Vitale will comeback after a home accident kept that from happening a few weeks ago.
Legendary college basketball broadcaster Dick Vitale was supposed to make his return to the air when the Duke Blue Devils (19-2, 11-0 ACC) took on the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (16-6, 8-3 ACC) in Winstom-Salem on January 25th.
Duke ended up winning that game 63-56, but Vitale had to put his return on hold after an accident at home.
It has now been reported that Vitale will make his new comeback and it will still be for a Blue Devils basketball game.
Vitale will now return to the headset when the Blue Devils travel to take on the Clemson Tigers (18-4, 10-1 ACC) on February 8th (6:00pm ET, ESPN).
The broadcasting great will make his return after almost two years for a heavweight ACC bout, as Duke is currently riding a 15-game winning streak and is ranked the #2 team in the nation according to the Associated Press poll.
The Tigers are on the outside of the AP poll looking in, but have won 9 of their last 10 games and 7 of those games by double digits.
Vitale has dealt with four different types of cancers over the last several years and underwent surgery in summer of 2024. He was declared cancer-free on January 8th and was originally expected to get on the air shortly after.
But, an accident at home kept him from doing so.
“I’m sorry to have to share the disappointing news that I won’t be able to call the Duke-Wake Forest game next weekend,” Vitale said after the incident. “Unrelated to any of my cancer scares, I had an accident at my home in Florida, and that has created some new health challenges and near-term physical limitations for me. I’m devastated that I won’t be courtside with my ESPN buddy Dave O’Brien and with all the players and fans, especially because of the overwhelming response I received when news of my planned return was announced. I was anxiously awaiting the chance to feel the excitement and energy of a college basketball environment for the first time in nearly two years.”
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