McNeese’s Will Wade signs a 6-year deal to become NC State coach, AP source says

McNeese coach Will Wade has a signed six-year deal to take over as N.C. State’s next coach, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Saturday.

The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the school hasn’t publicly discussed its coaching search.

Wade’s second NCAA Tournament run in as many seasons with the Cowboys ended Saturday with a second-round loss to Purdue, which came two days after a first-round upset of his alma mater, Clemson. Wade’s two-year tenure in Lake Charles, Louisiana, marked a successful climb back after being fired at LSU in 2022 because of allegations of recruiting violations. Those were rooted in a federal corruption investigation in college basketball that became public in 2017, with N.C. State among the multiple schools entangled in that probe.

OG Media first reported earlier this week that the two sides had reached an agreement for Wade to lead the Wolfpack, while CBS Sports was first to report the signing after the Purdue loss. The 42-year-old Wade had confirmed talks with N.C. State before the Clemson win, an unusually candid response compared with coaches typically deflecting questions about other jobs.

“Just tell it like it is,” Wade said Wednesday.

Asked about the N.C. State job again after Saturday’s loss to Purdue, Wade said: “I’ll worry about that tomorrow. Look, I’m an honest guy, but today I want to put a bow on everything with McNeese if we can.”

Wade will replace Kevin Keatts, who was fired after eight seasons on March 9. That came less than a year after he guided N.C. State to its first Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament title since 1987 and its first Final Four trip since the late Jim Valvano’s “Cardiac Pack” did it in an improbable 1983 NCAA title run.

Keatts had guided N.C. State to three NCAA bids and had the program in position for another when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of March Madness in 2020. But the Wolfpack went 12-19 this season to kill any lingering buzz from last year’s remarkable run.

That ultimately led the school to move on from Keatts even though he was under contract until April 2030, putting N.C. State on the hook for roughly $6.9 million in base salary alone. And it marked a reset for the program, down to how it handles finances for roster construction with players able to profit from their athletic fame and revenue sharing set to start nationally next season.

Wade’s first head-coaching job was a two-year stint at Chattanooga from 2013-15, followed by two NCAA bids in as many seasons at VCU before leaving for LSU in 2017. The peak of his tenure with the Tigers came in his second season, with LSU winning the Southeastern Conference regular-season title and reaching the Sweet 16.

He returned to the sideline after his LSU exit at McNeese in 2023, with his tenure beginning with NCAA penalties that included a 10-game suspension to open his first season. But the Cowboys teams went on to win 58 games in two seasons, a rapid climb for a program that had won just 56 games combined in the five seasons before Wade’s arrival.

“I think I needed somewhere that was going to embrace me and the town needed somebody to embrace them,” Wade said Saturday of his McNeese tenure. “It just worked. I can’t explain how. I guess the winning helps, but it worked. Just unforgettable.”

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AP Sports Writer Kyle Hightower in Providence, Rhode Island, contributed to this report.

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