University of Vermont Athletic Hall of Fame
Francis B. "Skip" Gilbert 1983 - Soccer
UVM's only two-time All-American soccer player and 1993 Athletic Hall of Fame inductee, Francis "Skip" Gilbert's first-team selections in 1981 and 1982 were even more remarkable considering the team's modest 22-21-5 record while he was the starting goalkeeper from 1980-82. He gained the respect of his opponents with his glittering 1.28 career -goals -against average and 13 shutouts (in 48 games) -- you can understand why.
In addition to being selected All-American his junior and senior seasons, Gilbert was a three-time All New England pick, a two-year team MVP, a member of the 1982 Senior Bowl team and a Herrmann Award nominee. The Herrmann Trophy, like the Heisman Trophy in football, and the Hobey Baker Award in hockey, is presented to the top collegiate soccer player in the United States. In 1981, the first year Gilbert was tabbed an All-American, he recorded 11 wins to tie for the second-most victories in a season at UVM.
Immediately after graduating from UVM, Gilbert joined the U.S. National Team, which played in the President's Cup Tournament in South Korea in 1983. Later that season, he inked a contract with Tampa Bay Rowdies Soccer Club of the now defunct NASL. Gilbert also trained with the Sheffield United Football Club in England in the spring of his senior year at UVM.
