McNeese State coach Will Wade received a two-year show-cause penalty and a 10-game suspension Thursday for multiple NCAA rules violations during his time leading the program at LSU, ending a slow-moving case originally rooted in a federal corruption investigation into men’s college basketball.
The ruling came from a panel of the independent accountability resolution process. It determined Wade failed to report potential violations and that he also made payments to the ex-fiancée of a former player — whom he had coached before arriving at LSU in 2017 — to prevent the disclosure of potential violations.
Additionally, the panel found Wade failed to cooperate with the investigation running from December 2018 to August 2021, specifically by delaying full production of requested records and knowingly providing false or misleading information.
While Wade’s case grew from the federal corruption probe, chief panel member Bruce Meyerson said the majority of allegations brought in this case were unrelated — and ultimately no violation was determined from an oft-cited FBI wiretap involving Wade.
LSU fired Wade in March 2022, and he was hired by McNeese State earlier this year.