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Dick Vitale admits to falling for April Fools joke regarding health of Johni Broome

IMG_0985by:Griffin McVeigh•04/01/25•

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Johni Broome (Photo by matt Rudolph/Auburn Live)
Johni Broome (Photo by matt Rudolph/Auburn Live)

Earlier Tuesday, ESPN’s Dick Vitale fell for an April Fools joke. A tweet was going around on X regarding the health of Auburn star Johni Broome ahead of the Final Four, saying he could not play against Florida. Vitale fell for it, sending out his own tweet.

A few hours later, Vitale had to admit he was victim to an April Fools joke. Broome playing is, of course, good news for college basketball, as a National Player of the Year candidate should be playing in the Final Four. Vitale is as happy as anyone that the news was not true and Broome will be out there Saturday night.

“Wow they got me – it was an April Fools joke on me,” Vitale said. “- I fell for it – great news for @auburn JOHNI BROOME is NOT hurt – will play !”

April Fools is tough for everyone in the social media era. Getting tricked by certain accounts can occur on any day of the year, let alone the first of April. People then go above and beyond on April Fools to see what type of reactions they can get.

What happened to Vitale can happen to anyone. In fact, plenty of people will have some kind of sports related prank pulled on them Tuesday. Thankfully, this specific one is not serious and while Broome is still dealing with an injury, all signs point him to playing in San Antonio.

Bruce Pearl expects to have Johni Broome for Final Four

“He’s sore. We didn’t practice today, and we’ll practice tomorrow – but Johni won’t practice,” Bruce Pearl told Jeff Goodman of The Field of 68 on Monday. “He’s sore, but I fully expect him to play on Saturday.”

Broome still played 29 minutes in the Elite Eight, finishing with 25 points and 14 rebounds. He sent State Farm Arena into a frenzy with a made three-pointer after coming back onto the court. At the time, Michigan State was making a push but Broome’s shot felt like a dagger.

No matter how the season finishes, Broome is in a two-horse race to win National Player of the Year. Duke’s Cooper Flagg is the other competitor and he will be playing in the Final Four as well. Some might even be hoping they face off against one another in the national championship game.

Auburn will need to have Broome available in order to get there, though. Florida is going to be a tough task for the Tigers, with or without Broome.