By Cole SullivanShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberBig news emerged for 86-year-old Dick Vitale, a legend in college basketball as both a former coach and longtime ESPN broadcaster.
Vitale has stepped in and out of the spotlight over the past several years while battling health issues. After returning to commentating last year, he has gradually eased back into doing what he loves and back in June signed a contract with ESPN through the 2027–28 season.
While he will continue to call occasional games, a major announcement came on Monday: Vitale will team up with NBA legend and popular basketball personality Charles Barkley to call two games this season.
They will cover a regular-season matchup between Kentucky and Indiana on Dec. 13, and Vitale will finally get the chance to call an NCAA Tournament game in March, teaming with Barkley for one of the First Four games.
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In the wake of the news, Vitale issued a personal statement expressing his excitement to work with Barkley in less than two weeks.
“Are you serious!? I can't wait to join ‘Sir Charles’ for the Indiana-Kentucky game. He’s so shy and introverted, and I hope that Dave O'Brien and I can get him to share some opinions!” Vitale joked. “But seriously, I am so honored and thrilled that Chuck asked me to do a game with him. We’ve both wanted to do this in the past, and I’m thrilled we finally made it happen.”
...Barkley revealed that calling a game with Vitale has been a longtime goal. Over the years, working for different networks, the timing never quite lined up—until now.
“I told these guys one of my goals is to do a game with Dick Vitale,” Barkley said. “I would love to do a game with him because I think he’s been great for college basketball. It’d be good for the game.”
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