Christian Shumate removes name from transfer portal, returns to McNeese

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - In a Twitter Space with KPLC 7 Sports Director Matthew Travis on Tuesday afternoon, McNeese forward Christian Shumate, who entered the transfer portal on March 20th, announced he has removed his name from the transfer portal, and will instead be returning to McNeese for the 2023-24 season.

The move is a big one for McNeese, who lacked size on a roster made up primarily of guards, but it’s also a big move due to the fact that Shumate led McNeese in points, rebounds, and blocks during the 2022-23 season.

“After being in the portal and weighing my options, I talked with Coach (Will) Wade and ultimately decided the best option for myself was to return to McNeese... I’m really excited, I think we have a lot of potential to be good, and especially with the players we added out of the portal, yeah I think we can be really good,” said Shumate.

With the announcement Tuesday, here is what McNeese’s roster for 2023-24 looks like as of April 25th:

• F: Christian Shumate
• F: Ty McMillan
• PG: Trae English
• F: Roberts Berze
• F: Dionjahe Thomas
• PG: Wesley Fields
• F: Zach Blackwell
• G: DJ Richards
  • Transfer from UTSA
• G: Javohn Garcia
  • Transfer from College of the Sequoias
• G: Zach Harvey
  • Transfer from UC Santa Barbara
• F: CJ Felder
  • Transfer from Florida
• G: Mike Saunders Jr.
  • Transfer from Utah
• G: Shahada Wells
  • Transfer from TCU

Shumate was the first Cowboy to enter his name into the transfer portal following the announcement that McNeese had fired head coach John Aiken, and hired former LSU head coach Will Wade. The announcement that Shumate would be entering his name into the transfer portal came just days after he set the Southland Conference Tournament record for rebounds when he grabbed 41 rebounds, breaking the 33-year-old tournament record of 35 rebounds set by North Texas’ Ronnie Morgan back in 1990. In three games he averaged an impressive 26.7 points, 13.7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 block, and 1 steal per game as he helped McNeese to the semi-finals for the first time since 2012, and because of it, he was named to the All-Southland Conference Tournament team as well, the only McNeese player to receive the honor.

In two seasons with the McNeese Cowboys after transferring from Tulsa, Shumate averaged an impressive 13.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, 1 assist, 0.8 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game, and will return to a McNeese team that will likely be picked to win the Southland Conference in Will Wade’s first season in Lake Charles.

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