LAKE CHARLES – Will Wade will be introduced as the new head coach at North Carolina State today. Now is the time to keep celebrating what he and the Bayou Bandits have done for the McNeese Basketball program, McNeese State University and the Southwest Louisiana community over the last two years.
The record book has a new look for what the Bayou Bandits did on the court while winning back-to-back regular season and conference tournament championships and NCAA Tournament appearances in consecutive years, and what's occurred off the court may never be matched.
A city and community still rebuilding and feeling the effects by the 2020 hurricanes of Laura and Delta, and a university that saw a decline in enrollment because of those storms, needed a jolt of energy, a dose of Will Power so-to-speak.
Coach Wade mentioned in his introductory press conference back in March 2023 he needed this school and community to help rebuild his career and image as much as this community needed him. And boy did it ever deliver both ways.
Here's what Wade and the Bayou Bandits have drawn up over the last two years:
• 58-11 overall record.
• 40-2 record vs. Southland Conference competition.
• Multiple win streaks of 10-wins or more.
• First-ever recipient of AP and Coaches Top 25 Poll votes.
• First-ever NCAA Tournament win.
• First-ever win over a nationally ranked team.
• Two Southland Conference regular season championships.
• Two SLC Tournament championships.
• Two NCAA Tournament appearances.
• Over a dozen times featured on ESPN's Top 10 Plays of the Day.
And that's just only a portion of what has been done.
Last Thursday's NCAA Tournament First Round win over Clemson was the biggest victory in school history in any sport, and one of the largest-ever in the Southland Conference.
Attention, praise and respect was poured onto the Cowboys and the University following the win. National media, not just from the sports circle, corralled the Cowboys to showcase their personalities, charisma, and of course, talents. And helping fuel that was our very own social media sensation, team manager Amir "Aura" Khan.
Enrollment is up at McNeese for the first time in over a decade. Interest in the University and community is at an all-time high. The Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans and Horace Wilkinson I-10 Bridge that crosses the Mississippi River in Baton Rouge were lit up in Blue and Gold on the eve of Saturday's Round of 32 game against Purdue in support of the Cowboys.
Even the official NCAA March Madness social media platforms dubbed the Cowboys, "America's Team."
Said McNeese Vice President and Director of Athletics Heath Schroyer about Wade and the future of the Cowboys' basketball program: "I coached at North Carolina State and am familiar with both the university and the Raleigh area. It's a great fit for Coach Wade and he will knock it out of the park there. I'm incredibly happy for him and his family.
"I think it's important for Poke Nation to reflect on how far we've come. What Coach has done here and what we've built in two short years is historic. The future has never been brighter! Right now, McNeese is one of the best mid-major basketball jobs in the country. The standard has been set and the foundation laid.
"It's hard to see Coach go, Poke Nation knows that, but I look back at our time together with pride. At McNeese, when our coaches are successful, they have life changing opportunities, and I'm proud of that.
"I've been prepared for this day for some time, and I'll act swiftly to secure the next coach who not only understands the championship expectations we have here, but embraces them."
One thing is for sure, what Coach Wade and the Bayou Bandits started two years ago is just the beginning. The Cowboys will continue to ride strongly for Poke Nation.
