Bill Armstrong, a proven winner and former associate head coach with Will Wade at LSU, has been named the next leader of the McNeese Basketball program. McNeese’s Vice President and Director of Athletics Heath Schroyer broke the news on Tuesday.
Armstrong will become the program’s 13th head coach and replace Wade, who was named officially the head coach at North Carolina State on Tuesday.
An introductory press conference for coach Armstrong will be held on Wednesday at noon in the Legacy Center arena. Fans and supporters are invited to attend.
“I’m thrilled to have Bill Armstrong take over the reins of our men’s basketball program,” said Schroyer. “We’ve built a successful model over the last two years and Bill fully understands that model and embraces the championship expectations we have at McNeese. Bill is a coach I’ve known for years. He’s a grinder who’s relentless in his approach and exactly what we need at this time. Poke Nation, we’re just getting started and this next chapter is going to be great.”
Said McNeese great and Hall of Famer Joe Dumars: “I really love this hire. Bill Armstrong understands the model that has brought so much success to McNeese, and I look forward to him building on that model going forward.
“Heath has done an incredible job at McNeese,” said Dumars. “He has built the model for success in college basketball today. We’re incredibly lucky to have him leading the way.”
A veteran in the coaching ranks at the Division 1 level, including 17 seasons in the SEC, Armstrong spent the 2024-25 season at Baylor with head coach Scott Drew and helped lead the Bears to the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.
Before he arrived in Waco, Armstrong spent two seasons as the head coach at Link Academy in Branson, Mo., where he coached several notable prospects, including BU’s Ja’Kobe Walter. In his time leading the Lions, the program was perennially in the top 10 and made it to the Chipotle High School Basketball Nationals, formerly the GEICO Nationals, in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
Led by Armstrong and spurred by Walter, the 2022-23 Lions captured the national championship and finished the season as the No. 1-ranked team in the country. This past season, Link made it to the semifinals of the eight-team national finals before being upended by Paul VI High School in the semifinals.
Before his tenure at Link, Armstrong served as the associate head coach at LSU from 2020-22 after spending three years in Baton Rouge as an assistant coach from 2017-20. During his time with the Bayou Bengals, LSU made four postseason appearances, including three NCAA tournaments, highlighted by a run to the Sweet 16 in 2019.
Outside of scouting upcoming opponents and on-floor coaching duties, Armstrong was heavily involved in LSU’s recruiting efforts and helped LSU come up with a No. 4 ranked national recruiting class for the 2018-19 season that included Javonte Smart, Marlon Taylor, Emmitt Williams, and Darius Days. The 2020 class included freshman All-Americans Thomas, Mwani Wilkinson, and Eric Gaines.
Armstrong was also involved in the recruiting of another stellar class for the 2021-22 season in five-star center Efton Reid and four-star guard Brandon Murry, along with Jerrell Colbert and Alex Fudge. The Tigers also used the transfer portal to bring in proven players like Eason, Xavier Pinson, and Adam Miller.
Going beyond his LSU days, Armstrong spent 11 years on staff at Ole Miss, the first five as the director of operations and the final six as an assistant coach. In that time, the Rebels won 20 games nine times, earned eight postseason berths, and won a pair of SEC West titles. He helped tutor All-SEC players like Stefan Moody, Marshall Henderson, and Sebastian Saiz. During 2012-13, Armstrong aided in the Rebels tying a school record with 27 wins and snapped an 11-year NCAA Tournament drought, while Henderson earned SEC Player of the Year Honors.
“I couldn’t be happier for McNeese or the SWLA community,” said Will Wade. “They’re getting a great coach in Bill Armstrong. I worked with Bill for six years at LSU, and he’ll be a great fit at McNeese. Bill and I share the same philosophy: he’s a relentless recruiter, a tireless worker, and he pays attention to the important details. The players are going to love playing for him, and I have no doubt he will build on the success of the past two years.”
Before he arrived in Oxford, Armstrong spent three years as an assistant coach at Birmingham-Southern. In his first season with the Panthers in 2003-04 – BSC’s first season of full NCAA eligibility – Armstrong helped the team to a 20-7 record and a 12-4 mark in conference play, earning a share of the Big South regular-season championship. Birmingham-Southern posted a 19-9 finish in his final year.
A Birmingham native, Armstrong joined the BSC staff after serving as an assistant at Chipola Junior College in Marianna, Fla., where he helped lead the Indians to a 23-9 record and a second-place finish in the Panhandle Conference in 2002-03.
Before his stint at Chipola, Armstrong was a graduate assistant for UAB during the 2001-02 campaign under Murry Bartow. Armstrong graduated from UAB in 2001 with a degree in justice sciences. He was also the recipient of the Barbara Hallerman Scholarship for Leadership.
A four-year letterman at UAB from 1998-2001, Armstrong played under Andy Kennedy, who was then an assistant coach with the Blazers who later hired Armstrong at Ole Miss. He served as team captain as a senior and helped the Blazers reach the NCAA Tournament in 1999 and the NIT in 1998.
Armstrong was a three-year letter winner for his father, Jimmy, at Oneonta (Alabama) High School where he was Academic All-State, Class 2A All-State, averaging 19.7 points and 7.8 assists per game as a senior. His team won the Area 11 championship for two consecutive seasons (1995-96) and reached the Alabama Class 2A Sweet 16 both years.
The Armstrong File
Birthdate: November 28, 1977
Wife: Kenna
Children: Ella Michele, Sara McKay, Amelia Grace, James Walton (Bo), Ford
Hometown: Birmingham, Alabama
High School: Oneonta High School
College: UAB, 2001
College Coaching Experience
2001-02: Graduate Assistant, UAB
2002-03: Assistant Coach, Chipola JC
2003-06: Assistant Coach, Birmingham-Southern
2006-11: Coordinator Operations, Ole Miss
2012-17: Assistant Coach, Ole Miss
2017-20: Assistant Coach, LSU
2020-22: Associate Head Coach, LSU
2024-25: Assistant Coach, Baylor
2025-: Head Coach, McNeese
