NC State wasted no time with its search for a new head coach, reaching an agreement with McNeese State's Will Wade before the Cowboys had even begun their run in the NCAA Tournament. And you can't really blame them: The college basketball world moves pretty fast these days, especially with NIL and the transfer portal to worry about, and no one's going to waste time fretting about stepping on toes.
But there is one downside to jumping the gun like this. Nothing can be made official as long as Wade and McNeese are still playing. And after the Cowboys pulled an upset of 5-seed Clemson on Thursday afternoon, other big-time programs are circling the waters hoping they can pry the next big thing away from the Wolfpack before he ever steps foot in Raleigh.
Will Wade offers reminder to NC State that nothing is official just yet
Say this for Wade: He's nothing if not honest. He was honest about the fact that he was talking to NC State while McNeese was playing in its conference tournament, and after Thursday's win, he was honest about the fact that other schools have already started reaching out to see just how committed to his new program he really is.
"Villanova's trying to buy a coach out of the NCAA Tournament right now," Wade told reporters, and we're betting the Wildcats aren't the only ones.
“Villanova’s trying to buy a coach out of the NCAA Tournament right now!” — McNeese coach/future NC State coach Will Wade
— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) March 20, 2025
That and, well, so, so much more. This man has zero filter.
Column to come.
Indiana already has its man in Darian DeVries, but the coaching carousel is just getting started. More jobs figure to come open as the NCAA Tournament goes on; Texas might already get there by the time you're reading this, after Rodney Terry's team flamed out in the First Four against Xavier. These are some deep pockets we're talking about, and there's no rule saying that they can't approach Wade over the next few days — he hasn't signed anything with NC State just yet, after all.
The smart money is still on Wade heading to Raleigh. He's a Southern guy, and this is a pretty good job with pretty good resources in a Power 6 conference. Plus, even Wade would have to know he'd take a little reputational hit if he swerved at this point. But Wolfpack fans likely won't be breathing easy until his name is on the dotted line.