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NC State officially names Will Wade next men’s basketball coach

image_6483441 (3)by:Noah Fleischman•03/23/25•

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Will Wade
USA Today Sports

It’s official. Will Wade is NC State’s 21st men’s basketball coach in program history, Athletic Director Boo Corrigan announced Sunday.

Wade, who led McNeese to back-to-back Southland Conference Tournament titles en route to a pair of NCAA Tournament bids, agreed in principle last week before reportedly signing his contract after the Cowboys’ Round of 32 loss to Purdue on Saturday. 

“I am beyond excited and honored to be chosen to lead the Wolfpack basketball program,” Wade said. “NC State’s rich tradition, passionate fan base, and location in one of the best cities in the country make this a destination job and I can’t wait to get started. I would like to thank Boo Corrigan and Chancellor Woodson for this awesome opportunity. My family and I look forward to being a part of Wolfpack nation.”

NC State inked Wade to a six-year deal, first reported by CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein. He will be formally introduced inside Reynolds Coliseum on Tuesday at 1 p.m.

“I am excited and proud that Will Wade will be the next head coach for Wolfpack men’s basketball,” Corrigan said. “I went into this search with an open mind and had great conversations with several outstanding candidates from across the nation. But after speaking extensively with Will and others who know him well, I knew that he was the right leader for the Wolfpack.” 

The former head coach at Chattanooga, VCU and LSU was previously in the mix at NC State during the 2017 hiring cycle that ultimately ended in Kevin Keatts earning the job. But after eight seasons at the helm, Keatts was relieved of his duties following the Wolfpack’s 2024-25 season that ended in missing the ACC Tournament. 

Wade, 42, engineered an impressive turnaround at McNeese, a program that lost 23 games the season before he took over. A coach known for revitalizing programs nearly instantly, Wade went 30-4 with a 17-1 league mark in his first season with the Cowboys and he followed that up with a 28-7 overall record en route to the program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament win over Clemson. 

The past two seasons have been a career revival for Wade, who was fired after five seasons at LSU due to an NCAA investigation that stemmed from recruiting violations. He served a 10-game suspension to start last season, while also serving a two-year show-cause, which will expire in June. 

Wade’s tenure at LSU was filled with winning, something the Tigers weren’t accustomed to in the SEC. He went 105-51 during the half decade he was in charge, including three NCAA Tournament appearances, going as far as the Sweet 16 in the 2018-19 campaign. 

LSU, which had been to three NCAA Tournaments in the 12 seasons before Wade’s arrival, won the SEC regular season title in the 2018-19 season — its first such crown in a 10-year span.

Before Wade’s arrival in Baton Rouge, La., he spent two seasons at VCU. He guided the Rams to a pair of NCAA Tournament bids, including the program’s most-recent win in the Big Dance during the 2015-16 campaign. 

Wade was also the head coach at Chattanooga, where he was 40-25 in two seasons. 

Wade holds a career record of 244-105 in 11 seasons as a collegiate head coach. He has yet to post a losing season at any stop, while guiding eight of his squads to at least 20 wins. 

Before his ascent to becoming one of the hottest Division I head coaches in the country, Wade rose through the ranks as a student manager at Clemson. He then was a graduate assistant with the Tigers before earning his first full-time job at Havard in 2007.

Wade joined VCU as an assistant on Shaka Smart’s staff in 2009. He was a key member of the Rams’ coaching staff that guided the 11-seeded squad from the First Four to the Final Four in 2011. 

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