In what could have been Will Wade's final game at McNeese State, the Cowboys made program history instead.

Wade, who has reportedly agreed to take the open coaching job at NC State, steered No. 12 seed McNeese State to a 69–67 upset win over No. 5 seed Clemson for the first NCAA tournament win in program history.

The Cowboys only ended up winning by two points—but the game wasn't as close as the box score suggests. McNeese State jumped out to a 31–13 lead at halftime and led by as many as 22 points with seven minutes to play before Clemson caught fire.

But it was too little, too late for the Tigers. McNeese State—led by its soon-to-be departing head coach and viral team manager Amir Khan—is on to the next round.

"We've made school history, man. We've never won a game," Wade said after the game on the truTV broadcast. "We didn't have much history when we got there; we've broken almost every record. I'm just so proud for our guys, for our university, our president, our athletic director. It's incredible. This changes our university."

Wade, clearly elated, went right to the stands to celebrate with McNeese State fans after the win.

Wade arrived at McNeese State in 2023 after taking Louisiana State to the Big Dance in back-to-back years in 2021 and '22. When he walked through the campus doors in Lake Charles, La., for the first time, the Cowboys only had two NCAA tournament appearances to its name—a first-round loss as a No. 16 seed in 1989 and another first-round exit in '02 as a No. 14 seed.

Wade guided McNeese State to the NCAA tournament last year, only to fall to No. 5 seed Gonzaga 86–65. But it was a different story on Thursday afternoon. Even with their coach likely in his final days on campus, McNeese showed up.

"We've been doing it all year. Narrow focus—do what we do," Wade said. "That's what we did."

McNeese State now advances to the Round of 32 where a matchup against No. 4 seed Purdue awaits on Saturday.

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Will Wade Fired Up As McNeese State Pulls Off First Major Upset of March Madness.