Hall of Fame broadcaster Dick Vitale will make his return to TV on Saturday for the first time since 2023 from Clemson, South Carolina, to call the Tigers’ home game as they welcome No. 2 Duke to town. Vitale has been on a nearly two-year long hiatus from television as he’s battled four different types of cancer in the last four years. He was scheduled to be back on TV last month but suffered an accident at his home that further delayed his return.
The Duke-Clemson game is scheduled to tip at 6 p.m. ET with the Blue Devils, who play Syracuse on Wednesday, potentially entering the game on a 16-game winning streak. Clemson’s been riding a heater of late as well with wins in nine of its last 10 games leading into Tuesday night’s home game vs. Georgia Tech.
Vitale announced on Jan. 8 that he is cancer free after undergoing five major vocal cord surgeries, 65 radiation treatments and six months of chemotherapy. He most recently underwent surgery in the summer of 2024 after a biopsy of a lymph node in his neck showed cancer.
His return will come 22 months after his last assignment with ESPN when he was on the international broadcast of the UConn vs. San Diego State national title game on April 3, 2023.
Vitale has been with ESPN since the 1979-80 season and called more than 1,000 games over the course of his illustrious career. His career accomplishments include enshrinement to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the College Basketball Hall of Fame, and he has been instrumental in raising tens of millions of dollars over the years for pediatric cancer research through the V Foundation.
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