Thomas Allen Burke (born October 12, 1976) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

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 ...

for four seasons with 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) NFC West, West division. The ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Wisconsin Badgers The Wisconsin Badgers are the College athletics in the United States, athletic teams representing the University of Wisconsin–Madison. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I ...

, earning

unanimous All-American The College Football All-America Team is an honorific college football all-star team compiled after each NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) season to recognize that season's most outstanding performers at their respective positions. ...

honors in 1998. During the 1997–1998 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 in the third round 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 ...

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

Early life

Burke was born in

Poplar, Wisconsin Poplar is a village in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 629 at the 2020 census up from 603 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 2, County Road D, and County Road P are the main routes in the community. Geography Popla ...

.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, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

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 Bi ...

team from 1995 to 1998. As a senior in 1998, he was recognized as a unanimous 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 ...

. 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

, 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. On January 29, 2024, a Duluth, Minnesota jury acquitted Burke of the charges.

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