The college basketball coaching carousel is already in full spin with the Elite Eight still not even fully wrapped up, as a host of programs across the nation are looking to quickly fill their vacancies in order to get a head start on roster construction for next season.
But in Raleigh, the Wolfpack may be having to wait longer than most when it comes to settling on a new head coach to lead the program.
With rivals North Carolina already conducting a high-level coaching search just down the road, NC State has had to shockingly begin one of its own after Will Wade opted to depart for LSU earlier this week.
The Wolfpack’s head brass were rumored to be heavily pursuing current Saint Louis head coach Josh Schertz, but according to reports from ESPN’s Pete Thamel and Jeff Borzello, Schertrz has withdrawn his name from consideration as of Sunday.
Schertz has been a hot name this coaching cycle for good reason, as after he guided Indiana State to a 32-7 overall record in 2023-2024, the Brooklyn native earned the job in St. Louis.
And after setting the foundation with a 19-15 campaign last year, Schertz’ Billikens were one of the stories of the season in 2025-2026. Saint Louis racked up 29 wins on its way to reaching the second round of the NCAA Tournament as an at-large participant, prompting many to consider Schertz a prime candidate to move up in the coaching ranks.
Now, NC State will have to shift its attention towards other candidates as it continues to deal with the fallout of Wade’s departure.
Who will lead the Wolfpack? Predict the hire on Kalshi!
Parker is currently the sports editor for the Enterprise-Journal in McComb, Mississippi. He's a graduate from Mizzou who has experience covering the Tiger football and basketball beats for SB Nation, and he's worked for a variety of sports news outlets in the past.
