If you are a Hokie fan, you very likely know Mike Burnop Virginia Tech color commentator of the football and basketball teams. But did you know that he is also an alumnus, a former player, a local business owner, a local resident, and a Tech fan?
A Southwest Virginia native, Burnop grew up in Salem. After attending Roanoke Catholic high school, he decided to follow his brother to Blacksburg and continue his educational and athletic career at Virginia Tech. “It was close to home, my parents could see me, and it was just the best fit,” Burnop said of his decision to become a Hokie.
Burnop was a Hokie tight end from 1970 to 1972 (freshmen were not allowed to play back then – they had their own team). With Don Strock as his quarterback, Burnop set the record for receptions for tight end with 46 in 1971, a record that stood until 2016. Those 46 catches were 6th most for all NCAA receivers of independent teams and tied for 14th in the nation. His 558 receiving yards led Virginia Tech that same year, and he totaled 90 receptions in his career, with most of them (80) during his junior and senior seasons. With a career of such achievement, it is no wonder that Burnop was elected to the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.
(Author’s note: Bucky Hodges broke Burnop’s single season mark for receptions by a tight end with 48 catches in 2016. However, Hodges was a hybrid tight end, always lining up off the line of scrimmage, so it is arguable that he was more of a split receiver than a tight end. Plus, Hodges amassed his total over 14 games while Burnop caught his passes in only 11 games. Burnop still has the most receptions for a traditional hand-in-the-dirt tight end.)
After some time in the World Football League and a few NFL training camps, Burnop returned to Southwest Virginia and completed his master’s degree at Tech. It was then that he connected with former Tech running back George Constantinides and they went into business together, opening the New River Office Supply in Blacksburg in 1979.
After a few years, Constantinides moved to the eastern edge of the state to work with his family’s properties and Burnop took over sole ownership of the business. He still owns and operates it today. Just a few years ago, New River Office Supplies was named one of the Best Places to Work in Montgomery County in 2019!
In 1983, an opportunity was presented to Burnop that would change his life forever. When Tech football coach Bill Dooley hired Jeff Charles, who Burnop referred to as a one-man band in charge of marketing, promotions, TV, and radio, the media personality made a phone call to the former Tech tight end. “Look, I’ve always had an ex-player do my color,” Charles said to Burnop. “Would you be interested?”
And that is how Burnop “fell into” the job. The two men travelled to Winsten-Salem with a tape recorder and they practiced their new gig by calling a Wake Forest game one week prior to Tech’s opener, and here we are, 41 years later, and Burnop is still in that role!
In 1988, Charles left Blacksburg to go on to East Carolina and be their radio play-by-play voice for over 35 years. Enter Bill Roth, the voice of the Hokies, and the other half of the dynamic duo of Tech broadcasting.
In 1996, Burnop became the full-time basketball color analyst beside Roth. Burnop had been filling in for a season before being hired, but because he was good at what he did and because of his great chemistry with Roth through calling football games, he got the hoops job too. Today, he is one of the few individuals to be the color analyst for both collegiate sports.
As Burnop is about to begin 41st year as a football analyst, he looks back fondly on his 29 years of working with Bill Roth. “He is a true professional,” Burnop said of his partner. “He’s great at what he does. He can really call the play very, very well.”
They have an excellent relationship too. “We have great chemistry,” he said. “We have that banter back and forth that we just picked up over the years.” For Burnop, working with Roth is a pleasure, and it results in a fun time in the broadcast booth.
Part of their great chemistry stems from a common interest – food! If you have ever listened to Roth and Burnop, then you are familiar with their affinity for a good buffet line – which also ends up as fodder for their banter! Burnop admits that sharing their encounters is important to the broadcast. “People love those stories. They remember more about that than who scored a touchdown.”
And with the recent realignment within the ACC, Burnop is going to particularly miss the regularity of the Miami rivalry. Yes, Virginia Tech and Miami have played great games against each other over the decades, but Burnop also likes Miami more than any other ACC destination because of the food, especially the Brazilian steakhouses. “You talk about unbelievable restaurants down there, they’re all over the place.”
A close second is Boston. While most Tech fans loathe seeing any game up there against Boston College, Burnop loves the restaurants in Beantown. And what is one of his favorite items to order? Clam chowder, of course!
Ever the Gentleman, the Consummate Hokie
Burnop is a Hokie in every way – a former player, an alumnus, an employee, a fan, and a local resident. And he is a terrific person to represent Hokie Nation. If you are fortunate enough to see him in public, shake his hand and say “Go Hokies.” He loves staying connected with the fan base, and he is genuine in his interest of others.
That is how I got to meet him. I saw him in the concourse at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn prior to the Hurryin’ Hokies basketball game at the Hall of Fame Invitational in December of 2022. We happened to communicate periodically, and he was more than willing to be a part of this interview.
That is how he is. He likes to give back to the Hokie community. Burnop speaks a lot at Hokie Club events and other groups functions. He appears on radio and tv shows as well as podcasts. He is very much willing to help peers in the media world, very reminiscent of the Virginia Tech motto “Ut Prosim” (That I May Serve).
So here are the five questions I had for the Tech Hall of Famer and his responses to each question. Enjoy, and thank you Mike Burnop!
Five Questions with Mike Burnop Virginia Tech Broadcaster
What is the best part about your job as a color analyst for Virginia Tech?
“It keeps me around the game. I loved playing football, I love college sports, I spend a lot of time watching practice. You get to know the players, which is kind of cool. I think it keeps you young.
“I think it’s awesome to see what Brent Pry has done. When you think about how he was here in 1995 as a GA, I knew him then, now circle back all these years later and he’s the head coach, that’s kind of a cool story. Some of the coaches on the staff, I watched them play. J.C. Price, Pierson Prioleau, Xavier Adibi. It’s like one big family. I’ve been lucky to be able to do it for as long as I have, for sure.”
Over the course of 40 years in the broadcast booth for Tech, it has to be difficult to choose one “best moment,” but if you had to, what comes to mind?
“I think you always think about the National Championship game when we had the lead going into the fourth quarter. But we didn’t win the game. That experience and that week we had down in New Orleans was incredible. But I think when you go back and look, one of the big-time moments in Virginia Tech football history was at the Sugar Bowl in 1995.
“We were sitting there at 0-2 to start that season off, it was incredible. You know, you couldn’t make it up. So we’re sitting there at 0-2, and we had Miami coming in to play us. Boston College beat us in the first game, and Cincinnati shut us out in the second game. That was the last time Virginia Tech failed to score in a game. That was in 1995.
“Then Miami comes in, and we had never beaten Miami. I think we were 0-12 against them. And they were always good back in the day, back in the Big East. And so, we ended up winning that game 13-7 and went on a roll, won ten in a row.
“So we get to the Sugar Bowl and play Texas, a mighty Texas team that’s got these great players, running backs, and all the crowd and all that sort of stuff. It’s 10-0, and we’re getting beat, and all of sudden Bryan Still has that punt return for a touchdown, and you know, we got momentum. We scored 28 straight points and beat ‘em 28-10.
“It was New Year’s Eve, and so the game was over a little bit before midnight, and everybody that was a Hokie was on Bourbon Street until, you know, 4 or 5 o’clock in the morning. And that was probably it. Just because of everything that was going on and how big that game was.”
Tech has had a lot of great quarterbacks over the years, and you played with two of them…where would you rank Don Strock and Bruce Arians among Tech’s all-time quarterbacks?
“I think you’ve got to take them separately, obviously, because, when you think about Strock, he could flat wing and throw the football. But we had no defense, and we’d score 39 points and lose. And we didn’t have a lot of playmakers, so he threw a lot of interceptions.
“When you look at his numbers, it’s kind of staggering to think that he holds the record for the most career interceptions, both in a season and in his career. But he could throw it. He threw for 527 against Houston when we were playing them in 1972. He could flat get it done. But, you know, we just had trouble on defense.
“I think as a pure quarterback, I think I would rank Don in the top seven probably. You’ve gotta think about the Michael Vicks and Tyrod Taylors, the Bryan Randalls, and Marcus Vick. But as a pure passer, Don was probably in the top five easily. In terms of supporting cast and defense, he just didn’t have it like some of those other guys did. But he could flat throw the football.
“Then Bruce, you know his situation, he never was a great quarterback, and he’ll be the first to admit that. They were running back then the option or the veer, and he was more of a running quarterback. I think in 1974 he threw 3 touchdown passes and maybe 6 or 7 interceptions. So he wasn’t a great passer.
“Now, as far as being a tough runner? Yeah, you put him probably in the top five or top ten runners as far as running quarterbacks, because that’s what they did then. So it’s kind of hard to rank them, you know, when you think about the way the game has evolved now, into the spread offenses and stuff.”
Who on the Virginia Tech roster do you think will surprise us this year? And what is your “lock of the year” prediction (player or game)?
“You know, I think, gosh, there are so many guys that could surprise us, but, just to pick one, I’m going to pick a guy on defense. The kid’s name is Keyshawn Burgos, and he’s a sophomore. He’s a big kid, he’s 6’5” 240, he’s a defensive end, and he can flat out run. He’s one speed, and that’s full ahead. He’s not probably gonna start, but I’m sure he’s going to probably play a lot. And I just think he’s like a one-man wrecking crew. So if he can keep his head on straight, continue to develop, I think he’s got a chance to be a really, really good one.
“And when you think about a lock of a year, I think I’d have to go with the transfer portal when you think about what they got there. They brought in this kid, the running back Bhayshul Tuten. I mean, he’s 5’11”, he’s about 205 or something like that, and had 1300 yards last year rushing down there (at NC A&T), and I think 13 TDs and Virginia Tech had like 15 TDs as a team. So he is the real deal as a running back, and I just think if he can stay healthy, I think he’s gonna have a heckuva year.”
(Author’s note – this prediction was made a few days prior to the release of the week one depth charts where Burgos is listed as a starter)
Not just as a broadcaster, but also as a former player AND a fan – What will it take for you to walk away from this season feeling satisfied?
“I think they certainly have the ability to go to a bowl game, and I think they’re gonna surprise some people and actually win more than people think. So, I think a bowl game at the worst, this means you have to have a winning record or at least break even. I think they’ll do that, and I think they’ll be better than that.
“When you think about last year, they won three, but they lost three games that they probably should have won, right? Old Dominion scores with 33 seconds left to win. You got 15 penalties in that game. And then you’re up on the road at NC State like 21-7 or 21-3 or whatever it was and lose by one. And then you got Georgia Tech at home, you’re up 27-16, and you get beat 28-27. I mean, there’s three games that you probably should’ve won.
“And you know, had you played UVa, you probably win that. Just think about, you could’ve been going to a bowl last year. The perception of this program would be a lot different. I think they were close last year, I think with the way the transfer portal and the better players that they have in here, I think they will have a better year. Yes, the schedule is tougher, but I just think they are ready to rock’n’roll, and get off to a good start in these first four non-conference games, get a little momentum, I think it could be good.”
Bonus question: What advice do you have for Hokie fans heading into the season?
“I would say be patient. It’s only year two for Brent Pry. They won three games last year and they inherited, you know, not the greatest roster of all time. So they’re working hard. They’re recruiting really, really well. They’ve got a great class on paper so far for next year coming in.
“When you think about they went to the portal, got seven or eight guys, and every one of those guys is going to play or contribute, especially in the wide receiver room. So be patient, he’s building it the right way, and they’re gonna be better. Just root for him, and give him your best, and give him a little time, he’s gonna get it right.”
Final Thoughts: Mike Burnop Virginia Tech Broadcaster, Alumni, Player, Fan, Etc.
That last response is fantastic advice from the man who is very much in tune with the program. Then again, Mike Burnop has seen about 500 Virginia Tech football games through the course of his 40 years in broadcasting, so if anyone outside the players or coaches has a bead on this team, he does.
Thank you, Mike Burnop for sharing your stories with Hokie Nation, and good luck with your 41st season in the booth! Go Hokies!
(Author’s note – Mike Burnop and Bill Roth record their own podcast called “Level Seven.” It can be found on Hokiepod, which is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, and HokieSports.com (click here). I HIGHLY recommend it!)
To read more of my articles on Virginia Tech football, click here.
