Rutgers Athletics Hall of Fame
Steve Tardy arrived at Rutgers in the fall of 1985 after a standout scholastic career at nearby Hillsborough High School. Following a redshirt season, he turned in a productive and durable Scarlet Knight career from 1986-89. He was a standout guard on some of the finest offensive teams in Scarlet Knight history that were led at quarterback by fellow RU Football Hall of Fame member Scott Erney. Quiet and unassuming, the 6'5'', 273-pound Tardy was a perfectionist both on the football field and in the classroom. He was a 1988 AP Honorable Mention All-American, and earned All-East honors from 1987-89. Tardy won the David Bender Trophy in 1987 and 1988 as the team's top offensive lineman, and in 1988 and 1989, he won the Upstream Award as the team's top student-athlete. A civil engineering major, his efforts were also recognized on the national level as he was a CoSIDA-GTE Second Team Academic All-American in 1989 and a 1989 National Football Foundation and Hall of Fame Scholar-Athlete.
