LSU head coach Will Wade shouts instructions to his players in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019, in Baton Rouge, La. (AP Photo/Bill Feig)When LSU clinched its first Southeastern Conference men's basketball title in a decade and advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament, coach Will Wade wasn't on the floor to offer instruction or encouragement.
Wade was suspended by the university in early March after reports emerged concerning FBI wiretaps in which he discussed an offer to a recruit. Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey was quick to support LSU's decision, stating, "The information in recent news reports is very disturbing, if true."
Yet as the SEC's spring meetings opened Tuesday in Destin, Florida, there was Wade, who was reinstated by LSU in mid-April, addressing reporters.
"I am here today to start the process of rebuilding trust," Wade said. "As I've had time to reflect since I was out for 40 days or so, there were some mistakes I made, but ever since that, when I was able to sit down with LSU and with the NCAA, I was fully cooperative. I disclosed everything and answered any and all questions completely and fully.
"That ultimately led to my reinstatement. What was said in those meetings is private and confidential, and that's how the meeting was set up. I can't get into any of the details, but the meeting was very thorough."
Wade, who coached the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to a 40-25 record during the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons, was peppered with questions after his opening remarks. He was asked directly whether he or any of his assistants have paid players to come to LSU.
"I understand you have to ask that," he said. "I can assure you that everything that you can think of was addressed in that meeting with LSU and with the NCAA, and that ultimately led to my reinstatement."
He also was asked whether he used the phrase "strong-ass offer" in an effort to land Javonte Smart, which was detailed in the report, but he did not reply with a direct answer.
Wade said he did not address the allegations with university officials right away on the advice of attorneys, a decision he now regrets. The Tigers were 25-5 and 15-2 in SEC play when Wade was suspended, and it seemed that the program was imploding when six players declared for the NBA draft.
It now appears that four of those six are returning to LSU, including Smart, Skylar Mays and Emmitt Williams, and Wade recently landed a commitment from five-star Trendon Watford, a 6-foot-9, 230-pound forward from the Birmingham suburb of Mountain Brook.
"I'm very confident with how we've run our basketball program," Wade said, "and I'm looking forward to starting my third season at LSU and trying to lead LSU back to the NCAA tournament."
Philosophy change
Alabama is 9-0 in neutral-site football openers under coach Nick Saban, a tally that should improve to 10-0 when the Crimson Tide face Duke on Aug. 31 in Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Tide are opening their 2020 and 2021 seasons in neutral-site venues as well before embarking on home-and-home series with Texas (2022-23), West Virginia (2026-27), Notre Dame (2028-29) and Oklahoma (2032-33).
During Tuesday's opening day of the SEC's spring meetings, Saban explained the change in philosophy.
"The exposure that neutral-site games gave our players in the beginning was an integral part in what helped us be successful in building a program," Saban said. "When we did it 12 years ago, nobody else did it. The negative of those things comes from when you look at the fans, and our fans have been fortunate enough to go to neutral-site games at the beginning of the year, the Southeastern Conference championship game and to playoff games.
"It's really kind of hard on your fans, because you're taking a home game away. You've seen our future schedules, and the years that we can't (do home-and-home series), we'll try to fill it in with neutral-site games, but the dynamic of these games has kind of changed for us."
Motivating Tua
Saban reiterated Tuesday that last season did not end in a desired way, and that was reflected by the play of quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.
Tagovailoa was brilliant in the Orange Bowl national semifinal win over Oklahoma, completing 24 of 27 passes for 318 yards and four touchdowns, but that was sandwiched between two mediocre showings. In Alabama's 35-28 escape of Georgia in the SEC title game and the 44-16 loss to Clemson during the title game of the four-team playoff, Tagovailoa was a combined 32-of-59 passing for 459 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions.
"Tua has to challenge himself to get back," Saban said. "Being hurt was an issue at end of the season, so he has to challenge himself to get back into great shape. He has a lot to prove - as we all do - relative to how the season ended."
Mathis update
Georgia football coach Kirby Smart provided an update Tuesday on freshman quarterback D'Wan Mathis, who had surgery late last week to remove a cyst on his brain. Mathis competed with redshirt sophomore Stetson Bennett this spring in an effort to be the primary backup to junior starter Jake Fromm.
"D'Wan is doing great," Smart said. "He began rehab and therapy today. We're expecting a full recovery, and the timeline is the least of our concerns right now."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.