Entering the Hall of Fame in the Pre-Modern Athlete category, Conklin was a three-year letterman and 1958 captain of the Colgate University football team where he was named a UPI Honorable Mention All-American for the Raiders in 1958. Additionally, Conklin lettered three times in Track & Field at Colgate, was the founding football coach at Notre Dame High School in Utica in 1962, and after 5 seasons as the Jugglers’ field general, he moved on to coach from 1968-1976 at Utica Free Academy.
The Greater Utica Sports Hall of Fame was founded in 1990 to honor excellence in all facets of sports throughout the area. As of 2012, nearly 150 men and women have been enshrined.