WOLFERETTI: Soak it up! Will Wade, a man of the people, just gave us EVERYTHING we wanted

Populism has been sweeping the globe over the last couple of decades, and it’s finally made its way to NC State.

For the real Wolfpack fans who have been around a while, you know the fight we’ve been in.

Its almost felt like, at times, it was the fanbase vs. the administration.

I guess the early notions of this started with the self-sanctions we put on ourselves prior to the NCAA investigation in the early 80s. That led to what felt like the erasure of Jimmy V from NC State lore. There were the hiring of coaches who did fine, but never really tapped into the soul of the NC State fanbase, like Herb Sendek. (Don’t get me wrong, Sendek played a role in getting NC State back to relevance, but his ‘chop wood’ mantra wasn’t what NC State fans thirsted for.)

Let’s not beat around the bush. We wanted another Valvano. This fanbase connected with V and found ultimate success with him. Our greatest moment had him at the center of it.

But did those making the calls actually understand the attributes that endeared us to Valvano?

Did they realize we wanted a showman, someone who understood the complicated relationships forged on Tobacco Road? Someone who would mirror their blue-collar, hands-in-the-dirt attitude, mixed with some real bravado and swagger and the ability to back it up.

Lowe was too inexperienced. Gottfried was too slick. Keatts was too stubborn.

NC State fans kept telling the administration the type of coach they wanted, but the administration either couldn’t land that guy or didn’t quite understand the nuance of what they were asking for.

As time went by, NC State drifted further and further away from the ‘brand’ that their fanbase felt so connected with. Most of us wondered if we’d ever get it back. The unique things that connected us to those good times, those winning times, were gone. Games were no longer in Reynolds, the noise meter was gone, the uniforms tapped into modern trends. All of that, coupled with the choices of leadership and the changing of the college game, had NC State fans frustrated. It seemed as if everyone was trying to pave over the past and build a new future with no visible road map.

It wasn’t as if NC State fan’s desires were a big secret. Social media made it clear the type of coach the fanbase was hungry for. They want someone who doesn’t just ignore the neighbors with the turned-up noses and argyle shirts who constantly patronize them while laughing at their misfortune. They wanted someone who would punch’em in the nose.

They wanted someone who would embrace the past, and use it to guide us into the future.

Ironically, the NIL era, which is as far away from ‘the old way’ as you could get, ended up helping NC State connect with its past by giving teeth to the fans’ demands.

When Kevin Keatts was fired and the NC State job opened up, the fans and the donors came together and made it clear who their choice was. They wanted Will Wade.

Wade had that Valvano aura. He was a winner, he was brash, he was an outside-the-box thinker, but he came from humble beginnings in the coaching ranks. He was no Pitino understudy. He didn’t come from the Morgan Wooden line of coaches. He was just a lowly grad assistant at Clemson. He was a product of the Oliver Prunell coaching tree, and Prunell never made it past the NCAA first round. He wasn’t gifted his career; he created it.

Wade checked all the boxes. He was the donor’s choice, he was the fans’ choice, and in the NIL era, the administration has no choice but to let the people’s will be done.

And, now, it’s way too early to toot our own horn, but Will Wade is pulling all the right levers.

✅ Talking the talk. Wade is not mincing words. He is promising a ‘Red Reckoning’ , sending shots across the bow to UNC, Duke, and anyone else in the nation, that NC State “is not to be messed with.”
✅ He’s walking the walk. Wade has stocked the cupboard immediately with top-tier talent. Selling the resurrection of a sleeping giant and a brand whose National Championship victory is played on repeat every March.
✅ He’s listening to the fan base and connecting with the past…

The old school ‘STATE’ jerseys that the fans have been begging for were back in the opener last night…

The ‘Reynolds’ noise meter was back pumping.

 

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Heck, Wade even posed in the famous Jimmy V pose prior to the game…

Do you know the size of the beans someone’s gotta have to do all of this? Why risk the embarrassment if you fail? Why risk the stain on your career if you talk all this talk, and then don’t deliver?

Because it matters to NC State fans and because he is who we thought he was.

Now, look, NC State only beat NC Central. We’re only 1-0. So while I’m not ready to crown Will Wade over one game, I’m pointing out that he is delivering what we’ve all been asking for.

The attitude. The bravado, backed up by tireless work. The desire to earn respect. The respect for the past. The understanding that he is representing us and the history of NC State.

Last night, not only did we get all the ‘nice to haves’ in the noise meter, the jerseys, and the Jimmy V hat-tip photo, we also got to see the actual product, and my Lord was it beautiful.

Gritty, relentlessness, paired with athleticism, discipline, and talent. No showboating, all business. A dominating, 50-p0int foot on the throat type victory. Heck, Wade even earned himself a technical foul while we were up 40. The crowd couldn’t get enough!

So NC State fans, soak it up. We are getting what we asked for, and while it’s still early, it looks like maybe we knew what we needed more than those running the asylum for the past 40+ years.