As a collegian, Burleson teamed with All-American David Thompson, guard Monte Towe and forward Tim Stoddard (who would go on to have success as a Major League Baseball pitcher) to dethrone UCLA and win the 1974 NCAA Championship. Burleson was the MVP of the 1973 and 1974 ACC Tournaments and was All-Final Four in 1974. Burleson\'s defense of UCLA superstar Bill Walton was key to the Wolfpack\'s semifinal win. He was a member of the 1973 World University Games Gold Medal basketball team.\n', '

When Burleson was recruited he was officially measured at 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m) tall, but the coaching staff at North Carolina State decided to list him at 7 ft 4 in (2.24 m). Burleson wanted to be listed at his actual height but the coaching staff said he would officially be the tallest player in American basketball and it would bring a lot of good exposure to him and the school.[citation needed]\n', '

Burleson was also a member of the 1972 U.S. Olympic Basketball Team that lost a controversial gold medal game to the Soviet Union. The entire 1972 Olympic Basketball team believed they had been cheated and voted unanimously to not accept the silver.\n', '

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