Tag: Dick Vitale

Dick Vitale teared up as Kansas and Indiana fans gave him an emotional standing ovation

Welcome back, Dickie V!

Basketball fans gave longtime broadcaster Dick Vitale a heartwarming welcome back to Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday.

As the Kansas Jayhawks took on the Indiana Hoosiers — Kansas won, 84-62 — Vitale got a standing ovation from the crowd as he returned to commentate games after undergoing cancer treatments earlier this year.

The long ovation got to Vitale, who shed some tears and sounded very grateful when reflecting on the moment during the broadcast.

“Dickie V” has always been one of the easiest people to root for in the college basketball world. It was great to see the Allen Fieldhouse crowd give Vitale his flowers in such a loving way after he’s had such a tough year.

It’s hard to watch that clip and not feel a great deal of appreciation that Vitale is back on the sidelines calling games.

The college basketball world just isn’t the same without him, and the fans at Saturday’s game found the perfect way to welcome the longtime broadcaster back to where he belongs.

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Twitter reacts to Michael Mayer’s touchdown to get Notre Dame on board

This kid is something special.

[autotag]Michael Mayer[/autotag] is going to be a valuable asset for somebody in the NFL. As this season has gone on, people have had no choice but to notice him. Of course, whether he has success at the next level depends on whether he has the right scheme, the right coach, the right breaks and all kinds of things. Teams definitely will want to look at this 22-yard touchdown reception, which allowed Notre Dame to cut USC’s lead to 10-7 in the second quarter:

Yes, the microphone picked up Mayer shouting some NSFW language, but that’s to be expected when you’ve just made a big play against your biggest rival. The Irish will benefit from Mayer in this game and possibly whatever bowl they end up getting. After that, another team will learn one way or another just how special a player it has come into. If you don’t believe that, check out these tweets from both within and outside the Irish fan base:

Twitter reacts to Braden Lenzy’s incredible touchdown catch

Did you see this?!

Just when [autotag]Braden Lenzy[/autotag] seemed forgotten this season, he emerged as a key figure in the first quarter of Notre Dame’s game against Navy. Through two offensive possessions for the Irish, Lenzy was leading all receivers with four catches for 67 yards. One reception came on the first drive for 21 yards. Another was made possible by a 38-yard pass from [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag], and it was, well, just look at it:

This catch that you only see a few times a season at most throughout college football gave the Irish a 14-0 lead. Even a few of the sailors in attendance had to look at each other in disbelief. You know you’ve done something special when the opposing fans have no choice but to give you credit for what they just saw. Twitter couldn’t believe what had happened either, and you’ll see it from these folks, many of whom undoubtedly still haven’t picked their jaws off the floor:

How Twitter reacted to Notre Dame-Clemson: Irish side

You’re happy, right?

It had been 40 years since an unranked Notre Dame team last defeated a top-five team. That came when the 1982 Irish upset Dan Marino and top-ranked Pittsburgh. Clemson wasn’t the top-ranked team entering Notre Dame Stadium in 2022, but the final outcome was no less impressive. The Irish beat the Tigers, 35-14, almost two years to the day of them beating this same program in the same location.

Irish fans in South Bend and beyond will be celebrating this one for a long time. If a national championship wasn’t in the cards, this was the next best thing. All reservations about [autotag]Marcus Freeman[/autotag] have gone out the window, at least for the moment. There no longer appears to be a limit on the possibilities with him at the helm in the years to come.

Here are some of the best reactions to the big win on Twitter, many of which came from program alumni:

Twitter reacts to Notre Dame’s Isaiah Foskey blocking two punts

How did he do this?!

[autotag]Isaiah Foskey[/autotag] entered Notre Dame’s game against UNLV as his team’s leader in sacks and co-leader in tackles for loss. Everyone already knew how important he was to the defense. Now, you can start talking about him as equally menacing on special teams. The Rebels were forced to punt on back-to-back first-quarter possessions, and Foskey gave punter Marshall Nichols a couple of images he undoubtedly will be thinking about for weeks.

First, this:

And then, this:

Both possessions set the Irish’s offense up nicely, and the Irish were able to double their scoring output for the game. First, [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag] hit [autotag]Michael Mayer[/autotag] for a 20-yard touchdown. Mayer appeared to catch another touchdown pass after the next blocked punt, but replay review ruled that he didn’t hold on. [autotag]Blake Grupe[/autotag] salvaged the drive with a 27-yard field goal.

Irish fans took to Twitter to talk about Foskey’s role in the team blowing the game open:

Twitter reacts to Michael Mayer scoring Notre Dame’s first touchdown

Is this dude good or what?

Everyone knew going into the season that [autotag]Michael Mayer[/autotag] was the one Notre Dame offensive skills player you couldn’t sleep on. To this point, Mayer mostly has lived up to that reputation. However, he has been announcing his presence early and often in the first half against BYU. He had one big catch on third down, and he ended that drive by doing this:

As you can see from the tweet, that touchdown did more than only give the Irish the lead. That tight end receptions record previously was held by [autotag]Tyler Eifert[/autotag]. It’s probable Eifert knew his record was in danger for some time now, but records are made to be broken.

Irish fans and scribes undoubtedly remember Eifert well, but Mayer is in the here and now, and some of them took to Twitter to express their appreciation for this special kid. Here are a few of the things they had to say:

Watch: Dick Vitale, a basketball legend and former Rutgers assistant, gives moving speech at the ESPYS

Dick Vitale has an emotional speech at the ESPYS.

Former Rutgers basketball assistant Dick Vitale was among the most poignant moments in Thursday night’s ESPYS awards. The famed voice of college basketball was honored by the worldwide leader in sports for his contributions to the game, both on and off the court.

Vitale was presented with the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance. Vitale has been battling lymphoma over the past year.

In April, Vitale declared that he is cancer-free.

Perhaps few, if any, have left the kind of mark on college basketball as Vitale. As a head coach, he took lowly Detroit to the NCAA Tournament and a run to the Sweet 16 in the 1976-77 season before becoming a head coach in the NBA. As an analyst, his voice has been the quintessential sound of college basketball, bounding with exuberance.

Vitale was a perfect voice for ESPN when he joined the network in 1979. He had the ability to break down games and analyze while adding a genuine energy to the the sport.

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His calls helped turn college basketball from a regional sport into one of the big movers and shakers in the present sports world.

Wednesday’s honor was moving for Vitale. The award’s namesake, Jim Valvano, was a longtime friend of Vitale. In 1993, Valvano passed away from cancer, leaving behind an impressive legacy in the V Foundation, which has raised millions for cancer research.

In 1971, Vitale was named as an assistant Rutgers where he spent two seasons before taking over what was a very successful tenure coaching Detroit in the college ranks.

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He was also an assistant coach in New Jersey prior to his time at Rutgers. Valvano got his start as an assistant coach in Garfield before becoming a head coach at East Rutherford.

Vitale has been a vocal fan of Rutgers and the rebuilding job done by Steve Pikiell over the past two years.

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