Syracuse, NY — Quadir Copeland is headed to McNeese State, he told Joe Tipton of on3sports.com on Wednesday. Copeland confirmed the report on his Instagram about him.
Copeland, a 6-foot-6 guard/small forward, played two seasons at Syracuse before heading into the transfer portal after the 2023-24 year.
He will play for Will Wade, the former LSU coach who was fired from that school in 2022 and re-emerged last year at McNeese State, which plays in the Southland Conference.
Wade’s Cowboys finished 30-4 last season and lost to Gonzaga in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. He had been on a meteoric rise as a head coach, moving from Chattanooga to VCU to LSU before an FBI sting and numerous recruiting and bribery reports derailed his career.
He has since resurrected a McNeese team that went 11-23 the year before he arrived in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
Copeland averaged 9.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists his sophomore year. He played mostly at small forward or point guard. At his best, he is an electric player, a versatile scorer, facilitator and rebounder, though he has struggled to shoot from the 3-point line and has committed his share of turnovers.
Syracuse coach Adrian Autry has said publicly that Copeland’s entry into the portal was a mutual decision between him and the school.
With Copeland off to McNeese State, five of Syracuse’s seven transfers have found new programs. Maliq Brown (Duke), Justin Taylor (James Madison), Benny Williams (UCF), Peter Carey (Siena) are also done with school shopping. Mounir Hima and William Patterson remain in the transfer portal.
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