# List of University of Houston people

The list of University of Houston people includes notable alumni, former students, and faculty of the University of Houston. Class years usually indicate the year of a graduation unless an entry is denoted by an asterisk (*). In this case, the student did not graduate from the university, and the class year indicates the last known year a former student attended. In the case of alumni with multiple graduation years, the earliest graduation year is shown.

## Legend

The following abbreviations and notes are used to represent UH schools and colleges:
| Abbr. | Meaning |
| ARCH | Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design |
| ARTS | Kathrine G. McGovern College of the Arts |
| BAUER | C.T. Bauer College of Business |
| EDU | College of Education |
| CULLEN | Cullen College of Engineering |
| HONORS | Honors College |
| HILTON | Conrad N. Hilton College of Global Hospitality Leadership |
| LAW | University of Houston Law Center |
| CLASS | College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences |
| NSM | College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics |
| NURSING | College of Nursing |
| MED | Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine |
| OPT | College of Optometry |
| PHARM | College of Pharmacy |
| SOCIAL | Graduate College of Social Work |
| TECH | College of Technology |
| HOBBY | Hobby School of Public Affairs |
| FS | Former student (Did not graduate) |

## Alumni
### Academia

| Name | Class year | School | Degree | Notability |
| C. Anthony Anderson | 1965, 1964 | NSM | M.S., B.S. | Philosopher; Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Santa Barbara |
| Robert L. Bradley, Jr. | 1980 | CLASS | M.A. | Expert on public energy policy |
| James H. Bray | 1980, 1978, 1976 | CLASS | Ph.D., M.A., B.S. | Former president of the American Psychological Association |
| Brené Brown | 2002, 1996 | SOCIAL | Ph.D., M.S.W. | Scholar and researcher in social work; author, speaker, and professor at University of Houston |
| Max Castillo | 1979 | EDU | Ed.D | Former president of the University of Houston–Downtown and San Antonio College |
| Juliet V. García | 1970 | CLASS | M.A., B.A. | President, University of Texas at Brownsville; was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom |
| Robert W. Lawless | 1964 | NSM | B.S. | Former president of Texas Tech University and the University of Tulsa |
| Michael D. McKinney | 1973 | | B.S. | 13th chancellor of The Texas A&M University System and former Texas House Representative |
| William A. Staples | 1977 | BAUER | D.B.A. | President of the University of Houston–Clear Lake |
| Arleigh B. Templeton | 1961,1949 | EDU | Ph.D, M.Ed. | First president of the University of Texas at San Antonio; former president of Sam Houston State University, the University of Texas at El Paso, and Alvin Community College |
| Welcome W. Wilson, Sr. | 1949 | BAUER | B.B.A. | Real estate developer and former Chairman of the University of Houston System Board of Regents |

### Arts and media
#### Architecture

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Laura Bennett | 1993 | Contestant, Season 3 of the television show Project Runway |
| Neil Denari | 1980 | Architect, professor |
| Burdette Keeland | 1950 | Modernist architect, professor |
| Jerrold E. Lomax | 1951 | Architect |
| Joe Mashburn | 1978 | Dean, Hines College of Architecture |

#### Entertainment and performing arts

| Dennis Quaid, actor | Kenny Rogers, country music singer | Jim Parsons, actor | Jack Valenti, former president, Motion Picture Association of America |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Jason Alkire | | Fashion designer at Haus Alkire, artist |
| Greg Baldwin | | Actor |
| Leila Bela | | Experimental musician, actress, and writer |
| Shelly Berg | 1977 | Jazz pianist and educator |
| Big Moe (Kenneth Moore) | | Rapper |
| Larry Blyden | 1948 | Stage and television actor |
| Craig Bohmler | 1980 | Opera and musical-theater composer |
| Joe Bowman* | mid-1940s | Marksman and western entertainer |
| Peter Breck | | Actor |
| Kenneth Broberg | 2016 | Classical pianist |
| J. T. Buck | | Theatre director, composer, lyricist (The Gospel According to Tammy Faye) |
| Marcelo Bussiki | 1993 | Conductor |
| Tom Byron | | Adult-film actor |
| Tony Campise | | Jazz saxophonist |
| Derek Cecil | | Actor |
| Chamillionaire* | | Rapper |
| Johnny Chan* | 1978 | Poker player |
| Brett Cullen | 1979 | Actor |
| Chloe Dao* | | Season 2 contestant on Project Runway |
| Loretta Devine | 1971 | Actress, NAACP Image Award recipient |
| Magen Ellis | | Beauty queen |
| Fat Tony (Anthony Obi) | | Hip-hop artist |
| Bruce Ford* | 1982 | Operatic tenor |
| Larry Gatlin | 1970 | Grammy-winning country singer and songwriter |
| Denyce Graves* | 1990 | Operatic mezzo-soprano |
| Keith Grimwood | 1974 | Bass player for Trout Fishing in America |
| Terreon Gully | | Jazz drummer |
| Julie Haus | | Fashion designer at Haus Alkire |
| Bill Hicks* | | Comedian, social critic |
| Kimberly Holland | 2004 | Playboy model |
| Larry Hovis | | Actor |
| Paavo Järvi* | | Orchestra conductor |
| Christina Kelly | 2015 | Voice actress |
| Liza Koshy* | 2015 | Comedian, actress, YouTube personality |
| Evelyn Lim | 1994 | Concert organist, educator |
| Annie Lin | | Singer-songwriter |
| Lizzo | | Rapper, singer-songwriter |
| Anne Lundy | 1979 | Classical conductor, music educator |
| Master P* | | Hip-hop artist, actor, producer, and athlete |
| Sally Mayes | | Broadway singer and actress, rock/jazz singer |
| Susanne Mentzer* | 1982 | Operatic mezzo-soprano |
| Yvar Mikhashoff | 1967 | Composer, concert pianist, recording artist, music educator |
| Mary Mills* | 1988 | Operatic soprano |
| Carli Mosier | | Voice actress |
| Pauline Oliveros* | 1952 | Electronic music composer and performance artist |
| Bárbara Padilla | 2004 | Opera singer |
| Jim Parsons | 1996 | Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning actor, The Big Bang Theory |
| Chris Patton | | Voice actor |
| Cindy Pickett | 1972 | Actress |
| Dennis Quaid* | 1974 | Actor |
| Randy Quaid | 1971 | Actor; winner of Golden Globe Award; nominated for Emmy and Academy Awards |
| Kenneth Radnofsky | | Classical saxophonist, educator |
| Timothy Rhea | 1999 | Director of Bands at Texas A&M University |
| Kenny Rogers* | 1958 | Country singer; winner of multiple Grammy, American Music, Country Music Association, Academy of Country Music, and CMT Awards; USA Today "Favorite Singer of All Time" |
| Brad Rushing | 1986 | Cinematographer |
| Julian Schnabel | 1973 | Filmmaker; winner of Best Director prize at Cannes Film Festival; visual artist |
| Elliot Segal | | Disc jockey |
| Guru Singh | | Actor |
| Brent Spiner* | 1974 | Actor |
| Crystle Stewart | 2007 | Miss USA 2008 |
| Allison Sumrall | | Voice actress |
| DJ Sun | | Record producer, DJ |
| Shahzeb Tejani | 2020 | Singer |
| Christopher Theofanidis | 1992 | Classical composer |
| John Tracy | 1968 | Television director |
| Tommy Tune | | Broadway dancer, actor, Tony Award winner |
| Jack Valenti | 1946 | President of the Motion Picture Association of America |
| Townes Van Zandt* | 1966 | Country and folk music singer-songwriter |
| Viper | | Rapper |
| Paul Wall | 2001 | Rapper and DJ |
| Judy Wilson | | Casting director |
| Trey Wilson | | Actor |
| Darren Keith Woods | 1982 | Opera singer, general director of Fort Worth Opera |
| Roger Wright | 1996 | Classical pianist and 2004 National Scrabble Championship winner |
| Robert Wuhl | 1976 | Comedian, actor, and writer |
| Arthur Yoria | | Guitarist, singer-songwriter |
| Terence Yung | 2012 | Concert pianist |
| Stella Zambalis* | 1984 | Operatic soprano |
| Jessica Zhu | 2009 | Concert pianist |

#### Journalism

* Jim Nantz, lead CBS Sports broadcaster
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Dan Cook* | 1945 | Longtime San Antonio television sports reporter and columnist |
| Steve Edwards* | | Talk-show host |
| Fred Faour | 1987 | Sports commentator, talk-show host |
| Robert Flores | 1992 | ESPN anchor |
| Saul Friedman | 1956 | Newspaper reporter, columnist, wrote "Gray Matters" column for Newsday |
| Kevin James | 1988 | Radio host, conservative political commentator |
| Tom Jarriel | 1956 | Correspondent for 20/20 and ABC's evening news |
| Star Jones | 1986 | Former co-host of the TV show The View |
| Shane McAuliffe | 2003 | Creator and host of television program The Texas Bucket List |
| Maxine Mesinger | | Gossip columnist for the Houston Chronicle |
| Jim Nantz | 1981 | Lead CBS Sports broadcaster |
| Chau Nguyen | 2010 | Television news anchor |
| Dan Rather* | | Former managing editor and anchor for CBS Evening News |
| Caroline Valenta* | 1945 | Pulitzer-nominated photojournalist at the Houston Post |
| Bill Worrell | 1969 | Sportscaster |
| Steve Zabriskie | | Network television play-by-play sportscaster, ABC, ESPN, CBS |

#### Literature

* Gene Wolfe, science-fiction author
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Donald Barthelme* | 1957 | Author, UH professor |
| Shane Bolks | 1997 | Author of chick lit and historical romance novels |
| Jericho Brown | 2007 | Poet, winner of 2020 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry |
| Kathryn Casey | 1984 | Author, journalist |
| Katherine Center | 1998 | Author |
| Thomas Cobb | | Author |
| Jill Alexander Essbaum | 1994 | Poet, writer, professor |
| Ibis Gómez-Vega | 1976 | Writer, critic |
| Jennifer Grotz | 2005 | Poet |
| Christine Hà | 2013 | Writer, poet, editor; chef who won the grand prize on the MasterChef cooking competition on Fox in 2012 |
| Mary Lynne Gasaway Hill | 1997 | Poet, writer, professor at St. Mary's University, Texas and fellow of the Royal Society of Arts |
| Detrick Hughes | 1989 | Poet |
| Lacy M. Johnson | 2008 | Writer |
| Corey Marks | 2000 | Poet |
| Leslie Adrienne Miller | 1991 | Poet |
| Vassar Miller | 1947 | Poet |
| David M. Parsons | 1991 | Poet, 1991 Poet Laureate of Texas |
| George Sessions Perry* | — | Novelist, correspondent |
| Padgett Powell | | Author; professor at University of Florida |
| Tom Reiss | 1991 | Pulitzer Prize-winning author, historian, journalist |
| Cynthia D. Ritchie | | Writer, filmmaker, social activist |
| Cristina Rivera Garza | 1995 | Author, professor, won 2024 Pulitzer Prize |
| Pattiann Rogers | 1981 | Poet |
| Allie Rowbottom | | Writer, educator |
| Alice Sebold* | 1985 | Novelist |
| Lynda Schraufnagel | 1987 | Poet |
| Larry D. Thomas | 1970 | Poet, 2008 Texas State Poet Laureate |
| Sidney Wade | 1994 | Poet, professor |
| Bryan Washington | – | Writer |
| Gene Wolfe | 1956 | Science fiction novelist |
| Robert Clark Young | | Author |

#### Visual arts

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Michelle Barnes | 1970 | Artist and arts administrator |
| Susan Budge | 1987 | Ceramic sculptor |
| Michael Ray Charles | 1993 | Painter |
| Michael Galbreth | 1984 | Contemporary performance, conceptual, visual artist |
| Priscilla Hamby | 2003 | Illustrator, comic-book artist |
| Cheryl Kelley | — | Photorealist painter |
| Jack Massing | 1984 | Contemporary performance, conceptual, visual artist |
| Eileen Maxson | 2002 | Video and installation artist |
| Julian Schnabel | 1973 | Neo-expressionist painter, sculptor, photographer, and filmmaker |
| Sheryl Sims | | Quilter and Alexandria, Virginia Commissioner for the Arts |
| Nestor Topchy | 1987 | Painter, sculptor, installation artist |

### Athletics
#### Baseball

| Jeff Banister, manager of the Texas Rangers | Michael Bourn, baseball outfielder | Jesse Crain, baseball pitcher |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| John Altobelli | 1987 | Minor league player, college coach; died in helicopter crash with Kobe Bryant |
| Jeff Banister | 1986 | Manager, Texas Rangers; perfect 1.000 major-league career batting average |
| Matt Beech | 1994 | Former pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies |
| Beau Bell | | Infielder for St. Louis Browns, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians |
| Michael Bourn | 2003 | Outfielder for Houston Astros/Atlanta Braves |
| Jesse Crain | 2002 | Best career start for a relief pitcher |
| Steve Cummings | 1986 | Former pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays |
| Steve Decker | | Catcher for San Francisco Giants, Florida Marlins, Colorado Rockies, Anaheim Angels |
| Larry Dierker | | Pitcher for Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals |
| Doug Drabek | 1983 | 1990 Cy Young Award winner, 1994 All-Star |
| Vaughn Eshelman | 1991 | Former pitcher for the Boston Red Sox |
| Joe Gallagher | 1951 | Professional baseball player and college baseball coach |
| Wayne Graham | 1973 | Head coach of Rice Owls baseball |
| Bill Henry | 1946 | Pitcher, 1960 All-Star |
| Rob Johnson | 2004 | Catcher for Seattle Mariners |
| Donnie Joseph | 2009 | Pitcher for Kansas City Royals |
| Jake Lemoine* | 2015 | Pitcher for Oakland Athletics |
| Brad Lincoln* | 2006 | Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher |
| Jason McDonald | 1993 | Oakland Athletics player |
| Garrett Mock | 2004 | Pitcher for Washington Nationals |
| Shane Nance | 2000 | Former Milwaukee Brewers and Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher |
| Rayner Noble | 1988 | Reached AAA level as player; later UH head baseball coach |
| John Paciorek | | Played one game for Houston Colt .45s; holds MLB record for most plate appearances (5) while compiling a 1.000 career batting average |
| Tom Paciorek | 1968 | 1981 All-Star; National College Baseball Hall of Fame |
| David Pierce | 1985 | Head coach at Tulane |
| Austin Pruitt | 2013 | Pitcher for Texas Rangers |
| Seth Romero* | 2017 | Pitcher for Washington Nationals |
| Jake Scheiner | | Infielder/outfielder for Hiroshima Toyo Carp |
| Scott Sheldon | 1991 | Oakland Athletics and Texas Rangers infielder |
| Chris Snyder | 2002 | Arizona Diamondbacks, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Houston Astros catcher |
| Chris Tremie | 1992 | Houston Astros catcher |
| Jared Triolo* | 2019 | Infielder for Pittsburgh Pirates |
| Ryan Wagner | 2003 | First Cincinnati Red to be drafted and reach the majors in the same season |
| Mike Walker | 1986 | Former pitcher for the Seattle Mariners |
| Ben Weber | 1991 | 2002 World Series champion |
| Patrick Weigel* | 2015 | Player for Atlanta Braves |
| Gary Weiss | 1978 | 1981 World Series champion |
| Rocket Wheeler | | Minor league player and manager |
| Todd Whitting | 1995 | UH head baseball coach |
| Woody Williams | 1988 | 1993 World Series champion, 2003 All-Star |
| Anthony Young | 1987 | Had Major League Baseball's longest losing streak |

#### Basketball

| Clyde Drexler, former basketball shooting guard, ten-time NBA All-Star, and Basketball Hall of Fame member | Hakeem Olajuwon, former basketball center, twelve-time NBA All-Star, and Basketball Hall of Fame member | Elvin Hayes, former basketball center, twelve-time NBA All-Star, and Basketball Hall of Fame member |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Benny Anders* | 1985 | Member of Phi Slama Jama; later played in South America |
| Greg "Cadillac" Anderson | 1987 | Player for San Antonio Spurs/Milwaukee Bucks/New Jersey Nets/Denver Nuggets/Detroit Pistons/Atlanta Hawks |
| Terrance Arceneaux* | current student | |
| Otis Birdsong | 1977 | Player for Kansas City Kings/New Jersey Nets/Boston Celtics |
| Armoni Brooks* | 2019 | Player for Houston Rockets |
| Randy Brown* | 1988 | Transferred from Houston to New Mexico State; player for Sacramento Kings/Chicago Bulls/Boston Celtics/Phoenix Suns; coach for Bulls |
| Josh Carlton | 2022 | Player for Le Mans Sarthe Basket |
| Don Chaney | 1968 | Player for Boston Celtics/Spirits of St. Louis (ABA)/Los Angeles Lakers; Head Coach of the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, and Los Angeles Clippers; 1969 NBA Finals and 1974 NBA Finals champion, 1991 NBA Coach of the Year Award winner |
| Aubrey Coleman | 2010 | Led NCAA Division I Men's Basketball in scoring for 2009–2010 season; player for Aliağa Petkim of Turkish Basketball League/Austin Toros of NBA Development League/Pallacanestro Biella of Italian League |
| Marcus Cousin | 2010 | Player for Utah Jazz |
| LJ Cryer | 2024 | |
| Doug Davalos | 1994 | Head basketball coach at Sul Ross State University, Texas State University |
| Corey Davis Jr. | 2019 | Player for Afyon Belediye S.K. of the Basketball Super League |
| Devin Davis | 2018 | Player for Lakeland Magic/G.S. Lavrio B.C./ESSM Le Portel |
| Dwight Davis | 1972 | Player for Cleveland Cavaliers/Golden State Warriors |
| Sergio De Randamie | 2006 | Player for ABC Amsterdam/Donar/Landstede Hammers/BV Den Helder/Apollo Amsterdam/Rotterdam/ZZ Leiden |
| David Díaz | 1993 | Player for Venezuelan national team |
| Damyean Dotson | 2017 | Player for New York Knicks |
| Dion Dowell | 2008 | Player for Golden State Warriors |
| Clyde Drexler | 1983 | Player for Portland Trail Blazers/Houston Rockets; 1995 NBA Finals Champion, NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team, 2004 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Player inductee; gold medal, 1992 Olympic Games |
| Louis Dunbar | 1975 | Player for Harlem Globetrotters |
| Kyler Edwards | 2022 | Player for San Antonio Spurs |
| Anwar Ferguson | 2004 | Player for Saitama Broncos |
| Rolando Ferreira | 1988 | Player for Portland Trail Blazers |
| Alton Ford | 2004 | Player for Phoenix Suns/Houston Rockets |
| Reid Gettys | 1989 | Member of Phi Slama Jama, player for Albany Patroons |
| Anthony Goldwire | 2020 | Player for Charlotte Hornets/Denver Nuggets/San Antonio Spurs/Washington Wizards/New Jersey Nets/Minnesota Timberwolves/Detroit Pistons/Milwaukee Bucks/Los Angeles Clippers; earned UH degree after professional career |
| Or Goren | 1980 | Player for Hapoel Megido, Hapoel Gvat/Yagur, Hapoel Ramat Gan, Elitzur Netanya, Hapoel Galil Elyon, Beitar Tel Aviv, and Maccabi Hadera |
| Justin Gorham | 2021 | Player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League |
| Rob Gray | 2017 | Finished UH career as all-time AAC scoring leader; player for JL Bourg Basket |
| Quentin Grimes* | 2021 | Drafted by New York Knicks |
| Joe Hamood | 1966 | Player for Houston Mavericks (ABA) |
| Elvin Hayes | 1968 | Player for San Diego/Houston Rockets, Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets; player in the "NCAA Game of the Century", 1978 NBA Finals Champion, 1990 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Player inductee, NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team member |
| Carl Herrera | 1990 | Player for Houston Rockets/San Antonio Spurs/Vancouver Grizzlies/Denver Nuggets; 1994 NBA Finals and 1995 NBA Finals Champion |
| Nate Hinton* | 2020 | Player for Dallas Mavericks |
| Danuel House* | 2014 | Player for Washington Wizards/Phoenix Suns/Houston Rockets |
| DeJon Jarreau | 2020 | Player for Memphis Grizzlies |
| Chandi Jones | 2004 | Player for Detroit Shock/Minnesota Lynx |
| Damon Jones | 1998 | Player for New Jersey Nets/Boston Celtics/Golden State Warriors/Dallas Mavericks/Vancouver Grizzlies/Detroit Pistons/Sacramento Kings/Milwaukee Bucks/Miami Heat/Cleveland Cavaliers |
| Dwight Jones | 1973 | Player for Atlanta Hawks/Houston Rockets/Chicago Bulls/Los Angeles Lakers |
| Oliver Lafayette | 2007 | Player for Boston Celtics |
| Monica Lamb-Powell* | 1985 | Player for Houston Comets |
| Leary Lentz | 1970 | Player for Houston Mavericks/New York Nets (both ABA) |
| Guy Lewis | 1947 | UH head basketball coach (see Faculty and staff section below) |
| Kelvin Lewis | 2010 | Player for Houston Rockets Summer League team/Texas Legends of the NBA Development League |
| Ted Luckenbill | 1961 | Player for Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors |
| Sancho Lyttle | 2005 | Player for Atlanta Dream |
| Sam Mack | 1992 | Player for San Antonio Spurs/Houston Rockets/Vancouver Grizzlies/Golden State Warriors/Miami Heat |
| Larry Micheaux | 1983 | Player for Kansas City Kings/Houston Rockets |
| Caleb Mills* | 2021 | Transferred from UH to Florida State |
| Zamal Nixon | 2011 | Player for Hertener Loewen/Nürnberg Falcons BC/Flyers Wels/Phoenix Hagen/G.S. Lavrio B.C./Limoges CSP/USC Heidelberg/Riesen Ludwigsburg/Promitheas Patras B.C. |
| Hakeem Olajuwon* | 1984 | Player for Houston Rockets/Toronto Raptors; 1994 NBA MVP, 1994 NBA Finals and 1995 NBA Finals Champion, 1994 and 1995 NBA Finals MVP, NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team; Gold Medal, 1996 Olympic Games; 2008 Hall of Fame inductee |
| Charles "Bo" Outlaw | 1993 | Player for Los Angeles Clippers/Orlando Magic/Phoenix Suns/Memphis Grizzlies |
| Andre Owens | 2005 | Player for Utah Jazz |
| Gary Phillips | 1961 | Player for Boston Celtics/San Francisco Warriors |
| Devonta Pollard | 2016 | Player for BK Liepājas Lauvas/Koroivos B.C./Al Sadd Basketball Team/Niagara River Lions/Pioneros de Los Mochis |
| George Reynolds | 1969 | Player for Detroit Pistons |
| J'Wan Roberts | 2023 | |
| Galen Robinson Jr. | 2019 | Player for Austin Spurs |
| Dave Rose | 1983 | Member of Phi Slama Jama; head basketball coach at Brigham Young University |
| Walker Russell* | 1980 | Player for Detroit Pistons/Atlanta Hawks/Indiana Pacers; coach for Toronto Raptors; scout for New York Knicks |
| Marcus Sasser* | 2023 | Player for Detroit Pistons |
| Jamal Shead | 2024 | Player for Toronto Raptors |
| Jaaron Simmons* | 2014 | Transferred to Ohio; player for Union Neuchâtel Basket |
| Jonathon Simmons* | 2012 | Player for San Antonio Spurs/Orlando Magic |
| Byron Smith | 1991 | Head coach, Prairie View A&M |
| Ken Spain | 1969 | Player for Pittsburgh Condors (ABA) |
| Ollie Taylor | 1970 | Player for New York Nets/San Diego Conquistadors/Carolina Cougars (all ABA) |
| Álvaro Teherán | 1991 | Player in Colombia |
| TaShawn Thomas* | 2014 | Transferred to Oklahoma; player for Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. |
| Jahmar Thorpe | 2007 | Player for BG Göttingen/Austin Spurs/Vilpas Vikings/Bakken Bears/Changan Group Guangdong/Saigon Heat/Forssan Koripoiat/Saint-Brieuc Basket Cotes D'Armor/Randers Cimbria/Link Tochigi Brex/Levanga Hokkaido/Basket Esch/Sun Rockers Shibuya/Iwate Big Bulls/Osaka Evessa/Bambitious Nara/Tokyo Hachioji Bee Trains/Kumamoto Volters/Kawasaki Brave Thunders/Saga Ballooners/Sendai 89ers/Rizing Zephyr Fukuoka/Alvark Tokyo/Kanazawa Samuraiz |
| Louis Truscott | 2003 | Player for Gary Steelheads/London Towers/Asheville Altitude/BC Mureș |
| Joseph Tugler* | current student | |
| Milos Uzan* | current student | |
| Jarace Walker* | 2023 | Player for Indiana Pacers |
| Fabian White Jr. | 2022 | Player for South Bay Lakers |
| Rob Williams | 1982 | Player for Denver Nuggets |
| Rickie Winslow | 1987 | Player for Milwaukee Bucks |
| Joe Young* | 2013 | Transferred after sophomore year at UH to Oregon; player for Indiana Pacers |
| Michael Young | 2003 | Player for Phoenix Suns/Philadelphia 76ers/Los Angeles Clippers (finished UH degree after NBA career) |

#### Bobsled

| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
| Seun Adigun | 2009 | Bobsledder | |
| Ngozi Onwumere | 2014 | Bobsledder | |

#### Bodybuilding

| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
| Lee Labrada | 1984 | Bodybuilder, nutritionist; IFBB Mr. Universe weight-class world champion 1985, twice runner-up in Mr. Olympia international competition | |

#### Breakdancing

| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
| Jeffrey Louis | 2018 | Olympic breakdancer, aka B-Boy Jeffro | |

#### Football

| Kevin Kolb, football quarterback | Andre Ware, former football quarterback, Heisman Trophy recipient, College Football Hall of Fame member, sports analyst | Sebastian Vollmer, football offensive tackle | Wade Phillips, football defensive coordinator, former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, Denver Broncos, and Buffalo Bills |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Matthew Adams | 2018 | Linebacker, Indianapolis Colts |
| Willis Adams | 1982 | Wide receiver, Cleveland Browns |
| Allen Aldridge | 2002 | Lineman, Denver Broncos/Detroit Lions |
| Dalva Allen | 1957 | Lineman, Houston Oilers/Oakland Raiders, 1960 AFL Championship and 1961 AFL Championship winner |
| Kyle Allen | 2017 | Quarterback, Carolina Panthers/Washington Football Team |
| Anthony Alridge | 2008 | Wide receiver, Denver Broncos (also played running back while at UH) |
| Kimble Anders | — | Fullback, Kansas City Chiefs, 1995 Pro Bowl, 1996 Pro Bowl, and 1997 Pro Bowl player |
| David Anenih | 2022 | Linebacker, Phoenix Cardinals |
| Donnie Avery | 2008 | Wide receiver, St. Louis Rams |
| Demarcus Ayers* | 2015 | Wide receiver, drafted by Pittsburgh Steelers |
| Joey Banes | — | Lineman, Indianapolis Colts |
| Don Bass | — | Tight end, Cincinnati Bengals/New Orleans Saints |
| Jackie Battle | — | Running back, Dallas Cowboys/Kansas City Chiefs |
| Tom Beer | 1971 | Tight end, Denver Broncos/Boston–New England Patriots |
| Val Belcher | 1977 | Lineman, Ottawa Rough Riders/Winnipeg Blue Bombers (CFL) |
| Adriano Belli | 2001 | Lineman, Atlanta Falcons/New York Giants/Cleveland Browns (NFL); Las Vegas Outlaws (XFL); BC Lions/Montreal Alouettes/Hamilton Tiger-Cats/Toronto Argonauts (CFL) |
| Earl Bennett | 2022 | Director of player development, Vanderbilt Commodores football; previously played six seasons as wide receiver for NFL Chicago Bears |
| Royce Berry | — | Linebacker, Cincinnati Bengals/Chicago Bears |
| Dan Birdwell | — | Lineman, Oakland Raiders, 1968 Pro Bowl player |
| Alois Blackwell | 1978 | Running back, Dallas Cowboys |
| Tyus Bowser | 2016 | Linebacker, Baltimore Ravens |
| Kent Branstetter | 1974 | Lineman, Green Bay Packers |
| Greg Brezina | 1970 | Linebacker, Atlanta Falcons, 1969 Pro Bowl Player |
| Bill Bridges | — | Lineman, Buffalo Bills |
| Art Briles* | 1977 | Head coach at UH and Baylor University |
| Kendal Briles | 2005 | Quarterback, wide receiver in college; assistant coach for Baylor, Florida Atlantic, Houston |
| Terrance Broadway* | 2012 | Quarterback, transferred from UH to Louisiana–Lafayette |
| Charlie Brown | — | Offensive tackle, Oakland Raiders |
| Don Brown | — | Running back, Houston Oilers |
| Guy Brown | — | Linebacker, Dallas Cowboys |
| Sam Brown* | 2023 | Wide receiver; transferred from UH to Miami |
| Sammy Brown | 2012 | Linebacker, St. Louis Rams |
| Wilbert Brown | — | Lineman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers/Washington Redskins/New England Patriots |
| Reggie Burnette | 1991 | Linebacker, Green Bay Packers/Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Bo Burris | — | Defensive back, New Orleans Saints |
| Glenn Cadrez | 1993 | Linebacker, New York Jets/Denver Broncos/Kansas City Chiefs |
| Patrick Carr | 2020 | Running back, Seattle Seahawks, Milano Seamen |
| Paul Carr | 1956 | Defensive back, San Francisco 49ers |
| Tyron Carrier | 2012 | Wide receiver, Montreal Alouettes (CFL) |
| Nelson Ceaser | 2023 | Lineman, signed by Seattle Seahawks |
| Zeon Chriss | current student | Quarterback |
| Rusty Clark | 1970 | Quarterback, Edmonton Eskimos, BC Lions |
| Bobby Clatterbuck | 1953 | Quarterback, New York Giants |
| Chuck Clements | 1996 | Quarterback, New York Jets |
| Mike Clendenen | 1984 | Kicker, Denver Broncos |
| James Cleveland | 2011 | Wide receiver, Dallas Cowboys, New Mexico Stars (LSFL) |
| Larry Cole* | 1967 | Lineman, Dallas Cowboys; transferred from Houston to Hawaii |
| Jim Colvin | 1959 | Lineman, Baltimore Colts/Dallas Cowboys/New York Giants |
| Billy Cosh | 2015 | Quarterback; college head coach |
| Carl Cunningham | 1966 | Linebacker, Denver Broncos/New Orleans Saints |
| Tank Dell* | 2023 | Wide receiver, Houston Texans |
| Jim Dickey | 1957 | Head coach, Kansas State Wildcats |
| Tom Dimmick | 1955 | Lineman/linebacker, Philadelphia Eagles/Dallas Texans (AFL) |
| James Dixon | 1988 | Wide receiver, Dallas Cowboys |
| Quinten Dormady* | 2019 | Quarterback, Orlando Guardians (transferred to Central Michigan after one year at UH) |
| Steven Dunbar Jr. | 2018 | Wide receiver, Edmonton Elks |
| Patrick Edwards | 2012 | Wide receiver, Detroit Lions |
| Emeke Egbule | 2018 | Linebacker, Los Angeles Chargers |
| Kenneth Farrow | 2015 | Running back, San Diego Chargers |
| Wiley Feagin | 1960 | Lineman, Baltimore Colts/Washington Redskins |
| Simon Fletcher | 1984 | Lineman, Denver Broncos |
| Don Flynn | 1956 | Defensive back, Dallas Texans (AFL)/New York Jets |
| Charlie Ford | 1970 | Defensive back, Chicago Bears/Philadelphia Eagles/Buffalo Bills/New York Giants |
| Robert Ford | 1973 | Assistant coach for multiple professional and college teams |
| Eddie Foster | 1976 | Split end, Houston Oilers |
| Charlie Fowler | 1966 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins |
| Nolan Frese | 2015 | Long snapper, Seattle Seahawks |
| Ben Fricke | 1997 | Lineman, Dallas Cowboys |
| Thomas Gafford | 2004 | Lineman, Green Bay Packers/Kansas City Chiefs |
| Terrance Ganaway* | 2008 | Running back, New York Jets; transferred from UH to Baylor after his freshman season |
| Willie Gaston | 2007 | Defensive back, Baltimore Ravens |
| Steve George | 1972 | Lineman, St. Louis Cardinals/Atlanta Falcons |
| Paul Gipson | 1968 | Fullback, Atlanta Falcons/Detroit Lions/New England Patriots |
| Mike Gisler | 1991 | Lineman, New England Patriots/New York Jets |
| Matthew Golden* | 2023 | Wide receiver; transferred to Texas |
| Mike Green | 1999 | Running back, Tennessee Titans/Cincinnati Bengals |
| Deontay Greenberry* | 2014 | Wide receiver |
| Rex Hadnot | 2003 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins |
| Charlie Hall | 1967 | Linebacker, Cleveland Browns |
| Logan Hall | 2021 | Lineman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Brandon Hartson | 2013 | Lineman, Chicago Bears |
| A. J. Haulcy* | current student | Defensive back |
| D. J. Hayden | 2013 | Defensive back, Oakland Raiders |
| Manny Hazard | 1991 | Wide receiver, Toronto Argonauts; set NCAA record for receptions in a season |
| Ken Hebert | 1967 | Wide receiver, Pittsburgh Steelers |
| Clay Helton | 1994 | Quarterback, became head coach at USC |
| Tyson Helton | 1999 | Quarterback, became head coach at Western Kentucky |
| Charlie Hennigan | — | Wide receiver, Houston Oilers (attended UH after football career) |
| Jimmy Herndon | 1995 | Lineman, Jacksonville Jaguars/Chicago Bears/Houston Texans |
| Carl Hilton | 1985 | Tight end, Minnesota Vikings |
| Gus Hollomon | 1967 | Defensive back, Denver Broncos/New York Jets |
| Phillip Hunt | 2009 | Defensive end, Winnipeg Blue Bombers/Philadelphia Eagles |
| David Hunter | 2012 | Defensive lineman, Houston Texans |
| Joe Bob Isbell | 1961 | Lineman, Dallas Cowboys/Cleveland Browns |
| Johnnie Jackson | 1988 | Defensive back, San Francisco 49ers/Green Bay Packers |
| William Jackson III | 2015 | Cornerback, Cincinnati Bengals/Washington Football Team |
| Curley Johnson | 1956 | Lineman/running back/kicker, Dallas Texans (AFL)/New York Jets/New York Giants |
| Isaiah Johnson | 2018 | Cornerback, Oakland Raiders/Pittsburgh Steelers |
| Josh Jones | 2020 | Offensive lineman, drafted by Arizona Cardinals |
| Marcus Jones | 2021 | Defensive back, return specialist, New England Patriots |
| Melvin Jones | 1979 | Lineman, Washington Redskins |
| Case Keenum | 2010 | Quarterback, Houston Texans/St. Louis Rams/Los Angeles Rams/Minnesota Vikings/Washington Redskins/Cleveland Browns/Buffalo Bills; during UH career became all-time NCAA FBS record holder in career passing yards, total offense, passing touchdowns, completions, 300-yard games, 5000-yard seasons |
| J. D. Kimmel | 1952 | Lineman, Washington Redskins/Green Bay Packers |
| D'Eriq King | 2019 | Quarterback, transferred from Houston to Miami, signed by New England Patriots |
| David Klingler | 1991 | Quarterback, Cincinnati Bengals/Oakland Raiders/Green Bay Packers |
| Jimmy Klingler | 1994 | Quarterback, Birmingham Barracudas/Texas Terror |
| Wade Koehl | | Linebacker, Team Texas |
| Kevin Kolb | 2006 | Quarterback, Philadelphia Eagles/Arizona Cardinals/Buffalo Bills |
| Tom Landry | 1952 | Defensive back, New York Yankees (AAFC)/New York Giants, 1956 NFL Championship winner; coach, Dallas Cowboys, Super Bowl VI and Super Bowl XII champion, Pro Football Hall of Fame coach inductee (1990), inventor of the 4-3 defense formation |
| Lamar Lathon | 1989 | Linebacker, Houston Oilers/Carolina Panthers, 1996 Pro Bowl player |
| Richie Leone | 2013 | Punter and kicker, BC Lions |
| Harold Lewis | 1958 | Running back/defensive back, Baltimore Colts/Buffalo Bills/Oakland Raiders |
| Errol Linden | 1960 | Lineman, Cleveland Browns/Minnesota Vikings/Atlanta Falcons/New Orleans Saints |
| Everett Little | 1975 | Lineman, Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Eugene Lockhart | 1983 | Linebacker, Dallas Cowboys/New England Patriots, 1989 All-Pro Team |
| Randy Love | 1978 | Running back, St. Louis Cardinals |
| Josh Lovelady | 2000 | Lineman, Detroit Lions |
| Cameron Malveaux | 2016 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins |
| Vincent Marshall | 2007 | Wide receiver, Saskatchewan Roughriders/Calgary Stampeders/Winnipeg Blue Bombers |
| Dedric Mathis | 1995 | Defensive back, Indianapolis Colts |
| Matt Mattox | 2004 | Lineman; assistant coach at Houston and Texas |
| Joey Mbu | 2015 | Defensive tackle, Atlanta Falcons |
| Alton McCaskill* | 2022 | Running back; transferred to Colorado |
| Marcus McGraw | 2012 | Linebacker, Arizona Cardinals |
| Audray McMillian | 1984 | Defensive back, Houston Oilers/Minnesota Vikings |
| Warren McVea | 1967 | Running back, Cincinnati Bengals/Kansas City Chiefs, Super Bowl IV champion |
| Mekhi Mews | current student | Wide receiver |
| Brandon Middleton | 2003 | Wide receiver, St. Louis Rams |
| Ostell Miles | 1991 | Running back, Cincinnati Bengals |
| Hamin Milligan | 2001 | Defensive specialist, Dallas Desperados (Arena Football League) |
| Hanik Milligan | 2001 | Defensive back, San Diego Chargers, 2006 Pro Bowl player |
| Billy Milner | 1994 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins/St. Louis Rams |
| Leonard Mitchell | 1980 | Lineman, Philadelphia Eagles/Atlanta Falcons |
| Mack Mitchell | 1974 | Lineman, Cleveland Browns/Cincinnati Bengals |
| Alton Montgomery | 1989 | Defensive back, Denver Broncos/Atlanta Falcons |
| Glenn Montgomery | 1988 | Lineman, Houston Oilers/Seattle Seahawks |
| Monty Montgomery | 1996 | Defensive back, Indianapolis Colts/San Francisco 49ers/Philadelphia Eagles/New Orleans Saints |
| Barrick Nealy* | 2003 | Quarterback, Calgary Stampeders |
| Robert Newhouse | 1971 | Running back, Dallas Cowboys, Super Bowl XI champion |
| Riley Odoms | 1971 | Lineman, Denver Broncos, 1973 Pro Bowl, 1974 Pro Bowl, 1975 Pro Bowl, and 1978 Pro Bowl player |
| Alfred Oglesby | 1990 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins/Green Bay Packers/New York Jets/Cincinnati Bengals |
| John O'Korn* | 2014 | Quarterback; transferred from UH to Michigan |
| Ed Oliver* | 2018 | Lineman, Buffalo Bills |
| Fendi Onobun | 2010 | Tight end, St. Louis Rams/Chicago Bears |
| Chad O'Shea | 1995 | Coaching staffs of Minnesota Vikings, New England Patriots |
| Gervarrius Owens | 2023 | Defensive back, New York Giants |
| Derek Parish | 2022 | Fullback, lineman, Jacksonville Jaguars |
| Patrick Paul | 2023 | Lineman, drafted by Miami Dolphins |
| Johnny Peacock | 1968 | Defensive back, Houston Oilers |
| Kenny Perry | 1992 | College and XFL coach |
| Jason Phillips | 1988 | Wide receiver, Detroit Lions/Atlanta Falcons |
| Wade Phillips | 1968 | Head coach of Dallas Cowboys; previous coaching positions with Houston Oilers, New Orleans Saints, Philadelphia Eagles, Denver Broncos, Buffalo Bills, Atlanta Falcons, San Diego Chargers |
| Dickie Post | 1966 | Running back, San Diego Chargers/Denver Broncos/Houston Oilers |
| Joffrey Reynolds | 2002 | Running back, St. Louis Rams |
| Elandon Roberts* | 2015 | Linebacker, New England Patriots |
| Willie Roberts | 1969 | Defensive back, Chicago Bears |
| SirVincent Rogers | 2009 | Offensive lineman, Toronto Argonauts |
| Stanford Routt | 2004 | Cornerback, Oakland Raiders |
| Kody Russey | 2022 | Lineman, New England Patriots |
| Nick Saenz | 2012 | Defensive back, Buffalo Bills |
| Ra'Shaad Samples | 2018 | Assistant coach, Los Angeles Rams |
| Rocky Schwartz | 2008 | Safety, signed by New Orleans Saints |
| Darrell Shepard* | 1979 | Quarterback, transferred to University of Oklahoma |
| Mike Simpson | 1968 | Defensive back, San Francisco 49ers |
| Charles Sims | 2012 | Running back, Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Antowain Smith | 1996 | Running back, Buffalo Bills/New England Patriots/Tennessee Titans/New Orleans Saints/Houston Texans, Super Bowl XXXVI and Super Bowl XXXVIII champion; inventor of the "deke" move |
| Donovan Smith | current student | Quarterback |
| Lamar Smith | 1993 | Running back, Seattle Seahawks/Miami Dolphins/New Orleans Saints/Carolina Panthers |
| Marcus Spriggs | 1996 | Lineman, Buffalo Bills/Miami Dolphins/Green Bay Packers |
| Marquez Stevenson | 2021 | Wide receiver, Buffalo Bills |
| Phillip Steward | 2013 | Linebacker, St. Louis Rams |
| Rich Stotter | 1967 | Linebacker, Houston Oilers |
| Jim Strong | 1969 | Running back, San Francisco 49ers/New Orleans Saints |
| Grant Stuard | 2021 | Linebacker, Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Pat Studstill | 1959 | Wide receiver, Detroit Lions/Los Angeles Rams/New England Patriots |
| Hosea Taylor | 1980 | Lineman, Baltimore Colts |
| Earl Thomas | 1970 | Wide receiver/tight end, Chicago Bears/St. Louis Cardinals/Houston Oilers |
| Randy Thornton | 1987 | Denver Broncos, Super Bowl XXXII and Super Bowl XXXIII champion |
| Nick Thurman | 2018 | Lineman, New England Patriots |
| Matangi Tonga | 2010 | Football player |
| Clayton Tune* | 2023 | Quarterback |
| Payton Turner | 2021 | Defensive end, drafted by New Orleans Saints |
| T. J. Turner | 1985 | Lineman, Miami Dolphins |
| Craig Veasey | 1989 | Lineman, Pittsburgh Steelers/Houston Oilers/Miami Dolphins |
| Sebastian Vollmer | 2009 | Lineman, New England Patriots |
| Greg Ward* | 2016 | Wide receiver, Philadelphia Eagles; was a starting quarterback at UH |
| Andre Ware | 1989 | Quarterback, Oakland Raiders/Detroit Lions/CFL, Recipient of the 1989 Heisman Trophy and Davey O'Brien Award |
| Chuck Weatherspoon | 1990 | Running back, Detroit Lions/Philadelphia Eagles/Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| Hogan Wharton | 1958 | Lineman, Houston Oilers |
| Wilson Whitley | 1976 | Lineman, Cincinnati Bengals/Houston Oilers |
| Damarion Williams | 2021 | Defensive back, Baltimore Ravens |
| Jarrid Williams* | 2020 | Lineman, transferred from UH to Miami |
| Jermaine Williams | 1996 | Running back, Jacksonville Jaguars/Oakland Raiders |
| Shomari Williams* | 2009 | Lineman, Saskatchewan Roughriders |
| Brandon Wilson | 2016 | Defensive back, Cincinnati Bengals |
| Howard Wilson | 2016 | Defensive back, Cleveland Browns |
| Elmo Wright | 1970 | Wide receiver, Kansas City Chiefs/New England Patriots/Houston Oilers, inventor of the touchdown victory dance |
| George Wright | 1969 | Lineman, Baltimore Colts |

#### Golf

| Fred Couples, PGA Tour and Champions Tour golfer | Steve Elkington, PGA Tour golfer | Fuzzy Zoeller, PGA Tour and Champions Tour golfer |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Rex Baxter | 1957 | 1 PGA victory |
| Larry Beck | 1960 | PGA Tour professional |
| Homero Blancas | 1962 | 4 PGA victories, 1 Senior victory; 1965 PGA Rookie of the Year, US Ryder Cup team; record holder for lowest round in the history of competitive golf |
| Billy Ray Brown | 1985 | 3 PGA victories before injuries ended career |
| Fred Couples | 1980 | 15 PGA victories including 1 major (1992 Masters); first American to reach #1 world rank; World Golf Hall of Fame |
| Richard Crawford | 1961 | 2 PGA victories |
| Jacky Cupit | 1959 | 4 PGA victories |
| Steve Elkington | 1985 | 10 PGA victories including 1 major (1995 PGA Championship) |
| Brad Fabel* | 1975 | PGA Tour professional, 2 Nationwide Tour victories |
| Nick Faldo* | 1976 | 9 PGA victories including 6 majors (1987, 1990, and 1992 British Opens; 1989, 1990, and 1996 Masters); 30 European Tour victories; held world #1 ranking for 98 weeks; World Golf Hall of Fame |
| Keith Fergus | 1976 | 3 PGA victories, 2 Nationwide Tour victories, 1 Champions Tour victory |
| Ed Fiori* | 1977 | 4 PGA victories, 1 Champions Tour victory |
| Marty Fleckman | 1966 | 1 PGA victory |
| Kirk Hanefeld | 1977 | PGA, Champions tours |
| Anders Hansen | 1995 | PGA Tour professional, 3 European Tour victories, 2 Sunshine Tour victories |
| Leonie Harm | 2019 | Champion, The Women's Amateur Championship |
| Butch Harmon | — | Golf instructor; coached Tiger Woods and many other PGA champions |
| Jeff Hawkes | 1975 | PGA Tour professional, 1 European Tour victory, 1 Southern Africa Tour victory |
| Babe Hiskey | 1962 | 2 PGA victories |
| David Ishii | 1977 | 1 PGA victory, 14 Japan Golf Tour victories |
| Tom Jenkins | 1971 | 1 PGA victory, 7 Champions Tour victories |
| Bruce Lietzke | 1973 | 13 PGA victories, 7 Champions Tour victories including Senior Open |
| John Mahaffey | 1969 | 10 PGA Victories including 1 major (1978 PGA Championship) |
| Dave Marr | 1952 | 3 PGA victories including 1 major (1965 PGA Championship); PGA Golfer of the Year for 1965 |
| Fred Marti | 1963 | |
| Blaine McCallister | 1981 | 5 PGA victories, 1 Champions Tour victory |
| Wade Ormsby* | 2001 | Asian Tour, European Tour, others |
| Phil Rodgers | 1958 | 5 PGA victories |
| Bill Rogers | 1973 | 6 PGA victories including 1 major (1981 British Open); 1981 PGA Golfer of the Year |
| Jack Rule, Jr.* | 1959 | 2 PGA Tour victories |
| Jay Sigel* | — | PGA Tour professional, 8 Champions Tour victories |
| Jim Simons* | 1969 | 3 PGA victories |
| Mike Standly | 1986 | 1 PGA victory |
| Warren Sye | 1980 | 2 Canadian Amateur Championship victories |
| Rocky Thompson | 1962 | PGA Tour professional, 3 Champions Tour victories |
| Hal Underwood | 1967 | 2 PGA Tour of Australasia victories, 1 European Tour victory |
| Bobby Wadkins* | 1970 | PGA Tour professional, 1 European Tour victory, 2 Japan Golf Tour victories, 4 Champions Tour victories |
| Kermit Zarley | 1963 | 2 PGA victories, 1 Senior PGA victory |
| Fuzzy Zoeller* | 1973 | 10 PGA victories including 2 majors (1979 Masters, 1984 U. S. Open), 2 Champions Tour victories including Senior PGA |

#### Gymnastics

| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
| Shannon Miller | 2003 | Most decorated American gymnast | |
| Mo Mitchell | 1995 | Gymnastics coach, University of Kentucky | |

#### Swimming and diving

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Ang Peng Siong | 1984 | Swimming |
| Micaela Bouter | 2018 | Diver, qualified for South Africa Olympic team |
| Tania Cagnotto* | 2007 | Olympic medalist for Italy; first Italian female diver to win a medal in a World Championship |
| Carin Cone | 1962 | Olympic medalist, set 7 world records; featured on cover of Sports Illustrated |
| Jane Figueiredo | 1987 | Diver, UH diving coach |
| Hilary Grivich* | 1997 | Nationally ranked diver at UH; had been an Olympic medalist and US junior all-around champion in gymnastics as a teen |
| Vera Ilyina | — | Olympic medalist for Russia |
| Anne Jardin | — | Olympic medalist for Canada; set world record in 50m freestyle |
| David Lowe | — | Olympic medalist for Great Britain |
| Yuliya Pakhalina | 2002 | Won two silver medals for Russian diving team at 2008 Olympics |
| Anastasia Pozdniakova | 2009 | Won silver medal for Russian diving team at 2008 Olympics |
| Teresa Rivera | — | Pan-American Games medalist for Mexico |
| Michelle Smith de Bruin | — | Swimming |

#### Tennis

| Name | Class year | Notability | Reference(s) |
| Sarah Borwell | 2002 | 65 in the world for doubles, number 1 GBR doubles player, played every Grand Slam, represented Great Britain 3 times and won a bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games Player for New York Buzz (WTT) | |
| Ricardo Ycaza | — | World top-ten junior, Davis Cup stalwart, world top-fifty touring professional | |

#### Track and field

* Carl Lewis, track and field legend, 10 Olympic medals (9 gold, 1 bronze)
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Jenny Adams | 2000 | Hurdler |
| Seun Adigun | 2009 | Hurdler, African champion |
| Kirk Baptiste | 1985 | Sprinter |
| Brianne Bethel | 2020 | Sprinter |
| Andrea Blackett | 2001 | Sprinter; coach at Rice University |
| Mario Burke | 2019 | Sprinter, Barbados national champion |
| Cameron Burrell | 2018 | Sprinter |
| Dawn Burrell | 1996 | World champion long jumper |
| Leroy Burrell | 1990 | World record-breaking sprinter, replaced track coach Tom Tellez |
| Chris Carter | 2011 | Triple jumper |
| Kym Carter | | Heptathlete |
| Ollan Cassell | 1961 | Sprinter, Olympic gold medalist |
| Cletus Clark | 1985 | Hurdler, Pan American Games gold medalist |
| Michelle Collins | | Sprinter |
| Dennis Darling | — | Sprinter, World Championships medalist for Bahamas |
| Joe DeLoach | | Sprinter, 1988 Olympic 200 m champion |
| Tristan Evelyn | 2020 | Sprinter |
| Stanley Floyd | — | Sprinter, set several world records |
| Sandra Glover | 1991 | Hurdler |
| Elijah Hall | 2018 | Sprinter |
| Darrell Hill* | 2012 | Shot put; transferred from UH to Penn State |
| Leonard Hilton | 1971 | Long-distance runner |
| Louie Hinchliffe* | current student | Sprinter, Olympic medalist for Great Britain |
| Obi Igbokwe | 2019 | Sprinter |
| Grégoire Illorson | | Sprinter |
| Jolanda Jones | 1995 | City of Houston Council Member, U.S. heptathlon champion, contestant on Survivor |
| Amere Lattin | 2019 | Hurdler |
| Allan Lawrence | 1963 | Distance runner, Olympic medalist for Australia, set several US records |
| Carl Lewis | 1985 | Track and field legend, 10 Olympic medals (9 gold, 1 bronze) in long jump and sprint events |
| Carol Lewis | 1989 | Record-breaking long jumper; bronze medal, World Championship (1983) |
| Shaun Maswanganyi* | current student | Sprinter, Olympic medalist for South Africa |
| Kahmari Montgomery | 2019 | Sprinter |
| Errol Nolan | 2014 | Sprinter; gold and bronze medals at World Junior Championships |
| Jack Parrington | | Sprinter |
| Frank Rutherford | 1988 | Triple jumper, Olympic medalist (first ever Olympic medals for Bahamas); awarded Order of the British Empire |
| Lyndon Sands | | Triple jumper |
| LaMont Smith | | Sprinter |
| Brian Stanton | | High jumper |
| Cecilia Tamayo-Garza | 2022 | Sprinter |
| Nuuausala Tuilefano | — | Shotputter |

#### Volleyball

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Lucille Charuk | 2012 | Canadian National Volleyball Team |
| Rita Crockett* | 1977 | Volleyball |
| Flo Hyman* | 1977 | Volleyball |
| Rose Magers | 1981 | Volleyball |
| Sophie Paine | 2016 | Australian National Volleyball Team |

### Business

| Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics | John Moores, Co-founder of BMC Software, co-owner of San Diego Padres | Samuel DiPiazza, CEO of PricewaterhouseCoopers |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Mary Kay Ash* | 1943 | Founder, Mary Kay Cosmetics |
| Bruce D. Broussard | 1989 | CEO and president, Humana |
| Rod Canion | 1966 | Co-founder, Compaq |
| Samuel DiPiazza | 1973 | Chairman and Global CEO, PricewaterhouseCoopers |
| Tilman J. Fertitta | | President and CEO, Landry's Restaurants |
| Alan Gershenhorn | 1982 | Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, United Parcel Service |
| Karen Katz | 1982 | President and CEO, Neiman Marcus |
| Kenneth Lay | 1970 | Former CEO, Enron |
| Aylwin Lewis | 1990 | President and CEO, Kmart, Sears |
| James E. Lyon | | Houston developer and Republican political activist |
| Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel | | Chef and restaurateur |
| Mike McShaffry | 1990 | Video-game programmer, entrepreneur, author; founder, Tornado Alley |
| Jack B. Moore | 1977 | President and CEO, Cameron |
| John Moores | 1970 | Founder, Peregrine Systems; co-founder, BMC Software; owner, San Diego Padres; major contributor to University of Houston and San Diego State University |
| Matt Mullenweg* | 2004 | Founding developer of WordPress; founder of Automattic |
| Dominic Ng | 1980 | Chairman and CEO, East West Bancorp, Inc. |
| Marvin Odum | 1995 | President, Shell Oil Company; CEO, Intergen |
| Dan Rapoport | 1991 | President of Rapoport Capital, financier and philanthropist |
| Kristy Scott | 2016 | Social media personality and content creator |
| John Stubblefield | 1970 | Former CFO, Sysco Corporation |
| Ramiz Tafilaj | | Oil business executive; activist who has helped liberate Kosovo and Albania |
| Henry Taub* | | Founder, Automatic Data Processing |
| Kenneth Thomas | 1972 | CFO, United States Chess Federation |
| David A. Williams | 1992 | President and CEO, Make-A-Wish Foundation |
| Bruce Williamson | 1995 | Chairman, CEO, and President, Dynegy |
| Welcome W. Wilson, Sr. | 1949 | Chairman of GSL Welcome Group, chairman of University of Houston System Board of Regents |

### Government, politics, and law
#### Government

* Margaret Spellings, former U.S. Secretary of Education
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Carol E. Dinkins | 1971 | Former U.S. Deputy Attorney General |
| Holly Ham | 1994 | Executive director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders at the U.S. Department of Education |
| Michael P. Jackson | 1977 | Former United States Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security and Former United States Deputy Secretary of Transportation |
| Kamal Kharazi | 1976 | Former Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs; former Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations |
| Brian D. Montgomery | 1986 | Assistant Secretary for Housing and Former Deputy Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary |
| Peter Roussel | 1965 | Former White House Deputy Press Secretary |
| Margaret Spellings | 1979 | 8th United States Secretary of Education |
| Philip D. Zelikow | 1977 | Executive director of 9/11 Commission |

#### Politics

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Alma A. Allen | 1992 | Texas State Representative |
| Thad Altman | 1976 & 1977 | Current Florida State Representative; former Florida State Senator; former Brevard County Commissioner |
| Carol Alvarado | 1992 & 2008 | Texas State Representative |
| Ray Barnhart | 1993 (M.A. in speech and theatre) | State representative from Pasadena from 1973–75, Republican Party state chairman from 1977–79, and director of the Federal Highway Administration from 1981–87 |
| Michael Berry | 1993 | Former Houston city councilman and current talk show host |
| Elton Bomer | | Texas state representative from Anderson County and former Texas Secretary of State |
| Peter Hoyt Brown | 1958 | Houston city councilman, 2009 Houston Mayoral Candidate |
| Briscoe Cain | | Texas State Representative for District 128, beginning 2017; lawyer in Deer Park; received B.S. in Communications |
| Bill Callegari | 1972 | Texas State Representative, 2001–2015; engineer and businessman |
| Robert R. Casey | 1934 | Former Texas State Representative; former U.S. Congressman |
| David Cobb* | 1993 | 2004 presidential candidate of the Green Party |
| Henry Cuellar* | | United States and Texas State Representative |
| John E. Davis | | Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 129 in Houston since 1999 |
| Tom DeLay | 1970 | Former U.S. Congressman; former Deputy Minority Whip; former House Majority Whip; former House Majority Leader |
| Eni Faleomavaega | 1972 | U.S. Congressman, Delegate to the U.S. House of Representatives from American Samoa; former Lieutenant Governor of American Samoa; former Attorney General of American Samoa |
| Jessica Farrar | 1995 | Texas State Representative |
| Gene Green | 1971 | U.S. Congressman |
| Henry Grover | 1962 | Texas Republican politician, gubernatorial nominee in 1972 |
| David Heitmeier | 1987 | Member of the Louisiana State Senate for New Orleans; optometrist |
| Al Hoang | 1989 | |
| Fred Hofheinz | 1964 | Houston mayor, son of Roy Hofheinz |
| Roy Hofheinz | 1931 | Houston mayor, Harris County judge, Texas State Representative; also entrepreneur who led efforts to create Houston Colt .45s, Astrodome, Astroturf |
| Dean A. Hrbacek | 1986 | Former mayor of Sugar Land, Texas |
| Lacey Hull | | Texas State Representative |
| Daylin Leach | 1986 | Pennsylvania State Representative |
| Melissa Noriega | 1977 | Houston City Councilperson |
| Rick Noriega | 1984 | Former Texas State Representative |
| Colion Noir | 2005 | National Rifle Association spokesperson |
| Dora Olivo | 1981 | Texas State Representative |
| Ted Poe | 1973 | U.S. Congressman |
| Howard Wallace Pollock | 1955 | Former U.S. Congressman |
| Barbara Ann Radnofsky | 1976 | U.S. Senate nominee, Texas Attorney General candidate |
| Richard T. Schulze* | 1949 | Former U.S. Congressman |
| Steve Stockman | 1990 | U.S. Representative from Texas, 1995–97, 2013-; candidate for U.S. Senate in 2014 Republican primary |
| Azam Khan Swati | – | Member, Pakistani Senate |
| Robert Talton | 1971 | Member of the Texas House of Representatives from 1993 to 2009; candidate for Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court in 2014 Republican primary election |
| Senfronia Thompson | 1996 | Texas State Representative |
| Sylvester Turner | 1977 | Texas State Representative, mayor of Houston, United States House of Representatives |
| Leticia R. Van de Putte* | | Texas State Senator |
| Richard Viguerie | 1958 | Conservative activist, writer |
| Hubert Vo | 1983 | Texas State Representative; first and only Vietnamese American to be elected to the Texas Legislature |
| Armando Walle* | | Texas State Representative |
| Elizabeth Warren | 1970 | United States Senator from Massachusetts; special advisor of U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; chair of Congressional Oversight Panel; Harvard law professor; bankruptcy expert; one of Time magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World |
| Royce West | 1979 | Texas State Senator |
| James E. White | M.S. 2010 and Ph.D. 2012 | Member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 19 in Tyler County; educator and rancher |
| John Whitmire | 1975 | Texas State Senator, Dean of the Texas Senate |
| Kathryn J. Whitmire | 1977 | Former City of Houston Mayor |
| Martha Wong | 1976 | Former Texas State Representative |
| Beverly Woolley | 1993 | Texas State Representative |
| Joseph P. Wyatt, Jr.* | 1970 | U.S. Congressman |
| Judith Zaffirini | | Texas State Senator |

#### Law and law enforcement

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Alfred H. Bennett | 1988 | U. S. district judge |
| Tony Buzbee | 1997 | Trial lawyer |
| Larry Joe Doherty | 1970 | Judge for TV show Texas Justice, 2008 Congressional candidate |
| Vanessa Gilmore | 1981 | US Federal judge (youngest in the nation at the time of her appointment) |
| Richard "Racehorse" Haynes | 1956 | Criminal Defense attorney |
| Randy Hendricks | 1968 | Sports attorney and agent |
| Patricia R. "Pat" Lykos | 1967 | Harris County District Attorney |
| I. D. McMaster | 1950 | US District Judge |
| Gray H. Miller | 1974 | US Federal judge |
| David Newell | 1993 | Judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 9 |
| John O'Quinn | 1967 | Highest paid attorney in Texas |
| Ruby Kless Sondock | 1962 | First female Texas Supreme Court justice |

### Religion

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Shaker Elsayed | | Muslim Imam of the Dar Al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church, Virginia |
| René Henry Gracida | 1950 | Former Catholic bishop |
| Hal Lindsey* | | Christian evangelist and writer |
| Victoria Osteen* | | Co-pastor of Lakewood Church, the largest church in the nation; spouse of Joel Osteen |
| Abu Ammaar Yasir Qadhi | | Muslim scholar, writer, educator |
| Hyman Judah Schachtel | 1948 | Longtime Houston rabbi and deliverer of Lyndon B. Johnson's inaugural prayer |
| Priscilla Shirer | | Christian speaker, author |
| Thomas B. Warren | | Church of Christ minister and Restorationist Philosopher and Theologian |
| Kenneth W. Wright | | Church of Christ minister |

### Science and technology
#### Astronauts

| Bonnie J. Dunbar, former NASA astronaut | Bernard A. Harris, Jr., former NASA astronaut |
| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Maurizio Cheli | 1994 | ESA astronaut |
| Nancy J. Currie-Gregg | 1997 | NASA astronaut |
| Bonnie J. Dunbar | 1983 | Former NASA astronaut; president of the Museum of Flight; member of National Academy of Engineering |
| William Frederick Fisher | 1980 | Former NASA astronaut; longest space walk in history |
| Bernard A. Harris, Jr. | 1978 | Former NASA astronaut; first African-American to walk in space |
| Donald Holmquest | 1988 | NASA astronaut |
| Akihiko Hoshide | 1997 | JAXA astronaut |
| John D. Olivas | 1993 | NASA astronaut |
| Rex J. Walheim | 1989 | NASA astronaut |

#### Other scientists and engineers

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Abdeldjelil Belarbi | 1986 | Chair, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Houston |
| Brigitte Boisselier | | Raëlian bishop and CEO of Clonaid |
| Savas Dimopoulos | | Particle physicist |
| Eddy Goldfarb* | 1942 | Invented chattering teeth and hundreds of other toys |
| Duy-Loan Le | 1989 | Engineer |
| Emily Leproust | 2001 | Bioscientist, entrepreneur, CEO and co-founder of Twist Bioscience |
| Keqin Li | 1990 | Computer scientist, SUNY Distinguished Professor, IEEE Fellow |
| David W. Murhammer | 1989 | Department Chair of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at the University of Iowa |
| Dennis Paul | | Engineer; Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives from Harris County; earlier worked to clean up Armand Bayou |

### Other

| Name | Class year | Notability |
| Justin Whitlock Dart, Jr. | 1953 | Activist, father of Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 |
| Lynn Eusan | 1970 | First black Homecoming queen at UH |
| Antonio Molina | | Member of first same-sex married couple in Texas; played football for UH Cougars |
| Olga Rodriguez | 1970 | Chicano activist |
| Charles Rogers | | Implicated in John F. Kennedy assassination |
| Jon Schillaci | | former fugitive on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives |
| Aafia Siddiqui* | 1991 | Neuroscientist (alleged Al-Qaeda operative), convicted of assaulting with a deadly weapon and attempting to kill U.S. soldiers and FBI agents. |
| Andrea Yates* | 1984 | Drowned her five children; highly publicized legal case ensued |

## Honorary degrees

Individuals who have received honorary degrees from the University of Houston include Edward Albee, Donald Barthelme, Irvin Borish, George H. W. Bush, Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier, Ernesto Cortes, Hugh Roy Cullen, Jan de Hartog, Loretta Devine, Christoph Eschenbach, Cristina Rivera Garza, David Gockley, Glenn Goerke, Barron Hilton, Eric Hilton, Gerald D. Hines, Oveta Culp Hobby, William P. Hobby Jr., Philip Guthrie Hoffman, Brien Holden, Philip Johnson, Edith Irby Jones, Bob Lanier, Jacques-Louis Lions, Lyle Lovett, Jim McIngvale, Carlos Menem, George P. Mitchell, François Mitterrand, John Moores, Robert Mosbacher, Jim Nantz, Edison E. Oberholtzer, Rod Paige, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ruth Simmons, Dinesh Singh, Song Jian, Margaret Spellings, Ron Stone, Herman D. Suit, Jack Valenti, Catalina Vasquez Villalpando, Welcome W. Wilson Sr., and Daniel Yergin. (Bold names indicate UH alumni.)

## Faculty and staff
### Administration

| Name | Department | Years | Notability |
| Marguerite Ross Barnett | Administration | 1990–1992 | President of University of Houston |
| A. D. Bruce | Administration | 1954–1956 | President of University of Houston |
| Hugh Roy Cullen | Administration | 1937–1957 | Chairman of Board of Regents |
| James A. Elkins | Administration | Board of Regents | |
| Glenn Goerke | Administration | 1995–1997 | President of University of Houston |
| Jay Gogue | Administration | 2003–2007 | President of University of Houston, chancellor of University of Houston System |
| Philip Guthrie Hoffman | Administration | 1961–1977 | President of University of Houston, chancellor of University of Houston System |
| Renu Khator | Administration | 2008– | President of University of Houston, chancellor of University of Houston System |
| Barry Munitz | Administration | 1977–1982 | President of University of Houston |
| Edison E. Oberholtzer | Administration | 1927–1950 | Founder and first president of University of Houston |
| Michael Pelletier | Institute for Global Engagement | 2021–present | Executive director, IGE |
| Richard L. Van Horn | Administration | 1983–1989 | President of University of Houston |
| Welcome W. Wilson, Sr. | Administration | 2006– | Chairman of Board of Regents |

### Athletics

| Name | Department | Notability |
| John Altobelli | Athletics | Assistant baseball coach 1987 |
| Frank Anderson | Athletics | Assistant baseball coach 2013–2017 |
| Major Applewhite | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2015–2016; head football coach 2016–2018 |
| Dave Aranda | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2003–2004 |
| Joe Arenas | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1963–1986 |
| Austin Armstrong | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2025–present |
| Kevin Barbay | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2024 |
| Clancy Barone | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2000–2002 |
| Doug Belk | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2019–2023 |
| Shawn Bell | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2024–present |
| John R. Bender | Athletics | PE instructor 1927–1928, coined "Cougars" nickname |
| Marquel Blackwell | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2019–2021 |
| Tom Boisture | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1962–1965 |
| Art Briles | Athletics | Head football coach 2003–2007 |
| Kendal Briles | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2018 |
| Alvin Brooks | Athletics | Head basketball coach 1993–1998, assistant basketball coach 2010–2021 |
| Melvin Brown | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1962–1977 |
| Jamie Bryant | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2011–2012 |
| Todd Buchanan | Athletics | Head women's basketball coach 2010–2013 |
| Dick Bumpas | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1999–2002 |
| Leroy Burrell | Athletics | Head track coach 1998–2022 |
| Leon Burtnett | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2008–2011 |
| Travis Bush | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2012–2014 |
| Neil Callaway | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1993–1997 |
| Bill Carr | Athletics | Athletic Director 1993–1997 |
| Tyron Carrier | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2019–2020 |
| James Casey | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2016–2018 |
| Red Conkright | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1957–1958 |
| Kevin Cook | Athletics | Assistant women's basketball coach 1995–1997 |
| Harden Cooper | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1950–1954 |
| Larry Coyer | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1990 |
| Jack Cressend | Athletics | Assistant baseball coach 2010–2012 |
| Joe Curl | Athletics | Head women's basketball coach 1998–2010; National Coach of the Year 2003–2004 |
| Rudy Davalos | Athletics | Athletic Director 1987–1992 |
| Shannon Dawson | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2019–2022 |
| Cedric Dempsey | Athletics | Athletic Director 1979–1982 |
| James Dickey | Athletics | Head basketball coach 2010–2014 |
| Jim Dickey | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1964–1965 |
| Dana Dimel | Athletics | Head football coach 2000–2002 |
| Mark D'Onofrio | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2017–2018 |
| Clyde Drexler | Athletics | Head basketball coach 1998–2000 |
| Jim Eddy | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1986–1989 |
| Zac Etheridge | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2019–2020, 2024 |
| Chuck Fairbanks | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1962–1965 |
| Keith Fergus | Athletics | Golf coach 1988–1994 |
| Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie | Athletics | Assistant track coach 2014–2018 |
| Jane Figueiredo | Athletics | Assistant diving coach 1988–1990, head diving coach 1990–2014 |
| Pat Foster | Athletics | Head basketball coach 1986–1993 |
| Harry Fouke | Athletics | Athletic Director 1946–1979 |
| Willie Fritz | Athletics | Head football coach 2023–present |
| Reid Gettys | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 1998 |
| David Gibbs | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2013–2014; interim head football coach 2014 |
| Sterlin Gilbert | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2005 |
| Chet Gladchuk Jr. | Athletics | Athletic Director 1997–2001 |
| Anthony Goldwire | Athletics | Basketball staff 2021–present |
| Kenny Guiton | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2017–2018 |
| Brick Haley | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1997 |
| Phill Hansell | Athletics | Swimming and diving coach, 1957–1996 |
| Floyd Heard | Athletics | Assistant track coach 2012–present |
| Clay Helton | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1997–1999 |
| Kim Helton | Athletics | Head football coach 1993–1999 |
| Tom Herman | Athletics | Head football coach 2015–2016 |
| Lovette Hill | Athletics | Head baseball coach 1950–1974, assistant football coach 1949–1961 |
| Dana Holgorsen | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2008–2009; head football coach 2019–2023 |
| Ronald Hughey | Athletics | Head women's basketball coach 2014–2025 |
| Joel Hunt | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1955 |
| Ben Hurt | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1965–1971 |
| Jim Jeffcoat | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2008–2010 |
| John Jenkins | Athletics | Head football coach 1990–1992 |
| Mike Jinks | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2022–2023 |
| Brian Johnson | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2017 |
| Scott Kellar | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2001–2004 |
| Malcolm Kelly | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2017–2018 |
| Jessie Kenlaw | Athletics | Assistant women's basketball coach 1988–1990, head women's basketball coach 1990–1998 |
| Kliff Kingsbury | Athletics | Football staff 2008–2011 |
| Les Koenning, Jr. | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1999 |
| Hal Lahar | Athletics | Head football coach 1957–1961 |
| Clyde Lee | Athletics | Head football coach 1948–1954 |
| Tony Levine | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2008–2011; head football coach 2011–2014 |
| Carl Lewis | Athletics | Assistant track coach 2014–2022; head track coach 2023–present |
| Guy Lewis | Athletics | Head basketball coach 1956–1986: 592 wins; 27 consecutive seasons without a losing record; five Final Four appearances, including two NCAA finals; National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame 2007; Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame 2013 |
| John Lott | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1991–1996 |
| Dave Maggard | Athletics | Athletic Director 2002–2009 |
| Mickey Matthews | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1986 |
| Matt Mattox | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2005–2006 |
| Ray McCallum | Athletics | Head basketball coach 2000–2004 |
| Marcus McGraw | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2014–2016 |
| Bill Meek | Athletics | Head football coach 1955–1956 |
| Brandon Middleton | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2012–2013 |
| Philip Montgomery | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2003–2005 |
| Eric Morris | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2010–2011 |
| Eman Naghavi | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2023–present |
| Ruth Nelson | Athletics | Head women's volleyball coach 1974–1980 |
| Mike Nesbitt | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2012 |
| Rayner Noble | Athletics | Head baseball coach 1994–2010 |
| Todd Orlando | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2015–2016; interim head football coach 2016 |
| Chad O'Shea | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1996–1999 |
| Yulia Pakhalina | Athletics | Diving coach 2014–2015 |
| Jack Pardee | Athletics | Head football coach 1987–1989 |
| Alden Pasche | Athletics | Head basketball coach 1946–1956 |
| Tom Penders | Athletics | Head basketball coach 2004–2010 |
| Bradley Dale Peveto | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1999–2002 |
| Dan Pfaff | Athletics | Assistant track coach 1980–1981 |
| Bum Phillips | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1965–1966 |
| Jason Phillips | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2010–2011 |
| Wade Phillips | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1969 |
| Hollis Price | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 2014–present |
| Mack Rhoades | Athletics | Athletic Director 2009–2015 |
| Melvin Robertson | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1965–1971, 1991–1993 |
| Terry Rooney | Athletics | Assistant baseball coach 2017–2021 |
| Doc Sadler | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 1986 |
| Kellen Sampson | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 2014–present |
| Kelvin Sampson | Athletics | Head basketball coach 2014–present |
| Chris Scelfo | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2017 |
| John Skladany | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2008–2009 |
| Brian Stewart | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2010–2011 |
| Kevin Sumlin | Athletics | Head football coach 2008–2011 |
| Tom Tellez | Athletics | Head track coach 1976–1998, volunteer assistant track coach 1998–present; legendary coach of numerous world champions and Olympic gold medalists, head coach of U.S. national team for World Championships and Pan American Games, namesake of UH's Tom Tellez Track at Carl Lewis International Complex |
| Pat Thomas | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1985–1989 |
| Ned Thompson | Athletics | Head baseball coach 1947, assistant football coach 1946–1948, associate athletic director 1946–1976 |
| Chris Thurmond | Athletics | Interim head football coach 2007 |
| Don Todd | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1972–1985 |
| Marcus Tubbs | Athletics | Assistant athletics director 2016–2019 |
| Kristin Vesely | Athletics | Assistant softball coach 2011–2016; head softball coach 2017–present |
| Jewell Wallace | Athletics | Head football coach 1946–1947 |
| Rolan Walton | Athletics | Head baseball coach 1975–1986 |
| Alan Weddell | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2005–2007 |
| Quannas White | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 2017–2025 |
| Todd Whitting | Athletics | Head baseball coach 2010–present |
| Dave Williams | Athletics | Head golf coach 1952–1987; won 16 national championships |
| Greg Williams | Athletics | Head women's basketball coach 1985–1990 |
| Gregg Williams | Athletics | Assistant football coach 1988–1989 |
| Ryan Wochomurka | Athletics | Head swimming and diving coach 2015–2021 |
| Shiel Wood | Athletics | Assistant football coach 2024 |
| Bill Yeoman | Athletics | Head football coach 1962–1986 |
| Steve Yoder | Athletics | Assistant basketball coach 2014–2017 |

### Government, politics, and law

| Name | Department | Notability |
| Frances Farenthold | Law | Educator, lawyer, politician, college administrator, activist |
| Alberto Gonzales | Law | 80th United States Attorney General |
| Elwyn Lee | Law | Vice President for Student Affairs, UH; vice chancellor, UH System |
| Raymond Nimmer | Law | Dean of UH Law School |
| Kirk Watson | Public Affairs | Dean, UH Hobby School of Public Affairs |

### Liberal arts

| Name | Department | Notability |
| Alfred Arteaga | English | Poet, writer, scholar |
| Donald Barthelme | English | Author and co-founder of Creative Writing School |
| J. Don Boney | Psychology, Education | Educator |
| Robert Boswell | English | Short-story writer, novelist |
| Brené Brown | Social work | Scholar, author, public speaker |
| Rosellen Brown | English | Author |
| Elizabeth Brown-Guillory | English | Playwright, performer, academic |
| Alessandro Carrera | Italian studies | Poet, translator; Director of Italian Studies at UH |
| Carol L. Dennis | English | Author, editor, teacher |
| Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni | English | Author, poet, and professor of English |
| Mark Doty | English | Poet, memoirist |
| Nick Flynn | English | Writer, poet |
| Sandra Gin | Communication | Television journalist, Emmy Award-winning producer of Cristina's Court |
| William Goyen | English | Author |
| Elena Grigorenko | Psychology | Clinical psychologist, geneticist |
| Edward Hirsch | English | Poet |
| Tony Hoagland | English | Poet, winner of 2008 Jackson Prize |
| Alan Hollinghurst | English | Novelist |
| Frank Holt | History | Authority on Ancient Greece and Rome; numismatist |
| Gerald Horne | History | Historian |
| Richard Howard | English | Poet, critic, essayist |
| Chinhui Juhn | Economics | Labor Economist |
| Mat Johnson | English | Fiction writer |
| Justin Leiber | Philosophy | Philosopher, science fiction writer |
| Philip Levine | English | Poet |
| Joe Leydon | Communication | Award-winning film critic and author, adjunct professor of Journalism |
| Paul Lisicky | English | Novelist, memoirist |
| Phillip Lopate | English | Film critic, essayist, fiction writer, poet, teacher |
| Rubén Martínez | English | Journalist, author, musician |
| William Matthews | English | Poet, essayist |
| David Mikics | English | Author, professor |
| Steven Mintz | History | Author, professor |
| Ange Mlinko | English | Poet; Guggenheim Fellow |
| Antonya Nelson | English | Author |
| Lynn Okagaki | Education | Head, National Center for Education Research |
| Robert Phillips | English | Poet |
| Kevin Prufer | English | Poet, essayist |
| Pamela Anne Quiroz | Sociology | Director, UH Center for Mexican American Studies, Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities Fellow |
| Claudia Rankine | English | Poet |
| Cristina Rivera Garza | Hispanic Studies, Creative Writing | Author, won 2024 Pulitzer Prize |
| Mary Robison | English | Short-story writer, novelist |
| Allie Rowbottom | English | Writer |
| Alexander F. Schilt | Education | Education professor; former chancellor of UH System and president or chancellor of several other colleges and universities |
| Dale Schunk | Education | Educational psychologist |
| Daniel Stern | English | Novelist |
| Mark Strand | English | Poet, essayist |
| Mercedes Valdivieso | English | Novelist, journalist |
| Jody Williams | Social work | Nobel laureate, professor of Social Work and Global Justice |
| Meg Wolitzer | English | Writer |
| Charles Wright | English | Poet |

### Performing arts

| Name | Department | Notability |
| Edward Albee | Theatre | Playwright; Kennedy Center honoree, three Pulitzer Prizes, Tony Award |
| Steven Ansell | Music | Violist; principal, Boston Symphony Orchestra |
| James Austin | Music | Trumpet player; principal, Houston Symphony |
| Daniel Belcher | Music | Opera singer |
| Emanuel Borok | Music | Violinist; concertmaster, Dallas Symphony Orchestra |
| Igor Buketoff | Music | Conductor |
| Tony Campise | Music | Jazz saxophonist; director of UH Jazz Ensemble |
| Lois Chiles | Theatre | Actress |
| Katherine Ciesinski | Music | Opera singer |
| Wayne Crouse | Music | Violist; principal, Houston Symphony |
| Carlisle Floyd | Music | Opera composer; American Academy of Arts and Letters, National Medal of Arts (U.S.) |
| Horacio Gutiérrez | Music | Concert pianist |
| Sidney Harth | Music | Violinist, conductor; concertmaster, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Los Angeles Philharmonic |
| Michael Horvit | Music | Composer |
| Frank Huang | Music | Violinist; concertmaster, New York Philharmonic |
| Benjamin Kamins | Music | Bassoonist; principal, Houston Symphony |
| Milton Katims | Music | Violist and conductor; principal violist, NBC Symphony Orchestra; Music Director, Seattle Symphony Orchestra |
| Fredell Lack | Music | Violinist |
| Mark Medoff | Theatre | Playwright, screenwriter, actor; Tony Award, Oscar nomination |
| Brett Mitchell | Music | Conductor; Music Director, Colorado Symphony |
| Bill Moffit | Music | Director of marching bands at UH and other universities; composer, arranger ("Soundpower Series"), and marching innovator |
| Elena Nikolaidi | Music | Opera singer |
| Stuart Ostrow | Theatre | Playwright, theatrical director, and Tony Award-winning producer |
| Howard Pollack | Music | Musicologist |
| Theresa Rebeck | Theatre | Playwright |
| Hal Robinson | Music | Classical string bassist; principal, Philadelphia Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra (U.S.) |
| A. Clyde Roller | Music | Conductor |
| Beatrice Schroeder Rose | Music | Harpist; principal, Houston Symphony |
| Jade Simmons | Arts leadership | Pianist, arts advocate, former beauty queen |
| Abbey Simon | Music | Pianist |
| W. Stephen Smith | Music | Voice teacher and author of The Naked Voice; faculty 1990–98 |
| Patsy Swayze | Theatre | Film choreographer; taught dance at the University of Houston for 18 years |
| Laszlo Varga | Music | Cellist; principal, New York Philharmonic |
| Lanford Wilson | Theatre | Playwright; won Pulitzer Prize for Talley's Folly |

### Visual arts

| Name | Department | Notability |
| Michael Ray Charles | Art | Painter |
| Luis Jiménez | Art | Sculptor |
| George Krause | Photography | Established UH photography department |
| Rick Lowe | Art | Visual artist, social activist, MacArthur Fellow |
| Abinadi Meza | Art | Sound artist, conceptual artist, filmmaker; was awarded a Rome Prize |
| Masaru Takiguchi | Art | Sculptor, educator |

### Science and technology

| Name | Department | Notability |
| Neal Amundson | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | Research on air quality issues; United States National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Guggenheim Fellow, NAE Founders' Award |
| David P. Anderson | Computer science | Space research scientist |
| Kevin Bassler | Physics, Mathematics | Fellow of the American Physical Society |
| Peter C. Bishop | Future studies | Futurist |
| Eric R. Bittner | Chemistry | Guggenheim Fellow |
| Irvin Borish | Optometry | Optometrist, educator |
| Maurice Brookhart | Chemistry | Research in organometallic chemistry; member, National Academy of Sciences |
| Patrick Callaerts | Biology | Molecular biologist |
| Shiing-Shen Chern | Mathematics | Research in differential geometry |
| Wynne Chin | Decision and Information Sciences | Information technologist |
| Chu Ching-wu (Paul Chu) | Physics | Leader in superconductivity research, U.S. National Medal of Science |
| Joseph Colaco | Architecture | Structural engineer, architect; member, National Academy of Engineers |
| David Criswell | Space systems | Director of the Institute for Space Systems Operations at UH |
| Bonnie Dunbar | Engineering | Director, UH STEM Center; former NASA astronaut, president of the Museum of Flight, member of National Academy of Engineering |
| Siemion Fajtlowicz | Mathematics | Developed Graffiti computer program |
| George E. Fox | Biology | Researcher in cell biology |
| Roland Glowinski | Mathematics | Research in partial differential equations, variational inequalities |
| Jan-Åke Gustafsson | Biosciences & Nutrition | Leading researcher in hormone function; Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, United States National Academy of Sciences |
| Eva Harth | Chemistry | Director, Welch Center of Excellence in Polymer Chemistry, UH |
| Andy Hines | Future studies | Futurist |
| Fazle Hussain | Mechanical engineering | Engineer |
| Lennart Johnsson | Computer science | Hugh and Lillie Roy Cranz Cullen Distinguished Chair of Computer Science, Mathematics, and Electrical and Computer Engineering, UH; research in grid computing |
| Ioannis Kakadiaris | Computer science | Developed an identity verification system |
| Alamgir Karim | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | Dow Chair and Welch Foundation Professor; Director, International Polymer & Soft Matter Center |
| Włodzimierz Kuperberg | Mathematics | Research in geometry and topology |
| John H. Lienhard | Mechanical engineering | Writer and host of PBS program The Engines of Our Ingenuity; National Academy of Engineering; UH professor emeritus |
| R. Bowen Loftin | Computer science | Former chair of UH Department of Computer Science; now president of Texas A&M University |
| Archer John Porter Martin | Chemistry | Winner of 1952 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for invention of partition chromatography |
| Joseph L. McCauley | Physics | Research in econophysics, nonlinear dynamics, statistical physics |
| Claudia Neuhauser | Research | UH Associate Vice President/Associate Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer |
| Steven Pennings | Biology, biochemistry | Research on coastal ecosystems |
| B. Montgomery Pettitt | Chemistry | Cullen Professor |
| Andrea Prosperetti | Mechanical engineering | Distinguished professor; research in multiphase flow, scientific computing, fluid dynamics, applied mathematics, bubble dynamics; National Academy of Engineering |
| Megan Robertson (scientist) | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | Polymer materials scientist; Fellow, American Chemical Society; Director, UH Materials Science and Engineering Program |
| Badri Roysam | Electrical and computer engineering | Image processing; Fellow, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE); Chair, UH Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering |
| Barbara A. Schaal | Biology | Evolutionary biologist |
| Jerome Schultz | Engineering | Bioengineer |
| Ronald M. Sega | Physics | NASA astronaut |
| Venkat Selvamanickam | Mechanical engineering, physics | Chair, UH Mechanical Engineering Department; Director of Applied Research Hub, Texas Center for Superconductivity |
| Leon Thomsen | Earth and atmospheric sciences | UH professor of geophysics, proposed Thomsen parameters to characterize transversely isotropic materials |
| Adam Thrasher | Health and Human Performance | Author of Space Moose |
| Arthur C. Vailas | Biology, mechanical engineering | Biochemist, scholar; later president of Idaho State University |
| Mary Wheeler | Mathematics | Research in partial differential equations |
| Richard C. Willson | Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering | Biochemical engineer; National Academy of Inventors |