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Deacon Sports Xtra: Wake Forest a Family Tradition for Amy Privette Perko
9/22/2021 11:36:00 AM | Women's Basketball, Les Johns
“My experience at Wake Forest was everything I would have hoped for and more.” - Amy Privette Perko
Amy Privette Perko often had an imaginary teammate while shooting hoops in her driveway growing up — Wake Forest basketball legend Skip Brown.
"Wake Forest is a family tradition," Perko said. "My father went to Wake Forest and played football there. I grew up a Deacon fan. My two older sisters also went to Wake Forest."
So as she got close to making her decision on where to play college basketball, the Demon Deacons always had the upper hand.
"When it came time for me to make that decision, it was a great fit in all ways," Perko said. "You start looking at those things in a different way when you're a senior in high school, but it was a great fit for me academically and athletically. I had a great relationship with the coaching staff and head coach Wanda Briley. I enjoyed my teammates immensely."
And in addition to grabbing dozens of program records during her historic run at Wake Forest, those driveway hoop dreams became reality.
"It's one of those really neat stories about having a dream when you're a kid, and then your dream coming to reality," Perko said. "When I was a student at Wake Forest, there were a couple of times during the offseason playing pick-up games where Skip came over and I got to actually be his teammate on the court.
Perko was inducted in the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2000, and was named to the ACC Legends team in 2005. When she graduated from Wake Forest, she was the program all-time leader in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Perko still ranks in the top-10 in those categories.
"My experience at Wake Forest was everything I would have hoped for and more. I had great relationships with teammates," Perko said. "I learned how to set a goal and work toward that goal. You have to stay persistent to achieve that goal. Small things done over time yields big results. You have to continue to believe in the process and prove every year individually what I was able to contribute to the team.
"There are qualities gleaned from the educational model of college sports, like motivation, discipline and teamwork — those types of attributes help you in all ways in life."
The Wake Forest women's basketball team made great strides during Perko's time in the program, but had yet to claim an ACC Tournament victory until her junior season, when a last-second bucket around the free-throw stripe gave the Deacs a first-round win over in-state rival Duke.
"I imagined that shot, of hitting a buzzer-beater in the ACC Tournament and my court at home as a kid," Perko said. "When you get to fulfill those dreams, it's something that sticks with you.
"It was a busted play. I came around and got a shuffle pass from a teammate and was able to get the shot off before the buzzer."
Her coach that season, Joe Sanchez, recently sent her a DVD in the mail labeled "The Shot," with video from that game. Perko was able to share with several of her teammates in a group Zoom call recently.
"It was a lot of fun to relive that," Perko said. "A number of us during COVID have been reconnecting via Zoom. A lot of time has passed, but when we get together on Zoom it doesn't seem like it was that long ago. Academically it was a great experience. I was a history major. I had a strong group of friends outside athletics and really enjoyed those relationships as well."
The Deacs made the NCAA Tournament the season after Perko graduated, with then freshman Jen Mitchell making a game-winning shot in the first round. Of course, Jen Mitchell Hoover is now head coach of Wake Forest women's basketball, entering her 10th season at the helm.
"Looking back on it now, I have a different view than I did when I was living through it," Perko said. "If you look at what was happening nationally, I started as a freshman in 1983. It was just two years before that where the NCAA began offering championships in women's sports. Even though Title IX had been enacted nearly a decade earlier, women's college sports were still very much in its infancy. As the commitment to provide athletic scholarships increased at Wake Forest, the competitiveness increased as well.
"When Title IX was enacted it wasn't a flip of the switch. Some of the issues we're dealing with even today shouldn't be here. We should be past the point where we are nationally. As an alum, I'm proud of the opportunities Wake Forest provides in women's sports and the advancements that Wake Forest has made. While things weren't perfect when I played in terms of equity across the board, it was a great experience and I wouldn't trade it for anything."
Perko currently serves as CEO of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, and she was recognized as the CoSIDA 2020 Dick Enberg Award winner.
"Our commission is an independent group of leaders, who all share the passion of the educational model of college sports," Perko explained."Our purpose is to lead transformational change that prioritizes athletes' education, safety, health and success.
"We have a legacy of impacting NCAA rules that have significantly improved the college athletes' experience."
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"Wake Forest is a family tradition," Perko said. "My father went to Wake Forest and played football there. I grew up a Deacon fan. My two older sisters also went to Wake Forest."
So as she got close to making her decision on where to play college basketball, the Demon Deacons always had the upper hand.
"When it came time for me to make that decision, it was a great fit in all ways," Perko said. "You start looking at those things in a different way when you're a senior in high school, but it was a great fit for me academically and athletically. I had a great relationship with the coaching staff and head coach Wanda Briley. I enjoyed my teammates immensely."
And in addition to grabbing dozens of program records during her historic run at Wake Forest, those driveway hoop dreams became reality.
"It's one of those really neat stories about having a dream when you're a kid, and then your dream coming to reality," Perko said. "When I was a student at Wake Forest, there were a couple of times during the offseason playing pick-up games where Skip came over and I got to actually be his teammate on the court.
Perko was inducted in the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2000, and was named to the ACC Legends team in 2005. When she graduated from Wake Forest, she was the program all-time leader in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Perko still ranks in the top-10 in those categories.
"My experience at Wake Forest was everything I would have hoped for and more. I had great relationships with teammates," Perko said. "I learned how to set a goal and work toward that goal. You have to stay persistent to achieve that goal. Small things done over time yields big results. You have to continue to believe in the process and prove every year individually what I was able to contribute to the team.
"There are qualities gleaned from the educational model of college sports, like motivation, discipline and teamwork — those types of attributes help you in all ways in life."
The Wake Forest women's basketball team made great strides during Perko's time in the program, but had yet to claim an ACC Tournament victory until her junior season, when a last-second bucket around the free-throw stripe gave the Deacs a first-round win over in-state rival Duke.
"I imagined that shot, of hitting a buzzer-beater in the ACC Tournament and my court at home as a kid," Perko said. "When you get to fulfill those dreams, it's something that sticks with you.
"It was a busted play. I came around and got a shuffle pass from a teammate and was able to get the shot off before the buzzer."
Her coach that season, Joe Sanchez, recently sent her a DVD in the mail labeled "The Shot," with video from that game. Perko was able to share with several of her teammates in a group Zoom call recently.
"It was a lot of fun to relive that," Perko said. "A number of us during COVID have been reconnecting via Zoom. A lot of time has passed, but when we get together on Zoom it doesn't seem like it was that long ago. Academically it was a great experience. I was a history major. I had a strong group of friends outside athletics and really enjoyed those relationships as well."
The Deacs made the NCAA Tournament the season after Perko graduated, with then freshman Jen Mitchell making a game-winning shot in the first round. Of course, Jen Mitchell Hoover is now head coach of Wake Forest women's basketball, entering her 10th season at the helm.
"Looking back on it now, I have a different view than I did when I was living through it," Perko said. "If you look at what was happening nationally, I started as a freshman in 1983. It was just two years before that where the NCAA began offering championships in women's sports. Even though Title IX had been enacted nearly a decade earlier, women's college sports were still very much in its infancy. As the commitment to provide athletic scholarships increased at Wake Forest, the competitiveness increased as well.
"When Title IX was enacted it wasn't a flip of the switch. Some of the issues we're dealing with even today shouldn't be here. We should be past the point where we are nationally. As an alum, I'm proud of the opportunities Wake Forest provides in women's sports and the advancements that Wake Forest has made. While things weren't perfect when I played in terms of equity across the board, it was a great experience and I wouldn't trade it for anything."
Perko currently serves as CEO of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, and she was recognized as the CoSIDA 2020 Dick Enberg Award winner.
"Our commission is an independent group of leaders, who all share the passion of the educational model of college sports," Perko explained."Our purpose is to lead transformational change that prioritizes athletes' education, safety, health and success.
"We have a legacy of impacting NCAA rules that have significantly improved the college athletes' experience."
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Football Media Availability (9/23/25)
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Coach Jake Dickert Press Conference (Sept. 22, 2025)
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