Will Wade

Will Wade (born November 26, 1982)

Current position: Head men’s basketball coach
Current team: McNeese Cowboys
Current conference: Southland Conference
Chattanooga record: 40-25 (.615)
VCU record: 51-20 (.718)
LSU record: 105-51 (.673)
McNeese record: 22-1 (.957)
Overall record: 218-97 (.692)

Career Accomplishments:

Awards:

Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):

2023-present McNeese
2017-2022 LSU
2015-2017 VCU
2013-2015 Chattanooga
2009-2013 VCU (asst)
2007-2009 Harvard (asst)
2006-2007 Clemson (DBO)
2005-2006 Clemson (grad. asst)

Will Wade Facts

  • Frank Williams Wade
  • Born November 26, 1982
  • Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee
  • Alma Mater: Clemson University (BA, 2005)
  • Was a student manager at Clemson from 2002-2005 while working on his undergraduate degree
  • During his time at Clemson, he worked under both head coaches Larry Shyatt and Oliver Purnell
  • Was an assistant at Harvard for two seasons under Tommy Amaker, then for four seasons at VCU under Shaka Smart
  • Spent two years as the head coach at Chattanooga before returning to VCU in 2015 to replace Smart
    • Led the Rams to the NCAA Tournament in each of his two seasons as head coach
  • Hired in March 2017 to become the new head coach at LSU
    • Led the Tigers to the 2018 NIT in his first season and won the outright SEC regular season title a year later
    • Suspended in March 2019 for failing to answer questions regarding recordings that appeared to include Wade discussing an “offer” being made to a recruit while on the phone with basketball “middleman” Christian Dawkins
    • In April 2019, Wade met with LSU and NCAA reps and was reinstated as head coach
  • In March 2023, exactly one year after his firing from LSU, Wade was hired as the new head coach at McNeese
    • McNeese decided to suspend Wade the first five games of the 2023-24 season due to the LSU case, but in June 2023 the NCAA extended that suspension to ten games and also levied a number of recruiting restrictions on Wade through October 2024
    • In his first season, Wade led McNeese to an outright Southland title – the program’s first since 2011 – and was named Southland COY

Will Wade Coaching Tree