RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State’s McMurray Family Director of Athletics Boo Corrigan has announced that Will Wade, who has led his last five teams to the NCAA Tournament, will be the new head coach of the NC State men’s basketball program. Wade, who has signed a six-year agreement pending approval by the NC State Board of Trustees, will be formally introduced as the 21st head coach in program history next Tuesday at a private event in Reynolds Coliseum which will be streamed live for the general public at 1 pm on GoPack.com and ACC Network Extra. Photo opportunities for fans will be available beginning at 3 pm at Coaches’ Corner on the northwest corner of Reynolds Coliseum. “I am excited and proud that Will Wade will be the next head coach for Wolfpack men’s basketball,” said Corrigan. “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.” He is a tough coach with proven results on the court and he has grown and improved at every coaching stop. He is known for having great relationships with his players and he will hold them, his staff and himself accountable. Will told me that he believes that he can win at NC State … and ‘win big.’ It didn’t take me too many conversations with him to believe it too.”
“I am beyond excited and honored to be chosen to lead the Wolfpack basketball program,” said Wade. “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.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Will Wade as the new head coach of NC State Men’s Basketball,” said NC State Chancellor Randy Woodson. “With a proven track record of excellence and a commitment to building a supportive culture for student-athletes, Will is the perfect leader to guide the Pack basketball program to new heights.” A native of Nashville, Tenn., Wade has previously served as head coach at VCU, LSU and McNeese. He brings 11 years of head coaching experience to the Wolfpack and has led his programs to seven NCAA Tournament berths, including appearances in the last five. Wade has spent the past two seasons at McNeese, where he led the Cowboys to back-to-back Southland Conference regular season and tournament championships and was named the Southland Conference Coach of the Year both seasons. He compiled a 50-9 record at McNeese, including a 33-1 home record. He leaves McNeese as the winningest coach in Southland Conference history in terms of winning percentage with a .947 mark (36-2) in regular season conference contests. The 42-year-old served as head coach at LSU for five seasons (2017-2022), leading the Tigers to a Southeastern Conference regular season championship in 2019. LSU advanced to four post-season tournaments (including consecutive NCAA Tournaments in 2019, 2021 and 2022) during his tenure and in 2021 advanced to the SEC Tournament championship game for the first time since 1993. In his last four seasons (2019-22) with the Tigers, his squads won 48 regular season SEC games, tied for the second-most of any team over that period. LSU won 20 games or more in three of his five seasons and Wade finished his time at LSU with a record of 105-51, including a 55-33 SEC mark during that time. His 105 wins ranked him as the fourth-winningest coach in LSU Basketball history. Prior to LSU, Wade spent two seasons at VCU, where he directed the Rams to a 51-20 record and two NCAA Tournament appearances in 2015-2016 and 2016-2017. His 2016 squad advanced to the second round of the tournament, defeating seventh-seed Oregon State before losing to Oklahoma. That season, Wade was the youngest head coach to appear in the NCAA Tournament. The Rams posted a 28-8 league record over his two years in the Atlantic 10, posting 14-4 records both years. The team was 25-11 in 2016 and earned a share of the Atlantic 10 Conference regular season crown. The 2017 team won 26 games and finished second in the league. Wade began his collegiate head coaching career as the head coach at Chattanooga for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. His first Mocs squad went 18-15 in 2014, finishing 12-6 and second in regular-season Southern Conference play. The 18 wins overall were the most by the program since 2008-09 and the 12 wins in league play were the highest total since 2010-11. Wade was honored with the Anton Foy Southern Conference Coach of the Year award for his efforts in 2014. The Mocs won 22 games in 2015 and finished 15-3 in the league as Wade guided Chattanooga to its first 20-win season since 2004-05. He finished his two seasons there at 40-25 and 27-7 in league play. In the two seasons prior to his arrival, Chattanooga was 24-40 overall and 13-23 in the SoCon. A four-year student manager (2002-05) at Clemson, Wade started his coaching career with the Tigers as a graduate assistant (2005-06) and director of basketball operations (2006-07). He left Clemson in 2007 to become an assistant coach at Harvard and spent two years with the Crimson (2007-09) before heading to VCU as an assistant coach from 2009-13. Wade is married to the former Lauren Deason of Charlotte, N.C., and the couple has one daughter, Caroline.
Wade’s College Coaching Timeline
2005-06 – Clemson, Graduate Assistant 2006-07 – Clemson, Director of Operations 2007-09 – Harvard, Assistant Coach 2009-13 – VCU, Assistant Coach 2013-15 – UT-Chattanooga, Head Coach 2015-17 – VCU, Head Coach 2017-22 – LSU, Head Coach 2023-25 – McNeese, Head Coach
Will Wade Head Coaching Record
Year School Record Conference Record Conference Finish Postseason 2013-14 Chattanooga 18-15 12-4 2nd CIT 2014-15 Chattanooga 22-10 15-3 2nd 2015-16 VCU 25-11 14-4 t-1st NCAA 2016-17 VCU 26-9 14-4 2nd NCAA 2017-18 LSU 18-15 8-10 t-9th NIT 2018-19 LSU 25-5 15-2 1st NCAA 2019-20 LSU 21-10 12-6 t-2nd Canceled* 2020-21 LSU 19-10 11-6 3rd NCAA 2021-22 LSU 22-11 9-9 t-5th NCAA 2023-24 McNeese 30-4** (22-2) 17-1 1st NCAA 2024-25 McNeese 28-7 19-1 1st NCAA TOTALS 246-105 146-50 * – The 2020 postseason was canceled in college basketball because of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.
** – Wade did not coach the first 10 games of the season and those games do not count towards his official coaching record.
