Will WadeWith Thursday evening's late announcement that Virginia Commonwealth head basketball coach Shaka Smart has accepted the same position at the University of Texas, the Rams are now on the clock as the latest team looking for a coach.
That search could extend to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
The Times Free Press has learned that Will Wade, who just completed his second season with the Mocs, is expected to be on a short list of potential replacements for Smart. Wade was an assistant at VCU for four seasons before taking over the Mocs' program in May of 2013.
The 32-year old Wade recently turned down an opportunity to be the head coach at Charlotte, who plays in Conference USA. The job, had he taken it, would have possibly tripled his UTC salary of $187,000.
Wade is 40-25 in two seasons as the head coach, which includes a 27-7 record in conference play. He was the Southern Conference coach of the year after the 2013-2014 season, his first as a head coach.
He'll be on a list that is expected to include Rice head coach Mike Rhoades, as well as current VCU assistant Jeremy Ballard.
One report had Texas's deal with Smart in the neighborhood of $3 million a year over five years. He was making $1.57 million per year at VCU.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.