Dr. William Burns II was presented with a plaque after being inducted into the Plano East Hall of Honor on Friday at Tom Kimbrough Stadium. Photo by Andy Redmond / C&S Media
By David Wolman
For 31 years, Dr. Williams C. Burns II has been a familiar presence on the Plano East sideline, providing medical care, guidance and unwavering support to generations of Panther student-athletes.
Last Friday, the school recognized that commitment by inducting Burns into its Hall of Honor during a ceremony between the first and second quarters of Plano East’s home football game against J.J. Pearce at Tom Kimbrough Stadium.
Burns became the Hall of Honor’s 10th inductee and its first honoree who was not a football player.
“It’s pretty awesome,” he said. “I’m impressed. I didn’t expect it because most people that have been inducted have gone onto have pretty big football careers.”
A native of Boise, Idaho, Burns earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Baylor University before attending UT Southwestern Medical School, where he was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society.
He completed his orthopedic training at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond, Virginia, followed by a sports medicine fellowship at the University of Chicago.
Board-certified in orthopedic surgery, Burns was also among the first orthopedic surgeons to earn board certification in sports medicine.
His professional accomplishments include a nomination for the Charles Neer Award from the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons for outstanding clinical or research investigation.
Burns also received the Dow Corning Wright Award from the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society for outstanding foot and ankle research and the Cabaud Memorial Award from the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine for outstanding research.
For the past 12 years, Burns has worked at the Frisco location of Craig Ranch Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine.
His relationship with Plano East began in 1995, when an athletic trainer informed him that the school needed a new team physician.
Burns accepted the opportunity and has remained a fixture in the program ever since.
He has attended home and away football games and numerous basketball contests, missing only two Plano East football games in 31 years. Those absences came while he was recovering from back surgery five years ago.
“I’ve been through several principals, head football coaches and athletic trainers, but it’s a real honor to work there,” he said.
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