Los Angeles Daily News

October 8, 2007

CSUN soccer player Singh dies
BY RAMONA SHELBURNE, Staff Writer

Jay Singh, a junior on the Cal State Northridge men's soccer team, died at his home in San Bruno, shortly after 10 p.m. on Sunday.

The cause of death is still under investigation, according to Kristine Gamble, the senior deputy coroner for San Mateo County. An autopsy was performed Monday, Gamble said, but the results will not be available for 3-4 weeks, pending the results of a toxicology report.

Singh, 20, who was redshirting this season after transferring from Loyola Marymount, had returned home for the weekend to visit his family, CSUN coach Terry Davila said. Singh was scheduled to fly back Sunday night and rejoin the team at practice on Monday.

Instead, the team was notified of his death at a meeting on Monday.

"No one expected this. It shocked the whole team," said Bo Miller, a junior defender who transferred with Singh from LMU this year. "At the meeting (Monday), there wasn't a guy in the room that wasn't devastated.

"He's one of my best friends. I don't know a person in the world who dislikes him. He's the kind of guy who everyone likes because he's always smiling. This is going to be very tough to get over. But right now, I'm just trying to think of all the good times we had together."

Funeral services have been scheduled in Singh's hometown of San Bruno, a suburb about 20 minutes south of San Francisco, for Wednesday. The entire Cal State Northridge and Loyola Marymount men's soccer teams are planning to attend.

Cal State Northridge postponed its game against UC Santa Barbara, originally scheduled for Wednesday, until Nov. 18.

"He was just such an amazing guy. I'm really devastated right now," Davila said. "He was the best passer on our team. The best technical player, with either foot. I always called him `Beckham' because of the way he could serve the ball.

"He was redshirting this year because I wanted him to be able to make an impact next year and not just play five or 10 minutes a game. But even though he was redshirting, he always just wanted us to do so well. At the UCLA game (on Sept. 29, which CSUN won 3-0 in an upset) he was the one who looked at me and the guys and said, `We can win this game. We should have no fear of them. They should fear us.' That just made us believe. That confidence he had."

Miller said the last time he talked to Singh was on Saturday night, after the Matadors tied Cal State Fullerton.

"He just called to find out how we did, who scored," Miller said. "He was already real close with the guys here. He never had trouble fitting in anywhere. Everyone who meets him just loves him."

Davila said Singh came to Northridge to get a fresh start on his career. Singh had been on Olympic Development Program teams in his teens, even scoring a goal against the under-17 Brazilian national team at a tournament in England, but had struggled to develop his fitness and strength in college.

Davila said he could come to Northridge, but could offer Singh no scholarship money and no guarantee of even making the team.

"He didn't care," Davila said. "He just said, `Coach, give me a chance. I know I can do it.' And he was doing it. He did everything we asked him to do. He became a mentor to (star freshman midfielder) Rafael Garcia. And he really was the best passer on our team."

Junior midfielder Moy Gomez (Grant High of Van Nuys) said that Singh had made a deep impact on the team in just a few short months.

"I've only known him for a couple months and I think he affected us in a way not not a lot of people can affect you in such little time," Gomez said. "He left a very deep effect on the team as far as Cal State Northridge and at LMU. Both programs are mourning, and that shows what kind of character he had. He was a very positive guy and a great person to have around you."

At LMU, he was known to teammates and friends as "FunJay," according to Lions coach Paul Krumpe.

"He was just fun and lighthearted," Krumpe said. "He was a terrific kid. I always remember him with this big smile on his face. He was just won of those guys that was close with everyone on the team.

"Our prayers go out to Jay's family and everyone at Cal State Northridge."

Lindsay Czarnecki contributed to this story.