by The Cowl Editor on October 7, 2017
Friar Sports
by Eileen Flynn ’20
sports staff
There are few things that Providence College students enjoy more than bragging about successful alumni. Students are filled with pride thinking about the adults who had the same professors and sat in the same cafeteria, and are now achieving incredible things in the real world.
Not only do they act as an inspiration for students to study harder, but alumni success stories help contribute to the life-long connection that comes with being a part of the Friar Family.
Doris Burke ’87 is one name that students have been increasingly mentioning on campus over the past couple of days.
Doris Burke has been a prominent basketball analysist since 1990, but within the past week, Burke was promoted as a regular ESPN NBA game analyst. This accomplishment makes her the first woman in history to be assigned to cover a full NBA season.
Burke moved to Providence College in 1983 as a recruited freshman. Burke excelled on the court and by the end of her senior year, she held countless records. She was the College’s female athlete of the year in 1987 and left the team as an all-time leader in assists.
Her talents would later make her the fifth woman to be inducted in to the Providence College Hall of Fame. Burke received her degree in health service administration/social work as an undergraduate and then later recieved her master’s degree in education.
Her Providence College education gave Burke the skills she needed to continue to be involved with the sport she loved, even after she was forced to hang up her black and white jersey.
Burke jumped into the reporting world quickly after graduation. She began as a broadcast journalist in 1990 which led her to join ESPN and ABC networks in 1991. In 1996 she was back within the familiar Big East atmosphere, but this time, on the sidelines and analyzing the teams playing.
Burke continued to positively impact the sports world with her basketball intuition. She recieved the Rudy Award for Best New Face in Sports Television in 2003.
Burke has been seen most recently as lead ESPN NBA sideline reporter in the important games, including the most popular NBA finals. This past year, Burke was the recipient of the 2017 WISE Women of the Year award.
Students continue to be amazed and inspired by this Providence College alum and the career she has built for herself.
Oct. 8 will mark the first day for Burke as a full-time ESPN NBA game analysts. Burke is returning to campus for Providence College’s Late Night Madness event. There is no doubt the cheers will be resounding as one of PC’s most renowned alumni once again takes the court.