List of University of Kansas people

The list of University of Kansas people includes notable alumni and faculty of the University of Kansas. It is in Lawrence, Kansas.

Alumni

Nobel laureates 
 Frank Rowland (1956–64), awarded the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
 Vernon Smith (M.A. in economics 1952), awarded the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics

Politics, government and education 
 Juan Manuel Santos, Former President of Colombia, elected in 2010; Nobel Peace Prize winner (2016)
 William H. Avery (1934), 37th governor of Kansas (1965–1967)
 Sheila C. Bair, former Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)
 Kay Barnes, Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri (1999–2007)
 Carol A. Beier, Kansas Supreme Court Justice
 Robert Frederick Bennett, 39th governor of Kansas (1975–1979)
 George L. Brown, first African-American elected lieutenant governor and first African-American elected to statewide office in Colorado
 Sam Brownback, United States Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom; former Governor of Kansas; former U.S Senator for Kansas; former U.S. Representative for the Second District of Kansas; former Secretary of Agriculture, Kansas
 Thomas W. Butcher, president of Kansas State Teachers College (Emporia State University) (1913–1943)
 Francisco Santos Calderón, 9th vice president of Colombia
 Arthur Linton Corbin (1894), professor at Yale Law School and scholar of contract law
 Jonathan M. Davis, 22nd governor of Kansas
 George Docking (1925), 35th governor of Kansas (1957–1961)
 Robert Docking (1948), 38th governor of Kansas (1967–1975)
 Bob Dole, former U.S. Senate majority leader and Senator from Kansas (1969–1996), presidential and vice-presidential nominee, played football and basketball while attending.
 Jerry Elliott, Kansas jurist
 Sam C. Ford, the 12th governor of Montana
 Thomas Frank, author, What's the Matter with Kansas?
 Frederick Funston, attended 1885–1888, US Army general, recipient of Medal of Honor
 John B. Gage (1907), mayor of Kansas City, Missouri (1940–1946)
 Robert L. Gernon (BS 1966), Kansas Supreme Court Justice
 Arthur Harkins (BA 1959, PhD 1968), UMN Graduate Certificate in Innovation Studies
 Jane Dee Hull (1957), 24th governor of Arizona (1997–2003)
 Todd Ames Hunter (BA 1975), member of the Texas House of Representatives from Corpus Christi, 1989–1997; attorney since 2009
 John E. Jacobs, interim president of Emporia State in 1953; Director of Special Education for the Kansas State Department of Education, 1953–1957
 Dusty Johnson, former South Dakota PUC Commissioner and chief of staff to the Governor of South Dakota
 Lee A. Johnson (BS 1964), Kansas Supreme Court Justice
 Nancy Landon Kassebaum (1954), first female U.S. senator (1979–1997) elected without having been preceded in office by her husband
 Kenton Keith, U.S. ambassador to Qatar (1992–1995)
 Marisa Kelly (BA 1986), political scientist and President of Suffolk University in Boston, Massachusetts
 Joan F. Kessler, Wisconsin Court of Appeals Judge
 Phill Kline (JD 1987), former Attorney General of Kansas (2003–2006), District Attorney of Johnson County (2007–2008)
 Ron Kuby, civil rights attorney
 Alf Landon (1908), 26th governor of Kansas (1933–1937) and Republican nominee in the 1936 presidential election
 Delano Lewis, former National Public Radio CEO and ambassador to South Africa
 Caroline Lucas, first Member of Parliament (UK) elected as a Green Party of England and Wales candidate
 Deane Waldo Malott (1921), former Chancellor of KU and 6th president of Cornell University (1951–1963)
 David McClain, President, University of Hawaii
 John H. McClendon, African-American studies scholar at Michigan State University
 Merritt C. Mechem, 5th governor of the State of New Mexico (1921–1923)
 Kenneth Megill, philosopher, trade unionist, social activist, records and knowledge manager
 Alexander C. Mitchell (1889), Kansas Board of Regents, State House and Representative to the Sixty-second US Congress 
 Dennis Moore, U.S. Congressman for Kansas District 3 (1999–2011)
 Franklin David Murphy (B.S. 1936), Chancellor of the University of Kansas and Chancellor of the University of California, Los Angeles
 Lawton Nuss (BA 1975, JD 1982), Kansas Supreme Court Justice
 Frank D. Parent, California municipal court judge
 William C. Perry (1922), Chief Justice Oregon Supreme Court
 Eric Rosen, Kansas Supreme Court Justice
 Jim Ryun, former U.S. Congressman Kansas District 2 (1997–2007), three-time U.S. Olympic runner and silver medalist
 Mike Schreiner (BA '92), Leader of the Green Party of Ontario 2009–present
 Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services under Obama, 44th governor of Kansas (2003–2009)
 Michael Shonrock – former president of Emporia State University; now president of Lindenwood University
 Stephen Six, Attorney General of Kansas
 Sam V. Stewart, Montana Supreme Court Justice and the sixth governor of Montana
 David Stras, Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court and Donald Trump's nominee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
 Walter R. Stubbs, 18th governor of Kansas
 Deanell Reece Tacha (BA 1968), former chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (2001–present)
 Rosalie E. Wahl (1946), first woman appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court
 Bob Whittaker, U.S. Representative from Kansas
 Kevin Yoder, U.S. Representative from Kansas District 3 (2011–2019)
 Shombi Sharp, United Nations Resident Coordinator (Ambassador), Republic of Armenia (2018–)

Media and the arts 
 Gina Adams, Ojibwe-American cross-media artist and activist 
 Wendall Anschutz, bachelors and masters in communications, long time KCTV news anchor
 Sanora Babb, novelist, best known for An Owl on Every Post and Whose Names Are Unknown
 Scott Bakula, actor, star of Quantum Leap and Star Trek: Enterprise
 James Barnes, professor and award-winning composer
 Etta Moten Barnett, actress and singer, the first black artist to perform at the White House
 Liliana V. Blum, Mexican writer
 Danni Boatwright, former Miss Teen USA and Miss USA contestant, winner of Survivor: Guatemala
 Kara Brock, television and film actress
 Terry Bryant, journalist; sports and weather anchor, KMPH FOX 26, Fresno, California
 Igor Buketoff, conductor
 Trai Byers, actor, star of Empire
 Christina Chang, television actress
 Jan Chiapusso, piano pedagogue
 Evan S. Connell, novelist, best known for Mrs. Bridge and Mr. Bridge
 Steve Doocy, Fox News anchor, New York Times bestselling author
 Bob Dotson, documentarian and NBC reporter, four-time Emmy Award winner
 Bill Downs, CBS and ABC News correspondent and one of the original Murrow Boys
 Robert Ebendorf, international metalsmith and jeweler who uses found objects in his artwork
 C. L. Edson, newspaper columnist, humorist, and poet
 Gillian Flynn, writer, novel Gone Girl
 Heidi Gardner, comedian, Saturday Night Live
 Kori Gardner, vocalist, organist, and pianist in Mates of State; writer of Band on the Diaper Run
 Frances Ginsberg, opera singer
 Nikki Glaser, comedian
 Cara Gorges, Miss Kansas USA 2007, controversial 2nd runner-up in Miss USA pageant
 Moses Gunn, actor, TV mini-series Roots
 Sherman Halsey, music video director, producer and artist manager
 Ann Hamilton (BFA 1979), sculptor, installation artist and 1993 MacArthur Fellow recipient
 Jason Hammel, musician, member of Mates of State
 Kevin Harlan, broadcaster for CBS and TNT sports
 Herk Harvey, award-winning director of over 400 industrial and educational short films and cult film Carnival of Souls
 Scott Heim, novelist
 Kevin Helliker, Chicago bureau chief of the Wall Street Journal, awarded the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting
 Caroline Henderson, teacher, farmer, author
 Bob Holtzman, ESPN bureau-reporter for SportsCenter
 William Inge, Pulitzer Prize and Academy Award-winning author and playwright
 Don Johnson, actor, co-star of Miami Vice and Nash Bridges
 Tim Joyce, television journalist, writer, meteorologist
 Tom Kane (BA 1985), voice actor, best known roles: Yoda, Admiral Ackbar, Academy Awards announcer, voice of The Walt Disney Parks and Monorail, Professor Utonium... 
 Jay Karnes, television actor, most notably from The Shield
 John Kessel, Nebula Award-winning author, editor, professor of creative writing
 George E Kimball III, author, poet
 Terry Kiser, actor who portrayed the title character of the comedy Weekend at Bernie's 
 Bill Kurtis, television journalist and producer, host of A&E shows including American Justice and Cold Case Files
 Neil LaBute, filmmaker/screenwriter, wrote and directed In the Company of Men, nominated for Palme D'Or for Nurse Betty
 Wayne Lamb, Broadway dancer, choreographer and Professor Emeritus at Purdue University
 Margaret Larkin, writer, poet, singer-songwriter, theater personality, researcher, and union activist
 Jack Lembeck, painter and sculptor
 Keith Loneker, NFL player, St. Louis Rams and Atlanta Falcons; actor, Leatherheads, Superbad, Lakeview Terrace
 Laura Moriarty, novelist
 Robert Morris, contemporary sculptor and painter (transferred to Reed College)
 Rob Neyer, baseball author and columnist for ESPN.com
 Sara Paretsky, novelist, best known for her frequent protagonist V.I. Warshawski
 Mandy Patinkin, Emmy and Tony Award-winning actor and singer (Yentl, The Princess Bride; TV's Criminal Minds)
 Artur Pizarro, concert pianist
 Maurice Prather, motion picture and still photographer and film director
 Unique Priscilla, Indonesian-born actress and model
 Betsy Randle, actress best known as the mother on Boy Meets World
 Rob Riggle, comedian, The Daily Show correspondent and former Saturday Night Live cast member
 Melissa Rooker, Director of Development of Malpaso Productions
Aaron S. Rosenberg, author and game designer
 Paul Rudd, actor from TV's Friends, Clueless, The Cider House Rules, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, and Ant-Man
 Dan Ryckert, video game journalist
 Heidi Schwegler, artist
 Devin Scillian, television journalist and children's author
 Gary Mark Smith, artist, author, master global street photographer
 William Stafford (BA 1937), poet and pacifist, winner of the National Book Award for Travelling Through the Dark
 Oscar S. Stauffer (1910), founder of Stauffer Communications
 Craig Stevens, film, television and stage actor; star of the detective series Peter Gunn, 1958–1961
 Mimi Thebo (BA 1985), Carnegie-nominated children's author
 Laurence Traiger, composer
 Kari Wahlgren (BA 1999), voice actor
 Dee Wallace, actress (E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, The Howling)
 Catherine Warren, Miss Illinois USA 2006
 William Allen White, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author
 Frank Wilcox, actor (attended for one year before transferring to St. Benedict's College)
 Ron Fadlon, artist and activist

Science and technology 
Henry K. Beecher (BA 1926, MA 1927), anesthesiologist, medical ethicist, and investigator of the placebo effect
Jon Davies (BS 1980), meteorologist, expert on severe thunderstorm environments and forecasting
 Paul R. Ehrlich (MA/PhD 1957), entomologist, researcher and author of The Population Bomb, and 1990 MacArthur Fellow recipient
 Joe Engle (BS 1955), former NASA astronaut and a retired U.S. Air Force colonel
 Ronald E. Evans (BS 1956), former NASA astronaut and a retired U.S. Navy captain
 Robert M. Haralick (BA 1964, BS 1966, MS 1967, PhD 1969), Distinguished Professor of Computer Science, Graduate Center, City University of New York
 Steve Hawley (BA 1973), former NASA director and astronaut; Professor of Physics and Astronomy at KU
 Erasmus Haworth, founder of the Kansas Geological Survey
 David Hillis, evolutionary biologist and 1999 MacArthur Fellow recipient
 Wes Jackson (MA 1960), environmental historian and founder of the Land Institute, a 1992 MacArthur Fellow recipient
 Bill James, baseball sabermetrician; author of The Bill James Baseball Abstract, starting in 1977; named to the Time 100 in 2006
 Richard F. Johnston, ornithologist and author, onetime curator of the Natural History Museum
William T. Kane, physicist in field of fiber optics
 Joseph W. Kennedy (MA 1937), co-discoverer of the element plutonium
 Thomas Kunz (PhD 1971), researcher notable for insights into bat ecology
 Warren P. Mason (B.Sc 1927), electrical engineer and physicist, founder of the field of distributed element circuits
 Brian McClendon (BSEE 1986), VP of Engineering for Google Earth, formerly Keyhole, Inc.
 Elmer McCollum, co-discoverer of Vitamin A
 Nariman Mehta, pharmacologist, developer of the antidepressant and smoking cessation drug bupropion
 Rear Admiral Wayne E. Meyer, "father" of the Aegis Combat System and namesake of the USS Wayne E. Meyer naval destroyer
 Douglas Shane (BS 1982), director of flight operations for SpaceShipOne, which made the first privately funded human spaceflight
 Vernon L. Smith (M.A. in economics 1952), awarded the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics
 Kathryn Stephenson (MD 1941), first American woman board-certified plastic surgeon
 Walter Sutton, pioneer of cellular biology and genetics, physician, inventor
 George Tiller (BS 1963, MD 1967), physician, abortion provider, pro-choice advocate
 Clyde Tombaugh, astronomer, discoverer of the dwarf planet Pluto
 Kent Whealy, co-founder of the Seed Savers Exchange; 1988 MacArthur Fellow recipient

Business

 Bud Adams, CEO of Adams Resources, owner of the Tennessee Titans until his death
 Kenneth S. "Boots" Adams (1921), former President and CEO of Phillips 66 Petroleum Company
 Kjell Almskog, Norwegian businessman; former chief executive officer of Kværner and many other companies
 Philip Anschutz (1961), billionaire, founder of Qwest
 Sue Anschutz-Rodgers (1955), cattle ranch owner and philanthropist
 Cynthia Carroll, CEO of Anglo American, one of the world’s largest independent mining companies
 Linda Z. Cook (1980), executive director of Shell Gas & Power, part of Royal Dutch Shell
 David Dillon, Chairman and CEO, Kroger Co.
 Robert Eaton, former CEO of Chrysler Corporation
 Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Ripple
 Robert Kaplan, president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, former Vice Chairman of the Goldman Sachs Group
 Lou Montulli, co-founder of Netscape
 Alan Mulally (BS/MS), President and CEO of Ford Motor Company
 Christopher A. Sinclair (1971), Chairman and CEO of Mattel; former CEO of Pepsi-Cola Co.
 Harry F. Sinclair, founder of Sinclair Oil Corporation
 Charles E. Spahr (1934), former CEO of Standard Oil of Ohio
 Kenneth A. Spencer (1926), Spencer Chemical Company founder whose philanthropies to KU include the Kenneth Spencer Research Library and the Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art
 David Wittig (1977), former President and CEO of Westar Energy
 Cheryl Womack, founder of insurance company for National Association of Independent Truckers, who donated the money for Arrocha Ballpark on the KU campus

Honorary alumni 
 Donald J. Hall, Sr., Chairman of the Board and former President and CEO of Hallmark Cards
 Chester Nez, WWII veteran and the last living of the 29 Navajo Code Talkers

Faculty 
 Raj Bhala, distinguished Professor of Law and the Associate Dean for International and Comparative Law
 Jan Chiapusso, Dutch-born pianist and pedagogue
 J C D Clark, Ph.D., Cambridge University; Professor of History, History of Political Thought, 17th and 18th-century Britain, History of Religion
 Anthony Corbeill, classics professor and writer specializing in political humor, Roman gesture, and grammatical gender
 Loren Eiseley, anthropology professor from 1937 to 1944
 Michael S. Engel, distinguished Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Curator of Entomology; expert on fossil insects
 Bryant C. Freeman, founded the Institute of Haitian studies at KU, was given the protocol rank of major general with the U.N. peacekeeping force, and has published dictionaries in the language.
 James Gunn, Hugo Award-winning science fiction author and creative writing professor
 Steve Hawley, Professor of Physics and Astronomy, former astronaut and director of flight crew operations of Johnson Space Center
 Kij Johnson, creative writing professor, Nebula-winning fantasy author
 Kermit E Krantz MD, LittD (deceased 2007), University distinguished Professor; Professor and Chairman Emeritus, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology; developed the Marshall–Marchetti–Krantz (MMK) surgical procedure; invented the expandable tampon
 Solomon Lefschetz (1884–1972), known for his topological fixed-point theorem
 Stanley Lombardo, classics professor and translator of classical works into English, including the Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid
 Adrian Melott, Professor of Physics and Astronomy; astrophysicist and astrobiologist, researched the large-scale structure of the Universe and mass extinctions
 Charles D. Michener; former chairman of KU Entomology Department, ex-director of the Snow Entomological Museum; distinguished Professor Emeritus
 Richard Moore, distinguished Professor emeritus
 Jan Roskam, emeritus professor of aerospace engineering, author of eleven books on airplane design and flight dynamics
 Susan Scholz, Harper Faculty Fellow
 Kevin Willmott, associate professor of theater and film; writer and director of the film C.S.A.: The Confederate States of America, won Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay (along with Spike Lee, David Rabinowitz, and Charlie Wachtel) for BlacKkKlansman
 Donald Worster, distinguished Professor Emeritus of History, considered one of the founders of the field of environmental history

Athletes and coaches 
For athletes and coaches, see the relevant section in Kansas Jayhawks

Baseball
 Bob Allison, All-Star outfielder of the Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins, 1959 American League Rookie of the Year
 Jeff Berblinger, former Major League Baseball player
 Brett Bochy. former Major League Baseball pitcher
 Mike Getto, Head Baseball Coach, All-American in football, Head Coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers team in 1942
 Tom Gorzelanny, former Major League Baseball pitcher
 Travis Metcalf, former Major League Baseball player
 Steve Renko, major league pitcher, winner of 136 games for seven different teams
 Rob Thomson, major league coach for the Philadelphia Phillies
 Mike Zagurski, major league pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks
 TJ Walz, minor league pitcher for the Oakland A’s

Basketball
 Cole Aldrich, 2010 All-American, 11th pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Oklahoma City Thunder
 Phog Allen, head basketball coach; won three national championships, 10th winningest coach in college basketball history and #1 winningest when he retired, also had brief stints as the head football coach and head baseball coach
 Darrell Arthur, 2008 National Champions, 27th pick of 2008 NBA draft, Memphis Grizzlies
 Nick Bradford, basketball player 1997–2000, played professionally in Iceland, France, and Romania
 Bill Bridges, All-American, 1975 NBA Championship with Golden State Warriors
 Mario Chalmers, 2007 Big 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year, 2008 National Champions, MOP of 2008 Championship Game, 34th pick of 2008 NBA draft, Miami Heat, 2012 and 2013 NBA Finals Champion with the Miami Heat, currently an NBA free agent
 Wilt Chamberlain, two-time All-American, Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and NBA all-time leader for career rebounds and most points in a single game with 100 points
 Sherron Collins, 2010 All-American, NBA player for Charlotte Bobcats, currently with Windsor Express
 Nick Collison, All-American, NBA player for the Oklahoma City Thunder also known as "Mr. USA Basketball" for representing the country in international basketball
Cheick Diallo, NBA player for the New Orleans Pelicans.
 Joel Embiid, NBA player for the Philadelphia 76ers
 Drew Gooden, All-American, 4th pick 2002 NBA draft, Basketball America Player of the Year 2002, Milwaukee Bucks
 Xavier Henry, All Big 12 honorable mention, 12th pick in the 2010 NBA draft, Memphis Grizzlies
 Kirk Hinrich, All-American, NBA player with the Chicago Bulls
Josh Jackson, 4th pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, NBA player for the Phoenix Suns
 Tom Kivisto (basketball), played on 1971 and 1974 Final Four Teams
 Raef LaFrentz, All-American, NBA player with the Portland Trail Blazers
 Keith Langford, professional basketball player (with Maccabi Tel Aviv)
 Clyde Lovellette, All-American; first basketball player in history to play on NCAA, Olympic, and NBA championship squads; three NBA Finals titles and 1952 Olympic gold medal and NCAA Champion
 Danny Manning, basketball player and coach; two-time All-American, 1988 recipient of the Naismith and Wooden Awards, Big 8 Player of the Decade for the 1980s, two-time NBA all-star
 Frank Mason III, NBA player for the Sacramento Kings
 Ben McLemore, 7th pick of 2013 NBA draft, Sacramento Kings
 Ralph Miller, former men's basketball coach at Oregon State University, the University of Iowa, and Wichita State University, member of the Basketball Hall of Fame
 Marcus Morris, All-American basketball player, fourteenth pick in the 2011 NBA draft, Houston Rockets
 Markieff Morris, thirteenth pick of the 2011 NBA draft, Phoenix Suns
 James Naismith, inventor of basketball
 Gregory Donovan Ostertag, NBA Utah Jazz 1995–2012, retired
 Paul Pierce, All-American, NBA All-Star, 2008 NBA Finals Champion and NBA Finals MVP with the Boston Celtics, now on the Los Angeles Clippers
 Scot Pollard, NBA, free agent
 Thomas Robinson, NBA player for the Sacramento Kings
 Dave Robisch, two-time All-American, 13 seasons in the ABA and NBA
 Adolph Rupp, former men's basketball coach at the University of Kentucky and the third winningest coach in the sport; two-time Helms National Championship team member at KU
 Brandon Rush, two-time All-American, MVP of the 2008 Big 12 Tournament, 2008 National Champions, 13th pick of 2008 NBA draft, Indiana Pacers, 2015 NBA Finals Champion as a member of the Golden State Warriors
 Wayne Selden Jr., NBA player for Memphis Grizzlies
 Wayne Simien, two-time All-American, 2005 Big 12 Player of the Year
 Dean Smith, basketball coach at the University of North Carolina; third winningest coach in the sport; 1952 NCAA Basketball title at KU
 Tyshawn Taylor, NBA player for the Brooklyn Nets
 Mark Turgeon, former player and current head coach for University of Maryland, formerly at Wichita State and Texas A&M
 Darnell Valentine, All-American, three-time Academic All-American, 16th pick in 1981 NBA draft, 10 years in NBA
 Jacque Vaughn, head coach of Orlando Magic, two-time All-American, and 27th pick in 1997 NBA draft
 Jo Jo White, All-American, 1968 gold medal Mexico City Olympics, named the most valuable player of the 1976 NBA Finals, seven-time NBA All-Star with Boston Celtics
 Lynette Woodard, four-time All-American at KU; major college basketball's career women's scoring leader; first female member of the Harlem Globetrotters; Olympic women's basketball gold medalist
 Julian Wright, All-American, 13th pick of 2007 NBA draft, Toronto Raptors
 Andrew Wiggins, first pick in the 2014 NBA draft, 2015 NBA Rookie of the Year, current Minnesota Timberwolves player

Football
 Gilbert Brown, NFL nose tackle for Super Bowl XXXI Champion Green Bay Packers; 11 seasons in NFL
 Jon Cornish, CFL running back for the Calgary Stampeders; 2013 CFL season Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Canadian; 2012 CFL season Most Outstanding Canadian; played in and won the 96th Grey Cup
 Nolan Cromwell, All-American; in 1976 set NCAA rushing record for a quarterback; 1980 NFC Defensive Player of the Year; four-time pro bowl selection in 11 years with the Los Angeles Rams
 J.P. Darche, former NFL long-snapper for the Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs, graduated from the KU Medical School in 2014 following his retirement from football (played football at and received undergraduate degree from McGill University in Canada)
 Dick Davis, American Football League champion with the 1962 Dallas Texans
 Jack Del Rio, former NFL linebacker and coach Did not play football at Kansas, attended and graduated from the school while playing for the Kansas City Chiefs
Bobby Douglass, KU and NFL quarterback; led 9–1 Jayhawks to Orange Bowl in 1968; All-American 1968, drafted 2nd round by Chicago Bears in 1969, retired 1978
 Mike Getto, Head Baseball Coach, All-American in Football, Head Coach for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1942 
 John Hadl, two-time All-American, once as halfback and once as quarterback; KU Football Player of the Century; NFL quarterback 1962–1977
 Chris Harris Jr., cornerback for Denver Broncos; Super Bowl 50 champion; two-time Pro Bowler
 James Holt, 2008 Insight Bowl defensive MVP; signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2009
 Ron Jessie, former NFL Pro Bowl wide receiver
 Mike Johnson, NFL player
 Rod Jones, Aloha Bowl Champion 1995, National Football League 1996–2002, Cincinnati Bengals, St. Louis Rams, Washington Redskins
 Curtis McClinton, played in Super Bowl IV with the Kansas City Chiefs; sixth-leading rusher in franchise history; MVP
 Monte Merkel, NFL guard
 Tyler Patmon, NFL cornerback, graduated from Kansas but did not finish college football career at Kansas.
 Elvis Patterson, former NFL cornerback, two-time Super Bowl champion (XXI, XXVIII)
 Willie Pless, star football linebacker in the Canadian Football League; NCAA and Big 8 record holder for tackles with 633 (in only 3 years); 11-time All-Pro and 5-time Defensive Player of the Year in CFL
 John Riggins, Super Bowl XVII MVP; Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee
 Gale Sayers, All-American, Pro Football Hall of Fame running back
 Laverne Smith, NFL running back, Pittsburgh Steelers
 Dana Stubblefield, NFL all-pro defensive end; drafted in the first round of the 1993 NFL Draft, 26th overall, by the San Francisco 49ers; NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year; four-time All-Pro selection (1994, 1995, 1996, 1997); NFL Defensive Player of the Year 1997
 Darrell Stuckey, NFL safety, San Diego Chargers
 Aqib Talib, 2008 Orange Bowl MVP; first round NFL draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
 Broderick Thompson, former NFL offensive lineman
 John E. Zook, defensive end, KU (1966–1968), NFL (1969–1979); KU All-Time team, All-American 1968, 2nd-Team All-Pro 1973, 2nd-Team All-NFC 1972 & 1973, 1973 Pro Bowl; missed only three games in ten years before final pro season

Golf
 Matt Gogel, professional golfer on the PGA Tour; winner of the 2002 AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on the PGA Tour
 Gary Woodland, professional golfer on the PGA Tour; winner of the 2011 Transitions Championship at Innisbrook, the 2013 Reno Tahoe Open, the 2018 Waste Management Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour, and the 2019 U.S. Open

Track and field
 Bill Alley, javelin, Olympian and US record holder
 Glenn Cunningham, former world record holder in 1500m and the mile, silver medal in 1936 Olympics in 1500m
 Bill Dotson, former distance runner; broke four minute mile on both indoor and outdoor tracks
 Billy Mills, the only US Olympic 10,000m gold medal winner; former world record holder
 Bill Nieder, shot put; won silver at the 1956 Summer Olympics and gold in 1960 Summer Olympics; set three shot put world records
 Al Oerter, All-American, four consecutive gold medals in olympic discus throw; two-time world record holder
 Jim Ryun, former U.S. congressman; three-time Olympic runner and silver medalist; held world records in the 880, 1,500m, and indoor and outdoor miles
 Wes Santee, middle distance runner, Olympian

Athletic directors
 Kent Weiser, current athletic director at Emporia State University; former women's golf coach at Kansas

Related pages
 List of people from Lawrence, Kansas

References 

University of Kansas