Coach Kevin Keatts is Fired

Last Updated on April 3, 2025

In a surprising turn of events, NC State parted ways with head basketball coach Kevin Keatts after a tumultuous 12-19 season, despite his success just one year earlier. Keatts had led the Wolfpack to an unforgettable Cinderella run to the Final Four, marking the team’s first appearance since 1983, and helping to lift them to new heights in college basketball. However, the 2024-2025 season saw a stark contrast, with the Wolfpack finishing a disappointing 5-15 in the ACC and failing to qualify for the conference tournament. The team’s inability to find consistency and build on their previous success ultimately led to the decision to fire Keatts, despite his achievements during his tenure.

As the Wolfpack now enter a new era, speculation about the next head coach will inevitably dominate the discussion. The challenge of maintaining a high level of competitiveness in the ACC, combined with the increasing financial stakes in college basketball, means that the program’s future could hinge on securing a coach capable of delivering consistent success. Whatever comes next, bettors are looking ahead to the next season and are beginning to make their college basketball picks, while the uncertainty surrounding the coaching change will likely play a role in shaping their predictions for the Wolfpack’s performance in future tournaments.

Keatts took over the program in 2017, at a time when the Wolfpack were dealing with the fallout of a major NCAA investigation into the previous staff’s activities. Despite the challenges, Keatts managed to navigate the program through a series of penalties and sanctions, guiding them to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances. Under his leadership, NC State also secured its first ACC Championship in 37 years and made a Wolfpacks’s historic trip to the Final Four. These milestones made the 2023-2024 season all the more remarkable, as the Wolfpack, under Keatts’ guidance, looked poised for sustained success.

However, this past season marked a stark departure from that momentum. NC State ended the regular season on a four-game losing streak and entered the ACC tournament as the No. 10 seed. Overall, the Wolfpacks may have hit a bump in their basketball situation, but they are still among some of the teams that can go the furthest in this college football season. While the team showed resilience by making a surprising run to win the conference tournament, it wasn’t enough to propel them into the NCAA Tournament or avoid the disappointing outcome of a losing season. Despite Keatts’ previous success and the program’s accomplishments under his watch, the inability to repeat the magic of the previous year led to the decision to move on from the veteran coach.

Keatts, who served as the head coach for eight seasons, finished his tenure with a 151-113 overall record and a 69-84 mark in conference play. While the program made significant strides under his leadership, including winning the 2024 ACC Tournament and the memorable Final Four appearance, the struggles of the 2024-2025 season were too much to overlook. NC State athletic director Boo Corrigan expressed gratitude for Keatts’ contributions and acknowledged his place in Wolfpack history, particularly for the achievements of the 2023-2024 squad.

While Keatts’ departure may be a tough pill to swallow for many NC State fans, it marks the beginning of a new chapter for the program, one that will require both the athletic department and the fan base to rally behind the next head coach and continue striving for the success that Keatts’ tenure helped to ignite.