Dick Vitale
Dick Vitale (born June 9, 1939)
Teams coached: Detroit Mercy Titans, Detroit Pistons
Detroit Mercy record: 79-29 (.731)
Overall record^: 79-29 (.731)
Career Accomplishments:
- NCAA National Championships: 0
- NCAA Tournament Appearances: 1 (1977)
- NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen: 1 (1977)
- NCAA Tournament Final Four: 0
- NIT Championships: 0
- NIT Appearances: 0
Awards:
- Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (inducted 2008)
- National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (inducted 2008)
Coaching Career (head coach, unless noted):
| 1978-1979 | Detroit Pistons |
| 1973-1977 | Detroit Mercy |
| 1971-1973 | Rutgers (asst) |
Dick Vitale Facts
- Richard John Vitale
- Born June 9, 1939
- Hometown: Garfield, New Jersey
- Alma Mater: Seton Hall University (BS, 1963) / Paterson State University (M.Ed)
- The NJ-native was born in Passaic, grew up in Garfield and graduated from East Rutherford HS; attended Seton Hall, graduating in 1963
- Started out coaching at an elementary school in Garfield, NJ, and later moved up to be the head boys’ coach at Garfield HS for one year (1963-64)
- Returned to his alma mater East Rutherford in 1964 and spent seven years as head coach there, going 131-47 overall and winning two state championships
- Hired by Richard Lloyd in 1971 to be an assistant coach at Rutgers, serving in that capacity for two seasons
- Became the head coach at Detroit Mercy in 1973, leading the Titans to a 79-29 record over four seasons at the helm
- Finished above .500 each year and in 1977, led UDM to the NCAA Tournament and reached the Sweet Sixteen
- Stopped coaching after that season to become the athletic director, succeeding Bob Calihan who had hired him as coach
- Left UDM to be the head coach of the Detroit Pistons in the NBA; went 32-50 in his lone full season at the helm (1978-79) and then after starting the 1979-80 season 4-8, he was fired by the organization
- Vitale would soon transition to television broadcasting, taking a job with then-fledgling ESPN – at the time thinking of it as a temporary move
- Vitale called ESPN’s first ever college basketball broadcast in December 1979 (DePaul v Wisconsin) and has been working for the network ever since
- He has become an icon in college basketball, for his enthusiasm and charisma on the air and his catchphrases that have helped the sport gain and maintain popularity over the years (such as “diaper dandy” and “it’s awesome, baby!”)
- An incredibly recognizable and marketablee personality, Vitale has appeared in films, commercials and had his own video game (Dick Vitale’s “Awesome, Baby!” College Hoops, 1994); he has also written more than a dozen books
- Vitale is also well-known for his charity work, notably with ESPN and the V Foundation in honor of his close friend Jim Valvano
- Vitale himself has battled cancer on two occasions, but after treatment (as of April 2023) is cancer-free
Dick Vitale Coaching Tree
- John Shumate (Phoenix Mercury, SMU, Grand Canyon)
- Terry Tyler (Eastern New Mexico)
^ overall record includes head coaching positions at the NCAA Division I level only
