
(Dick Vitale in his natural element, yucking it up with Duke fans)
I can't stand Dickie V. Maybe that's part of the appeal to some, but to me he is unimformative, and a distraction to the aesthetics of the game. His unending enthusiasm is his largest drawback in my eyes. He's too busy OOOOOOOOOing and moaning and playing his role to actually break down the game in any meaningful way. I've come to accept that I don't like Dickie V, and I avoid watching games he covers whenever possible. Which brings me to the Illinois v Michigan St. game from earlier this month.
I watched because my roommate is in to MSU, and I am an Illinois Basketball fan from way back. Unfortunately, Dickie V was the color analyst for the game. Dickie V was in fine form, let me tell you. Talking in his barely comprehensible horse croak, moaning after ever drive to the basket, nearly fainting after nearly basket, etc. When Illinois won, beating a top 5 Michigan St. team, the students (who, if you're unfamiliar with Assembly Hall in Champaign-Urbana, stand not 3-feet from the court) rushed the court. This was predictable in my eyes. I like it when a student section rushes after a big home win. It shows energy and engagement from the student body. It also adds to the atmosphere of a big game. More importantly, it's an opportunity for the kids to have good, clean fun. As long as the defeated opponent is significantly better (or higher-ranked) than you are, the students should rush, in my opinion. Dickie V, on the other hand, was not impressed.
He repeatedly slammed the Illinois student body for rushing the court, even calling the act disgraceful. Wow, is Dickie V stupid. I'm sick and tired of old white guys trying to rain on the fun of sports. Vitale repeatedly cited that kids could get hurt, and that it was a danger to the players and officials. Really? Kids rush the court/field at major victories every week. When's the last time you've heard of someone getting hurt during a court/field rush? I imagine, since there are many who share the sentiments of Dickie V (including the SEC who fine schools who allow their kids to rush the court/field), that any such incident would be trumpeted from the hilltops as proof that college-aged kids, properly lubed, are dangerous and deserve to be penned in. His stance is as full-of-it as his schtick is.
I guess my first mistake was watching the game with the volume up, I won't make that mistake with any Dickie V game I decide to watch again. But his presumption that the refs, or the players, should fear for their lives in the face of happy 20-somethings is naive, and reeks of typical "Turn that music down and get off my lawn" old-guy grousing.
It should also be noted that Vitale was later seen, after the ESPN cameras had been turned off, yucking it up on the court with those same Illini fans he found so dangerous moments prior. Yeesh, is that guy lame.
1 comment:
I think they need to do to Dickie V what they did to Dick Clark and just keep him frozen until tournament season, thaw him out for selection Sunday, then freeze him again until next year. Except I would take post-stroke Dick Clark over Dickie V anyday. At least you can understand Dick Clark.
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