Hicksville resident Jeff Knuth was recently inducted into the university's Athletic Hall of Fame. Knuth was one of the best keepers to don a uniform for the Fordham University's men's soccer team, the Rams.

Knuth, a 1989 graduate of the university's College of Business Administration with a degree in finance, still holds Fordham school records for the most shutouts in a single season - 12, set in 1987. That year, he was also named Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Keeper of the Year and earned First Team All-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference honors. His exploits in the Fordham net helped the Rams to tie for the 1987 MAAC title.

Knuth made a splash in his freshman year, posting six shutouts. The following season he notched seven shutouts while compiling a 1.63 GAA and earned First Team All-MAAC accolades.

When Knuth was six years old he began playing for in the intramural division of the Hicksville American Soccer Club under the direction of Coach Adam Greenburg. Here, he met lifelong friends he would play competitively with through high school and also met future collegiate coach, Frank Schnur.

At age seven, he started with the Hicksville American Pee Wee "A" travel team coached by Phil Muller and Joe Neto. The team won the Long Island Junior Soccer League Championship, the State Cup and were also finalists in the "Robbie" International Soccer Tournament in Canada. The season totaled 76 goals scored, with only seven against, with Knuth in the net.

From age eight to 12, Knuth continued with the Hicksville Soccer Club, winning numerous tournaments throughout the northeast as well as league, state and Long Island championships. He then went to the Long Island Select and the Eastern New York OPD and was coached by Frank Schnur on the state team.

At Hicksville High School he was on varsity and made the Empire State Games in his sophomore and junior years. By Knuth's senior year of high school, the team was ranked number one in the state. He was recruited by Schnur to play at Fordham and received a four-year soccer scholarship. He chose Fordham because of its strong academic reputation as well as being able to play soccer there.

Knuth attributes a large part of his success to the many outstanding coaches he had over the years. Although they are too numerous to mention, he did say Steve Florio, Jeff Kugler, Peter Collins, Jr., Peter Lodis, Jack McCann, Jimmy McGeogh, Ed Moeller and Richard Wright as well as those mentioned previously were vital in his development as a player.

When asked what his greatest moment in soccer was, Knuth quickly replied "Hicksville Under 19." "We were a neighborhood team comprised of local players from Hicksville, and we went against Oceanside Soccer Club which was a compilation of many players from throughout the state. Hicksville won 2-0," he said.

Knuth joined other Fordham Hall of Fame greats including Vince Lombardi, football icon and one of Fordham's "Seven Blocks of Granite."

He currently lives in Milford, CT with his wife, Diane, and their two sons, Scott, 6, and Ryan, 4. Knuth, a bond trader at General Reinsurance in Farmington CT, continues to play on a men's league in Milford and looks forward to coaching his sons.