I bet he talks about Jimmy V at some point in the first 3 seconds of the broadcast.

You think you're mad about Vitale? Here in the local market (Raycom/LF), we get to listen to Billy Packer.

Dear God, why? I don't wish harm on the guy, but he should've just taken this round of illness as a sign to hang 'em up. There shouldn't be any glory in being the biggest jock-sniffer in college announcing history, but people still slobber all over him.

@aboynamedart:

I can take or leave Vitale, but I'd rather listen to him 10 times out of 10 over Packer (Didn't Billy beg to be in one of those DiGiorno pizza commercials?).

Silly question, AA, but is the "20 random tings Vitale says that have nothing to do with basketball" post coming back, too?

*things

I'm not from Jamaica.

Yes, Dickie V can be a bit much (especially if Duke is involved) ... but better someone who's a little too excitable than a curmudgeon like Billy Packer. And his mental wanderings, frequent as they are, make more sense than Musberger's.

He's not the best announcer in the world, but he knows his stuff and gets the job done.

"It's like lingerie on a dead girl"!

Dick Vitale

Over/Murder on the number of times he thanks his doctors -- 12

Stupid ACC regional LF/Raycom Sports package. The ESPN game will be re-aired on ESPN U tomorrow at 5PM Eastern, for those interested.

Damn...I might get that too in which case the open thread is out. You all can help me out in this spot if that's the case.

We shall see.

"Duke loves to penetrate" - Mike Patrick

Off topic....JP Dellacamera and John Harkes in Houston for US/Mexico...so they started it right away.

Vitale doesn't sound good.

Anon, what the heck are you listening to?

"Hansbrough gets penetration" - Mike Patrick

The Duke-NC game on ESPN.

Dukie V sounds the same to me.

"The three pointer is the great equalizer" Mike Patrick as Duke takes the lead 13-12

Hope you're enjoying Dickie V's return, suckers!

Those of us lucky to live in the confines of Tobacco Road don't have to suffer through it.

Instead, we're lucky enough to get Billy Packer.

/shotgun explosion

Here in Raleigh, we got to enjoy the first four-odd minutes of the Raycom game feed without hearing any announcer audio -- no Packer or Brando...in other words, BLISS!

Then they go to commercial, come back and the HD feed has been replaced with standard definition and Billy Packer's second-guessing big mouth. In other words, BUMMER.

"That's what they're (UNC) afraid of, the big mistakes, the bad mistakes" - Mike Patrick


Well....as opposed to all of those good mistakes you make in sports everyday.

What a game. AA, if you get Raycom Sports, can you give us some Billy Packer comments?

"Losing a player like Lawson is like losing a player like Kenny Smith" -- Packer

Mike Patrick just gave out 7 as the over/under on how many times tonight he would correctly pronounce "Rivalry" as in, Rivalry Week.

Now, Patrick mistakenly says UNC was guilty of a 5 second call on an inbounds, when it was clearly a steal by Duke.

Billy is mastering the obvious. Mainly he is pointing out flaws in UNC's point guard woes. Down 9 and turning the ball over, ya think, Billy?

UNC is getting beat by 11 at the 3 minute mark of the 1st half. Roy Williams is sitting on the side line looking like an old guy at the retirement home waiting for someone to come change his diaper and bring him another jello cup.

Hubert Davis makes a cameo.

Mal, Carolina is a very flawed team without Lawson. He's the straw that stirs their drink, and since they've also lost Frasor, they're down to their third level PG. Roy is probably just hoping that the half would end so he can regroup.

Billy really is a great coach, just ask him. He's suggesting strategies to UNC, but has yet to criticize. That usually happens later in the second half.

Vitale spends the last 18 seconds of the half on a rant and he didn't take a breath. The first 16 seconds were expressing his semi-creepy man-crush on Hansbrough. The final 2 seconds on how Duke-UNC is the greatest rivalry in college sports. Classic Dickie V.

Rawfs - Vitale seems to be seriously spot-on in his breakdown of the game without Lawson. Duke is not going to foul Hansbrough and expose their lack of depth, so if UNC can get him the ball he will get a good look at it. UNC finally started doing that down the stretch and closed the gap before the half.

Oooooh, John Edwards sighting on Raycom. Edwards started at Clemson, tried to walk on to the Tigers, failed, got his undergrad at NC State and went to law school at UNC. He's a huge Carolina fan and seems to be capturing camera time ever Carolina home game.

Brando did the exact thing that drives NC State fans crazy when he broke down the ACC standings. "Other than the two teams here in the Triangle, Clemson seems to be playing the best. Virginia Tech had a tough loss to NC State last night to lead the teams with four losses..."

First of all, NC State is in the Triangle. The Wolfpack may not be in the same lofty air as UNC or Duke, but they are very much a part of this town. Secondly, NC State has a higher RPI than VT (who hasn't beaten anyone in the RPI Top 50, much less two ranked teams as NC State has) and NC State led from start to finish on their way to a ten point win. But instead of a "good win for NC State" it's a tough loss for VT.

Sort of like when you notice that the one black guy in a movie is always the first one to die, Wolfpack fans pick this up and it pisses them off every single time.

They showed Edwards at the beginning of the game on ESPN, too.

Patrick: "If I have to say 'rivalry' ten times tonight, I may get it right seven."

Live blog with Dick Vitale and Billy Packer comments coming in over at
hellyesguy.blogspot.com

Names like Dickie V and Magic Johnson should be banned.

Also, the blackout is retarded. I rather listen to Emmitt Smith than listen to this play-by-play. At least, then I would be laughing.

Patrick: Try saying the "deepest diaper dandy class" ten times!

Why is there an ESPN blackout anyway? It's not like they can't sellout the Dean Dome.

Raycom has exclusive broadcast rights here in ACC country, and the game is on local TV. Raycom insists on a blackout.

Afterwards, the game showing the station here in Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill will have the coaches' press conferences, fan reactions, news helicopters of the celebrating students either on Franklin Street or at Duke's campus and the local sports guys will have their takes and all the replays with their floor-level, zoomed-too-close cameras.

It's like two miniature Super Bowls round these parts.

Holy crap - Roy about collapses on the sidelines. Patrick explains it as a bout of vertigo.

Rawfs - I'm sure that arrangement sits well with the World Wide Leader. I'm surprised that the boys in Bristol haven't "found" polaroids of Raycom execs with Holly Rowe or something to convince them to change their contract.

I think Mike Patrick has his 7 out of 10 in reverse on his pronunciation of Rivalry tonight. I think it may be his personal sobriety test. Mike, put down the Jack and Coke and read the promos!

Well, Mike is flustered tonight -- after all, Britney Spears was released from the loony lockup earlier today.

DV: "You called me several times, I really appeciate it"

MP: "Well we love you man".

He then stole Dickie V's Bud Light.

MP: If you're a shooter, you just keep shooting

Vitale has had a pretty good Dickie V. night. But he just went on a rant about Shaq going to the Suns and how that is a bad fit. There was no context to it or segue to anything else. OK, you're right, but...huh?

Dicky V just talked about the Super Bowl & how he picked the Giants to win

28 seconds left and Vitale is unloading all of his comments that he's been unable to share over the last month. He's talked about Memphis, the Super Bowl, Shaq, some anecdote about a UNC recruit, speeding up the end of games, etc.

So was it everything I thought it would be? I had to live through Billy Packer for 2 plus hours. Ugh.

AA - I couldn't take Brando & Packer (two of my most hated and despicable announcers) in the same broadcast. I don't know how you people in ACC country can stand it. Dickie V was sorta tolerable tonight, but that may change with time.

Us folks in ACC Land synch up the XM or internet broadcasts of the radio with TIVO, turn down the TV sound, and actually get some decent (yet oh so Homerish) analyisis from folks who see these teams ALL the time. Or just put up with getting the radio call before you see it on TV. I can honestly say I haven't heard Dookie V or "I Hate Everybody, esp. State and Carolina" Packer in years.

Bill Rozinski is an understated radio play-by-play guy by the way. He's lead on ACC national broadcasts on ISP, and also does the Sunday afternoons on Westwood One after getting dumped by the Panthers a couple of years ago for bitching about not getting and NFC championship ring.

In the last five minutes, how many times did Patrick tell us that Duke can't be pressed? I lost count at around 300.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Duke/NC game last night. Vitale was excited to be back, for sure, but I'll take him 10 times out of 10 over that grumpy curmudgeon Billy Packer.

So did anyone in blackout country pick up on this? Billy Packer said that Wayne Ellington "was the best form shooter the ACC had seen in a long time." Ummm, WTF???? This was before he went 3-14 shooting and I know everyone has bad shooting nights and Ellington is a good shooter but...has Billy gone senile and forgotten that JJ Redick guy already? Man I hate Raycom right now.

Vitale annoys me as much as anyone, but the Shaq trade comments were actually relatable.

Keep in mind this was also in the final moments of the game when it was just free throw/foul time. The game was over.

They were talking about how Coach K had been an assistant on the U.S. National Team with Suns coach D'Antoni and how Duke's style of play this year is clearly a result of that. Duke playing a similar style to Phoenix, who just acquired O'Neal, who doesn't seem to fit that style...it does make sense if you were actually listening to the game.