Fans at Clemson Shower Dick Vitale with Love in return

Dickie v is back, honey!

And fans at Clemson showed him how much he was missed while fighting for cancer.

Vitale returned to broadcast for the first time in almost two years to Saturday night Duke-Clemson Matchup at ESPN and received a long ovation from fans, coaches and players at Littlejohn Coliseum at Tipoff.

“Tonight we celebrate the return of a real legend,” said Clemson’s advertiser in Arena, applause from fans who build with his every word. “For over four decades, his passion, energy and unmistakable voice have defined the game we love. After a two-year battle with cancer, he is back where he belongs. Court, calls the action and inspires us all.

“Welcome back to College Basketball, ACC and Clemson, the only dick vital.”

Vital, clearly overcome by emotions, waved back to the crowd in response.

“I want to say thank you to all people,” Vitale said later in the game. “The reception here has really been out of the charts. I’m sorry to be so emotional. I can’t tell you how excited I am over being here. … this is like my super bowl. To be able to Sit court and make a game, it beats hell out of chemotherapy and radiation.

“And I will say to all cancer patients out there: Please think positively and have faith. And keep fighting and fighting.”

game

Emotional dickie v by his return: this is my super bowl

Dick Vitale becomes emotional over his first game back, which advertises after four matches with melanoma, lymphoma, vocal cords and lymph node -cancer forms.

The 85-year-old vital announced he was cancer-free on January 8.

He had fought for four different types of cancer for the past 3½ years. Most recently, he underwent operation in the summer of 2024, after a biopsy of a lymph node in his throat showed cancer.

Vital’s last game assignment was April 3, 2023, when he called the international broadcast of San Diego State vs. Uconn National Championship Game for ESPN.

His return to calling games had been postponed due to an accident at home. He was previously set to call Duke-Wake Forest Game on January 25, which would have been his first time on the air since 2023, but he announced he had been hospitalized after a fall in his Florida home.

Vitale joined ESPN in the 1979-80 season, just after ESPN’s launch, and called the network’s first big NCAA basketball match on December 5, 1979. He has continued to call well over 1,000 games, and in September 2024 he was introduced in in Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame.