McNeese's Will Wade has reached an agreement to become the next head coach at NC State, sources told ESPN on Wednesday.
McNeese, which won the Southland Conference regular season and tournament championships, is set to play in the NCAA tournament against Clemson on Thursday (TruTV, 3:15 p.m. ET).
The news is expected to be made official following McNeese's exit from the tournament.
Wade acknowledged Wednesday he's had contact with the Wolfpack regarding its head coaching position.
"There's no need to hide it," Wade said. "The guys are reading it on social media. It's no secret and I'm not going to ask them to do something I'm not willing to do. It's no good if you don't address it and if you sit there and BS 'em. They know. They can read right through the BS. So you might as well just [say] 'This is what it is.'"
Wade has spent the last two seasons at McNeese, winning 57 games and going 36-2 in conference play, winning back-to-back regular season and conference tournament titles.
He spent five seasons as the head coach at LSU from 2018-22, leading the Tigers to three out of four NCAA tournaments, including the program's first SEC regular-season title in a decade in 2019. Wade went 105-51 overall at LSU.
LSU fired Wade on the eve of the NCAA tournament back in 2022 after the school received a notice of allegations from the NCAA detailing five Level I violations and a Level II violation involving Wade. He was also suspended shortly before the 2019 NCAA tournament after reports revealed that a federal wiretap captured him discussing a "strong-ass offer" for a recruit.
He was ultimately given a two-year show-cause order and a 10-game suspension in June 2023 for three Level I violations, after being found to have made impermissible payments to the former fiancee of a player, while also failing to cooperate in an investigation and failing to promote an atmosphere of compliance.
Prior to taking over at LSU, Wade was the head coach at VCU for two seasons, winning 51 games and a regular-season title. He led the Rams to the NCAA tournament in both seasons. He also spent two seasons at Chattanooga, going 27-7 in SoCon play during his time with the Mocs.
