese St. was 11-23 overall, and the last time that the Cowboys had a winning record was when they went 17-16 in 2011-12.

This year, McNeese St. once again won the Southland Conference Regular Season Championship, sitting with a 25-6 overall record, and a 19-1 conference record.

Prior to his current stint at McNeese St., Wade spent 5 years as the Head Coach at LSU, where he finished with a 105-51 overall record, and a 55-33 record in the SEC. The year before his arrival in Baton Rouge, the Tigers had a 10-21 overall record in 2016-17. In Year 2, Wade led LSU to their first SEC Regular Season Championship since 2009, finishing the year with a 28-7 overall record, and a 16-2 SEC record. Earning a #3 seed in the 2019 NCAA tournament, the Tigers advanced to the Sweet 16, losing to #2 seed Michigan St. 63-80. In Year 3, there was no NCAA Tournament due to Covid-19, but LSU surely would have made it, finishing the year ranked 28th in the NET Rankings with a 21-10 record overall, and a 12-6 SEC record (tied for 2nd). In Year 4, the Tigers advanced to the NCAA Tournament once again, going 19-10 overall, and 11-6 in conference play (3rd). As a #8 seed, they defeated #9 seed St. Bonaventure 76-61, falling 78-86 to #1 seed Michigan in the 2nd Round. In his final season in Baton Rouge, Wade led LSU to a 22-11 record, and a 9-9 SEC record. As a #6 seed, the Tigers lost 54-59 to #11 seed Iowa St. in the 1st round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament. In summary, under the leadership of Wade, LSU went to 3 NCAA Tournaments in 5 years, and would have been 4 if there had been a Big Dance in 2020.

Wade got the job at LSU because of his extremely successful 2-year stint at VCU. In 2015, he was hired to fill the shoes of Shaka Smart. In 2015-16, Wade led VCU to an Atlantic 10 Regular Season Championship, with an overall record of 25-11, and 14-4 in conference play. As a #10 seed, VCU defeated #7 seed Oregon St. 75-67 in the 1st round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament, before losing 81-85 to #2 seed Oklahoma. In his final year at VCU, the Rams were 26-9 overall, and 14-4 in conference play. They closed out the year as a #10 seed in the 2017 NCAA Tournament.