MICHAEL RAKOSKI CLASS OF '67 YEAR OF INDUCTION: 2016 Not many teams can complete an undefeated season. Michael Rakoski was a member of one such special squad. "Our undefeated football team was a result of a full team effort by all players and coaches," Rakoski said of the 1966 Spartans who went 9-0. The 1966 SHS football team was the first in school history to post a winning record and it remains the only group to go undefeated on the gridiron. "My most memorable moment(s) at Steinert were involved with being a member of the undefeated football team," he said. "Peter Brescia, head coach, was the person who had the most influence on my athletic career." His induction into the Steinert Athletic Hall of Fame increases the number of Rakoski brothers to be honored to three. Michael joins Joe Rakoski, SHS Class of 1970, who was inducted in 2009, and Dave Rakoski, Class of 1965, who was inducted in 2011. A first-team all-county player at SHS, Rakoski prepped a year at the Peddie School where he excelled in football and track before heading off to Rutgers University on a football scholarship. He is in Peddie's Sports Hall of Fame as a member of an undefeated track squad (1968). Although an injury spoiled his hopes of playing significant college football, he stayed at Rutgers where he majored in history and education. He graduated RU with a bachelor's degree in 1972. Although certified to teach social studies, he chose a different career path and continued his education at the Temple University School of Law on the way to becoming an attorney who has practiced civil trial law in New Jersey since 1976 in both the state and federal courts. With his wife Lois, Rakoski has a daughter, Rebecca, and a son, Michael. The Rakoskis have four grandchildren. An avid cook and gardener, Rakoski and his wife travel to Italy yearly. RETURN TO THE HALL OF FAME MEMBERS PAGE