NCAA Basketball: Why every sport should have a Dick Vitale

When you think of college basketball, one of the enduring figures that probably comes to mind is longtime broadcaster and former coach, Dick Vitale.

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There are some who regard Vitale as nothing more than a hoarse bag of hot air who consumes way too much coffee and probably should have been on a course of Ritalin for most of his life. Those detractors – who probably yell louder at Vitale than he does on the air – only see the performer, and haven’t glimpsed into the man who truly is one of the best faces any sport could have.

Yes, Dick Vitale is loud, awkward sounding at times, excitable, and seemingly has no shame for his adoration of certain programs (although generally warranted). When plainly asked his opinion on tournament selections, awards voting, or on issues involving players and coaches, Vitale completely removes whatever filter there might be when in the broadcasting booth, and makes his feelings clearly known.

Love him or hate him, Dick Vitale is a huge asset to college basketball, and every sports league would be lucky to have someone like him in their midst.

If you go beyond the “Awesome, baby” and “Diaper Dandy” catch phrases for which he is famous, Vitale is among the most generous with his time and talents of any national sports personality you will see. When he finds a cause that has personal meaning to him, he works tirelessly to promote it, even to the detriment of his own health at times.

A moderately successful basketball coach, Vitale didn’t even want to begin a broadcasting career. After being fired as coach of the Detroit Pistons in 1979, Vitale wanted to wait for the next coaching opportunity to come around, but at the behest of his wife, took the opportunity to call college basketball for ESPN.

A decision that has now not only made him the voice of a generation for the game, but has also allowed him to bring his larger than life personality to bring betterment to those in need.

Spearheading fundraising activities for the V Foundation for Cancer Research – named after the late Jim Valvano – working with children’s cancer patients, and holding an annual gala to raise funds for pediatric cancer are just some of the things that Vitale does to use his celebrity to bring about change.

But what Dick Vitale brings to college basketball is something that is missing in so many sports and leagues today – pure joy and unabashed love for the game of basketball, and in particular, for college hoops.

When Vitale talks about a player or team in a pregame breakdown, there is no canned analysis (which we get far too often in other sports), just Vitale’s honest to goodness opinion, whether it be good or bad. There is no teleprompter for him to read and get a television audience ready for a game, his genuine excitement prior to each contest is authentic and contagious.

Can you imagine having someone who was as passionate and enthusiastic as Vitale getting us prepared for baseball games, or even calling the games for MLB? An announcer who was actually fired up and in love with the game…seems…unlikely. And that’s a shame.

“I may not always be right, but no one can ever accuse me of not having a genuine love and passion for whatever I do” – Dick Vitale

“All he does is stand there and yell at the camera and say ‘baby’ a lot. That’s not awesome, that’s annoying.” I’ve actually heard that said about Vitale. To me, that’s like saying all John Madden did was stammer at the microphone and say “boom” a lot. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Truthfully, Vitale’s style is an acquired taste, and some never find enjoyment in it. But a style is all it is, and like anything else, it doesn’t necessarily take away from the substance.

Vitale makes watching basketball fun. Is that so bad?

For a guy who didn’t even want go get into broadcasting, he’s done pretty well over the past 35 years. His unorthodox approach to bringing college basketball to television viewers has totaled over 1,000 games called in that span, and has helped create a pop culture icon who is – as they say – often imitated, but never duplicated.

From Vitale’s biographical page on DickVitaleOnline.com, he says, “I’m living the American dream. I learned from my mom and dad, who didn’t have a formal education, but had doctorates of love. They told me that if you gave 110 percent all the time, a lot of beautiful things will happen. I may not always be right, but no one can ever accuse me of not having a genuine love and passion for whatever I do. And ESPN has been grateful enough to recognize this.”

And his effort is always apparent in his preparation for games, as few can come close to not only the general basketball knowledge that Dickie V has, but also the insight he brings about each player taking part in a game. You may not like his method of delivering the information, but nonetheless, he is generally spot-on.

If you want rehearsed, dry and prepackaged analysis, then tune in to just about any game for any sport, and that’s what you’ll most likely get. You’ll still hear cliches and commonly used colloquialisms, but at least Vitale delivers his repeated catch phrases with a little panache.

Dick Vitale may be abrasive and annoying to you, but you should be thankful he’s around to at least give you something to hate. College basketball is lucky to have one of the true good guys in sports today as the face of their sport.

Awesome, Baby! Why every sport should have a Dick Vitale

By Michael Collins | Jul 17, 2014