Tony Vitello describes embrace with father after national championship win: 'He wouldn't stop crying'

Tony Vitello is now a national championship-winning head coach after Tennessee defeated Texas A&M twice in two days to win the 2024 College World Series.

After the win, Vitello’s father, Greg, met his son on the field to congratulate the feat that is over two decades in the making.

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“I felt like I was the dad and he was the kid because he wouldn’t stop crying,” Tony Vitello said on the field after the game. “I had to rub some dirt on him. He was way too tough on me when I was younger. …”

Vitello was cut off by every coach’s favorite tradition — the post-championship gatorade bath.

Still, the embrace between Vitello and his father was one of the most wholesome moments of the entire postgame celebration. After years of chipping away, Greg Vitello’s son is a national champion.

Of course, Vitello couldn’t have done it without the efforts of those on the team that he put together last offseason. The national championship win was the 60th of the season for Tennessee, and it was a team effort all the way through.

“Kids are tough these days, these guys will do whatever you ask them to do. I don’t really know what happened the last pitch, but I know our fans got us through that tough inning. … Incredible group of guys. Team chemistry — Just be a good teammate if you’re listening. If you’re in the SEC, you’re going to be a superstar player but you need to be a good teammate and that’s where these guys were.”

Tennessee ran the NCAA Tournament’s gauntlet, entering Omaha undefeated through the regional and super regional rounds. The Vols wouldn’t lose their momentum until Game 1 of the College World Series against the Aggies. Texas A&M controlled that matchup from the start, leading by as many as seven runs before securing a 9-5 win.

Vitello’s squad’s backs were against the wall from there, facing elimination in both Games 2 and 3. They scored the final four runs of Game 2 to tie the series and never trailed in Game 3 despite allowing four Texas A&M runs across the final two innings to secure the 6-5 win and close out the season hosting the NCAA Championship trophy.

Now, they can head back to Knoxville where the Rocky Top faithful will be waiting to continue the national championship celebration on campus.