University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s basketball coach Will Wade has now emerged as the leading candidate for the Virginia Commonwealth opening, sources close to the Times Free Press confirmed on Monday.
Wade was one of three people that interviewed for the job over the weekend, along with current VCU assistant Jeremy Ballard and former assistant Mike Rhoades, who is currently the head coach at Rice University in Texas.
Rhoades emerged as the leading candidate over the weekend. A CBS news affiliate in Richmond, Va., reported Monday that the Rams were about to offer him, but ESPN’s Jeff Goodman reported that contract negotiations stalled, which led to Rhoades pulling out.
A source told the Times Free Press that Rhoades had moved ahead of Wade because he was considered the “safer pick.”
“The thought was that Mike would provide continuity to the VCU program,” the source said. “There’s talk that Will is eyeing the ACC and SEC, and they aren’t sure how long he’d stay.”
The job opened up Thursday night when coach Shaka Smart, who compiled a 163-56 record in six seasons as the Rams’ head coach, taking them to five NCAA tournaments, including a Final Four trip in 2011.
Wade had compiled a 40-25 record in two seasons as the head coach for the Mocs, including a 27-7 record in Southern Conference play. The 2014 conference Coach of the Year has been mentioned with openings at Charlotte and Tennessee.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.