DAVE RAKOSKI CLASS OF '65 YEAR OF INDUCTION: 2011 "Steinert has always had good athletes," Dave Rakoski said, needing to look no further than his own family, including brothers Joe and Mike, and their many like-minded friends. Dave Rakoski was an All-City football and baseball player in 1964-65. A three-year letterman in both sports, he was named All-Area player in football as a senior. Predominantly a halfback, he also saw action on kickoff and punt returns. He attended the University of South Carolina on an athletic scholarship and was the captain of the Gamecocks freshman team that went 27-5. He later transferred to Rider College to play baseball for legendary coach Tom Petroff on scholarship there. He played two years with the Broncs, starting in center field. After college, he worked for 10 years as a Regional Sales Manager for Ralph Lauren in Los Angeles, Calif. He later moved back to New Jersey in 1984 and started his own business. He currently is president of a commercial investment banking company that secures financing for clients worldwide. He’s been married for 39 years to wife Linda and they have two daughters, Michelle and Catherine. Although he has long since "put high school baseball and football in my rearview mirror" it’s still fun to look back in there every once in a while. "For me, it was 45 years ago," Rakoski says. "But some of the things I remember are the Notre Dame games, the Trenton games." "Other people remember it better than I do. I was out to dinner with a client in the Trenton area and a guy comes up and says 'I remember that home run you hit.' That gives it validation when they say things like 'I remember that play you made.' That means a heck of a lot." The Rakoski family has meant a heck of a lot to the Steinert community through the years. RETURN TO THE HALL OF FAME MEMBERS PAGE