In the world of college athletics, it’s common for athletes to leave school early for dreams of professional sports. It’s not often you seem former athletes earning doctorate degrees. But former Raider Drew Burleson is an exception.
One of the stars of the Wright State men’s basketball team from 2003-07, Burleson was a member of the 2007 squad that won the conference championship over Butler. Now, he’s at another Horizon League school—Loyola (Chicago)—completing his residency.
Burleson graduated from WSU with a degree in communications in 2007. But when he began taking medical classes his junior year, he realized he wanted to get into medicine. NCAA eligibility rules require athletes to be continually working towards a degree, so Burleson couldn’t switch majors late in his college career or he would’ve lost his eligibility.
Burleson graduated from the Wright State School of Medicine this past year, and is in his first of five years of residency. His goal is to be an orthopedic surgeon and he hopes to go into sports medicine after the completion of his residency.
“A lot of the WSU doctors inspired me to go that way (towards medicine),” Burleson said.
Burleson now lives in the third most populous city in the United States (Chicago) after growing up in Wheelersburg, OH, a small town along the Ohio River with a population around 6,400 people.
“Small towns are nice because you have that community atmosphere,” Burleson said. “And in Chicago, you have everything you need and there’s always something to do. However, the traffic is better in Wheelersburg.”
Burleson was recruited by former WSU head coach Ed Schilling, who was eventually replaced by Paul Biancardi. Burleson thought WSU was building a good program when he committed, and they proved him right with a conference championship and an NCAA Tournament berth his senior season.
“I liked the conference and the cities we would get to play in,” Burleson said of his commitment. “They had a good group of guys coming back and I thought they were building a good program.”
Burleson’s favorite moment during his playing days at WSU was the 2007 Horizon League Tournament victory, which set up a meeting with Pittsburgh in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The competitive days of basketball are over for Burleson, but the bond he shared with his teammates is something he’ll always cherish.
“Having a group of guys that you’re going through something like that together with is something I’ll really miss,” Burleson said. “You battle together with them every single day and that’s hard to find outside of basketball.”
