Thomas Allen Burke (born October 12, 1976) is a former American college and professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player who was a

defensive end Defensive end (DE) is a defensive position in the sport of gridiron football. This position has designated the players at each end of the defensive line, but changes in formation (American football), formations over the years have substantially ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

(NFL) for four seasons. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

and earned All-American honors. During the 1997-98 season, Burke led all college football with 22 sacks and 31 total tackles for loss while helping Wisconsin to a Rose Bowl victory and #5 overall ranking. He was chosen 83rd overall in the 3rd round of the 1999 draft NFL draft by the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) West division, and play t ...

and played all four years of his NFL career with Arizona.

Early years

Burke was born in

Poplar, Wisconsin Poplar is a village in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 603 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 2, County Road D, and County Road P are the main routes in the community. Geography Poplar is located at (46.582014, -91.7 ...

.Pro-Football-Reference.com, Players
Tom Burke
Retrieved January 28, 2012. He attended Northwestern High School in nearby Maple, Wisconsin,databaseFootball.com, Players

. Retrieved January 28, 2012. and played for the Northwestern Tigers

high school football High school football (french: football au lycée) is gridiron football played by high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular interscholastic sports in both countries, but its popularity is declining, part ...

team, of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA), Heart O' North Conference.

College career

Burke attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison, and played for the

Wisconsin Badgers football The Wisconsin Badgers football program represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the sport of American football. Wisconsin competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the W ...

team from 1995 to 1998. As a senior in 1998, he was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American, Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, first-team All-Big Ten, and received the

Bill Willis Trophy The Touchdown Club of Columbus was founded in Columbus, Ohio, in 1956 by Sam B. Nicola at the request of state auditor James A. Rhodes, who later became governor of the state. Nicola served as the club's president until his death in 1993. More t ...

. He holds the Big Ten record for most sacks in a single season with 22.

Professional career

The Arizona Cardinals selected Burke in the third round (83rd pick overall) of the

1999 NFL Draft The 1999 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 17–18, 1999, at the Theater at M ...

, and he played for the Cardinals from to .National Football League, Historical Players
Tom Burke
Retrieved January 28, 2012. In four NFL seasons, he appeared in 36 games, started 12, and accumulated 49 tackles and 4.5 sacks.

Arrest

On June 15, 2021, Burke was arrested in Wisconsin for allegedly sexually assaulting a seven year old girl in St. Louis County, Minnesota. The report states he performed oral sex on the child on several occasions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Burke, Tom 1976 births Living people All-American college football players American football defensive ends Arizona Cardinals players People from Douglas County, Wisconsin Players of American football from Wisconsin Wisconsin Badgers football players