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Head coach Will Wade wanted players and administration at McNeese to know his status entering the NCAA Tournament and shared those details openly ahead of the first round opener Thursday against fifth-seeded Clemson.

With rumors swirling about Wade’s candidacy to be head coach at NC State and elsewhere, he decided to share everything he knew with the team over the weekend to erase any doubt before they return to the court as the 12th seed.

“We addressed it head on. I talked to them Saturday about it,” Wade said Wednesday between a brief practice session and other media obligations. “Here’s what it is, here is where we are. It was just me and our players and we all talked about it. I’m aware of what I have got going on. They’re aware of what we’ve got going on. You just hit it head-on. We’re all on the same page with everything.”

Asked if he told them he or his agent met with NC State officials, Wade said, “Yes.”

“Just tell it like it is. You may not always like what I’m going to say, but I’m going to tell you what I think,” Wade said. “I’ve always kind of been like that, and there’s no need to hide it. The guys are reading it on social media. It’s no secret. 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 them. They can read right through the BS, so you might as well, hey, this what it is.”

Javohn Garcia confirmed that the players have heard the rumors surrounding their coach.

“Coach Wade always tells us, don’t worry about the outside noise,” he said. “We just worry about what’s going on now. We’re going to take one day at a time, one game at a time and just play it like it’s our last. We don’t care about everything else that’s going on with that type of stuff so we’re just going to worry about what’s going on now.”

Wade, 42, has coached at LSU (2017-22), VCU (2015-2017) and Chattanooga (2013-15) and is 49-8 in two seasons with McNeese, including a near-upset of Gonzaga in the first round of the 2024 tournament.

LSU fired Wade with cause in March 2022 following a notice of recruiting violations from the NCAA. He was assessed a 10-game suspension and a two-year show cause penalty for his involvement in the program’s reported violations.

–Field Level Media