Naaman Roosevelt came to the University at Buffalo as a lightly recruited athlete who wanted

an opportunity to play quarterback. Four years later, he leaves as arguably the greatest wide

receiver in UB history.

Roosevelt, the former St. Joe's quarterback and Turner Gill's first recruit as a head

coach, will miss the final game of his senior season Friday at Kent State with a knee injury.

UB's career leader in receptions and receiving yards will undergo surgery to repair a meniscus

tear in his right knee that will keep him sidelined for three to four weeks, Gill said.

"He's one of the one's who had an impact in turning this program around," Gill said. "I

call him a playmaker and a difference-maker because he can do some great things with the

football. We appreciate all the hard work and all the dedication. He is a guy I would say I

want our guys to model after."

Roosevelt first started to feel discomfort in the knee a few weeks ago but played through

the pain. An MRI on Monday revealed the tear.

"Coach Gill and the trainer wanted to check on it and see what was wrong and they found out

it was a tear and something that needed to be fixed," Roosevelt said. "The best decision was

to go and get it fixed."

Roosevelt leaves owning UB's career record in receptions (268), receiving yards (3,551) and

receiving touchdowns (28). A first team All-Mid-American Conference selection in 2008 and a

second-team choice in 2007, Roosevelt finished with 14 100-yard receiving games.

"There's some emotional things there, and I'm obviously saddened and disappointed that he's

not able to finish out the last two ball games," Gill said. "With this last one I thought we

may have a chance. It's part of life, it's part of football and we're always going to look out

for the best interest in the young man and what's the best interest for our program."

The last game of his career, two weeks ago against Ohio University, was perhaps his best.

Roosevelt finished with eight receptions for 165 yards and three touchdowns, including a

season-long 76-yard reception.

"To look back at the season, it was a great thing to be here and watch them win [at

Miami]," Roosevelt said. "I'll definitely look at the last four years and how the team has

turned around and how the program has turned around into one of the great programs in the

division. I'm just glad to be a part of it."

After rehabilitation, Roosevelt will begin preparations for the upcoming NFL Combine where

he and tailback James Starks will have to answer questions about injuries. Starks, the former

Niagara Falls High School standout, missed his entire senior season with a shoulder injury.

In a player evaluation by Scouts, Inc., Roosevelt's durability is listed as exceptional but

there are questions about his separation skills, run after the catch and vertical speed.

"I have to get stronger, faster and watch film to see what I need to work on in terms of

blocking and route running," Roosevelt said.

In nine games this season , Roosevelt had 70 receptions for 954 yards and nine touchdowns.

His numbers are down from a year ago when he finished with a career-best 104 receptions for

1,402 yards and 13 touchdowns, but he played in five more games.