The Texas Longhorns finished the regular season with a 9-9 SEC and 18-14 overall record to barely squeeze into the 68-team NCAA Tournament field. After a limp finish to the SEC season that included 4 losses in their last 5 games and a conference tournament loss to the Ole Miss Rebels, the Longhorns were designated as a No. 11 seed.
Coach Sean Miller’s team will face off against the No. 11-seeded NC State Wolfpack in the First Four at UD Arena, Dayton.
Why Dick Vitale and Charles Barkley Will Call the Texas Longhorns’ Game
During the Longhorns’ First Four game against the NC State Wolfpack, there will be an unusual trio calling the game. ESPN sportscaster Dick Vitale will team up with NBA legend Charles Barkley and Brian Anderson on the play-by-play.
The partnership between Vitale and Barkley is unusual because the latter is a studio analyst for TNT Sports, while the former, who has been a longtime ESPN broadcaster, is not involved in the men’s tournament at this time of year.
During an interview with the Associated Press, Vitale further clarified his willingness to call a game with Barkley. “This is happening because he worked a game on ESPN. Now I’m doing back the favor and giving them a game on their network,” Vitale said.
The trio calling the Longhorns versus Wolfpack game will relinquish their duties after the game, with Jordan Kent and Jim Spanarkel calling the rest of the First Four games. Jenny Dell will be the sideline reporter for all First Four games.
MARCH MADNESS: Fill In Your Bracket Now!
Vitale is a legend in the sports broadcasting world and has been an employee of ESPN for his whole career. Despite being a studio analyst for the network before CBS started covering the Big Dance and calling some of the most memorable college basketball games, Vitale has never called a March Madness game.
The legendary sportscaster revealed that CBS Sports had offered him the chance to call an NCAA Tournament game before and detailed why he never accepted the offer.
“I had been offered chances in the last few years,” Vitale said. “Sean McManus would call and say, ‘You shouldn’t end your career without doing an NCAA game, and we’ll let you do it on CBS.’ I appreciated it so much, but I told him the one thing I wanted on my resume was that I worked my entire career at ESPN. He was surprised but said he respected that.”
Vitale, who has been enshrined in the College Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, has suffered health problems in the past few years that have prevented him from calling games.
