The following is a list of notable persons (students, alumni, faculty or academic affiliates) associated with

San José State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

, located in the American city of

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popu ...

Notable alumni

Academia

Bettina Aptheker Bettina Fay Aptheker (born September 13, 1944) is an American political activist, radical feminist, professor and author. Aptheker was active in civil rights and anti-war movements of the 1960s and 1970s, and has since worked in developing femini ...

— author, professor, political activist *

Marshall Drummond Dr. Marshall (Mark) Drummond is an American academic administrator. He served as an advisor to the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the United Arab Emirates and held several ceremonial titles in that regard. He was formerly Ch ...

— former chancellor,

California Community College System The California Community Colleges is a postsecondary education system in the U.S. state of California.California Education CodSection 70900(added to the Education Code by Chapter 973 of the California Statutes of 1988Assembly Bill No. 1725 secti ...

* Harry Edwards — Professor Emeritus of Sociology,

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

; author of ''The Revolt of the Black Athlete'' *Mary Lyons — President, University of San Diego *

Henry Suzzallo Henry Suzzallo (August 22, 1875 – September 25, 1933) was the president of the University of Washington from 1915 to 1926. He later served as director of the National Advisory Committee on Education and president of the Carnegie Foundation for ...

— former president,

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...

* Jennifer Wilby — Director of the Centre for Systems Studies,

University of Hull , mottoeng = Bearing the Torch f learning, established = 1927 – University College Hull1954 – university status , type = Public , endowment = £18.8 million (2016) , budget = £190 million ...

Hamza Yusuf Hamza Yusuf (born: Mark Hanson; 1958) is an American Islamic neo-traditionalist, Islamic scholar, and co-founder of Zaytuna College. He is a proponent of classical learning in Islam and has promoted Islamic sciences and classical teaching meth ...

— Islamic scholar *

Lawrence H. Keeley Lawrence H. Keeley (August 24, 1948 – October 11, 2017) was an American archaeologist best known for pioneering the field of microwear analysis of lithics. He is also known for his 1996 book, ''War Before Civilization: The Myth of the Peace ...

— archaeologist; professor,

University of Illinois Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the University of Illinois sy ...

; author of '' War Before Civilization''

Artists and musicians

Amber Aguirre Amber Aguirre (born 1958) is an American ceramic sculptor. She was born to Holocaust survivors. Aguirre received a BFA in ceramics from the University of Southern California in 1981, an MA in art education from San Jose State University in 1990, ...

— American ceramic sculptor * Bernd Behr — artist *

Mary Blair Mary Blair (born Mary Browne Robinson; October 21, 1911 – July 26, 1978) was an American artist, animator, and designer. She was prominent in producing art and animation for The Walt Disney Company, drawing concept art for such films as '' ...

— artist and illustrator who helped create

Disney's The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

''Cinderella'' (1950), ''Alice in Wonderland'' (1951) and ''Peter Pan'' (1953) *

Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Adams Buckingham (born October 3, 1949) is an American musician and record producer, best known as the lead guitarist and male lead vocalist of the band Fleetwood Mac from 1975 to 1987 and 1997 to 2018. In addition to his tenure with Fl ...

— musician best known for Fleetwood Mac ''(attended SJSU, but did not graduate)'' * Doug Clifford — rock drummer best known for his work as a founding member of Creedence Clearwater Revival *

Stu Cook Stuart Alden Cook (born April 25, 1945) is an American bass guitarist, best known for his work in the rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR), for which he is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Career Cook, along with Doug Clif ...

— bass guitarist best known for his work with Creedence Clearwater Revival ''(attended SJSU, but did not graduate)'' * Irene Dalis — New York Metropolitan Opera star and founder of

Opera San Jose Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

* Allan Graham — visual artist ''(studied at SJSU; graduated from

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

)'' * Robert Graham — internationally acclaimed sculptor whose work includes the Olympic Gateway in Los Angeles'' (attended SJSU before transferring to San Francisco Art Institute)'' * Tom Johnston — rock guitarist and vocalist best known for his work as a founding member of

The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...

Paul Kantner Paul Lorin Kantner (March 17, 1941 – January 28, 2016) was an American rock musician. He is best known as the co-founder, rhythm guitarist, and vocalist of Jefferson Airplane, a leading psychedelic rock band of the counterculture era. He con ...

— rock guitarist best known for his work as a founding member of Jefferson Airplane *

David Kuraoka David Kuraoka (born 1946) is an American ceramic artist. He was born in Lihue, Hawaii, grew up on the island of Kauai, Hawaii in Hanamaulu and Lihue, and graduated from Kauai High School in 1964. Kuraoka spent his formative years in Hanamaulu w ...

— ceramic artist * Sal Maccarone — nationally acclaimed woodworker and sculptor whose work includes "The Spirit of Tenaya" in

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is an American national park in California, surrounded on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The park is managed by the National Park Service and covers an ...

'' * Bryan "Brain" Mantia — drummer, Primus, Guns N' Roses,

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...

Buckethead Brian Patrick Carroll (born May 13, 1969), known professionally as Buckethead, is an American guitarist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has received critical acclaim for his innovative electric guitar playing. His music spans severa ...

* Ann Millikan — musician and composer * Stevie Nicks — musician best known for Fleetwood Mac ''(attended SJSU, but did not graduate)'' *

Larry Norman Larry David Norman (April 8, 1947 – February 24, 2008) was an American musician, singer, songwriter, record label owner, and record producer. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of Christian rock music and released more than 100 albu ...

— Christian rock musician, singer and songwriter; founding member of the '60s rock band

People! People! was a one-hit wonder rock band that was formed in San Jose, California in 1965. Their greatest chart success came with their summer hit single "I Love You". The song, written by The Zombies bass guitarist Chris White, rose to number ...

''(attended SJSU, but did not graduate)'' *

Fred H. Roster Fred H. Roster (June 27, 1944 – December 19, 2017) was an American sculptor known for his mixed media narrative sculptures. Biography Roster was born in Palo Alto, California, and grew up on a farm. He received an Master of Arts, MA degree in ...

— sculptor * Judy Shintani — artist *

Patrick Simmons Patrick Simmons (born October 19, 1948) is an American musician best known as a founding member of the rock band The Doobie Brothers. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, he has been the only consistent member of the band throughout their tenure. Simm ...

— rock guitarist and vocalist best known for his work as a founding member of

* Gordon Smedt – pop artist and painter ''(studied graphic design and illustration at SJSU from 1982–1984; graduated from

Art Center College of Design Art Center College of Design (stylized as ArtCenter College of Design) is a private art college in Pasadena, California. History ArtCenter College of Design was founded in 1930 in downtown Los Angeles as the Art Center School. In 1935, Fred ...

)'' *

Wayne Thiebaud Morton Wayne Thiebaud ( ; November 15, 1920 – December 25, 2021) was an American painter known for his colorful works depicting commonplace objects—pies, lipsticks, paint cans, ice cream cones, pastries, and hot dogs—as well as for his la ...

— painter ''(studied at SJSU from 1949–1950; graduated from

Sacramento State University California State University, Sacramento (CSUS, Sacramento State, or informally Sac State) is a public university in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1947 as Sacramento State College, it is the eleventh oldest school in the 23-campus California ...

)'' *

Cal Tjader Callen Radcliffe Tjader Jr. ( ; July 16, 1925 – May 5, 1982) was an American Latin Jazz musician, known as the most successful non-Latino Latin musician. He explored other jazz idioms, even as he continued to perform music of Afro-Jazz, ...

—

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

-winning jazz musician ''(studied at SJSU; graduated from

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

)'' * Michael Whelan — artist and illustrator specializing in imaginative realism; Science Fiction Hall of Fame inductee

Authors

* Lorna Dee Cervantes — poet, Pulitzer Prize nominee * William J. Craddock — novelist, author of ''Be Not Content'' and ''Twilight Candelabra'' *

Carmen Giménez Smith ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

— poet,

American Book Award The American Book Award is an American literary award that annually recognizes a set of books and people for "outstanding literary achievement". According to the 2010 awards press release, it is "a writers' award given by other writers" and "the ...

winner * James D. Houston — co-author of ''

Farewell to Manzanar ''Farewell to Manzanar'' is a memoir published in 1973 by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston. The book describes the experiences of Jeanne Wakatsuki and her family before, during, and following their relocation to the Manzanar inte ...

''; author of ''Continental Drift'', ''Snow Mountain Passage'', and others; Lurie Distinguished Visiting Professor of Creative Writing at SJSU in Spring 2006 * Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston — co-author of ''Farewell to Manzanar'' * Jayne Ann Krentz — ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' bestselling author * Ella Leffland — novelist (''Rumors of Peace'') and short story writer (''Last Courtesies and Other Stories'') *

Edwin Markham Edwin Markham (born Charles Edward Anson Markham; April 23, 1852 – March 7, 1940) was an American poet. From 1923 to 1931 he was Poet Laureate of Oregon. Life Edwin Markham was born in Oregon City, Oregon, and was the youngest of 10 children; ...

— poet *

Patricia A. McKillip Patricia Anne McKillip (February 29, 1948 – May 6, 2022) was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. She has been called "one of the most accomplished prose stylists in the fantasy genre", and wrote predominantly standalone fantasy n ...

— novelist * Sandra McPherson — poet *

Robert Scoble Robert Scoble (born January 18, 1965) is an American blogger, technical evangelist, and author. Scoble is best known for his blog, ''Scobleizer'', which came to prominence during his tenure as a technology evangelist at Microsoft. He later worked ...

— blogger, author, and social media pioneer *

Amy Tan Amy Ruth Tan (born on February 19, 1952) is an American author known for the novel '' The Joy Luck Club,'' which was adapted into a film of the same name, as well as other novels, short story collections, and children's books. Tan has written ...

— novelist; author of '' The Joy Luck Club''

Aviation

Jason Dahl Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He wa ...

— airline pilot and

United Airlines Flight 93 United Airlines Flight 93 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight that was hijacked by four al-Qaeda attackers aboard the plane on the morning of September 11, 2001, as part of the September 11 attacks. The plane eventually crashed in S ...

captain who died in the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

Business

* Terry Alderete — businesswoman *

Helder Antunes Hélder Fragueiro Antunes (born 6 July 1963; Angra do Heroísmo, Azores) is a Portuguese- American executive, computer scientist, and former racecar driver. A Cisco Systems executive for over twenty years, as well as founder and first Chairman ...

— Senior Director,

Cisco Systems Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, ...

; Chairman of the Board,

OpenFog Consortium The OpenFog Consortium (sometimes stylized as Open Fog Consortium) was a consortium of high tech industry companies and academic institutions across the world aimed at the standardization and promotion of fog computing in various capacities and f ...

* James F. Boccardo — trial lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist * Finis Conner — founder, Conner Peripherals and co-founder of Seagate Technology *

Ron Conway Ronald Crawford Conway (born March 9, 1951) is an American venture capitalist and philanthropist. He has been described as one of Silicon Valley's " super angels". Early career Conway graduated from San Jose State University with a bachelor's d ...

— billionaire angel investor and philanthropist; co-founder and former CEO of

Altos Computer Systems Altos Computer Systems was founded in 1977 by David G. Jackson and Roger William Vass Sr. It focused on small multi-user computers, starting with multi-user derivatives of CP/M, and later including Unix and Xenix-based machines. In its 1982 init ...

* Robert Frankenberg — former CEO, Novell *

Carl Guardino The Silicon Valley Leadership Group (abbreviated SVLG) is a non-profit advocacy group in Silicon Valley, California, in the United States. Its members are businesses that operate in the valley and its purpose is to influence public policy rela ...

— President and CEO,

Silicon Valley Leadership Group The Silicon Valley Leadership Group (abbreviated SVLG) is a non-profit advocacy group in Silicon Valley, California, in the United States. Its members are businesses that operate in the valley and its purpose is to influence public policy rel ...

* Omid Kordestani — Senior Vice President,

Google Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...

* Brian Krzanich — CEO, CDK Global and former CEO, Intel Corporation * Jenny Ming — CEO, Charlotte Russe; former CEO of

Old Navy Old Navy is an American clothing and accessories retailing company owned by multinational corporation Gap Inc. It has corporate operations in the Mission Bay neighborhood of San Francisco, California. The largest of the Old Navy stores are its ...

Gordon Moore Gordon Earle Moore (born January 3, 1929) is an American businessman, engineer, and the co-founder and chairman emeritus of Intel Corporation. He is also the original proponent of Moore's law. As of March 2021, Moore's net worth is repor ...

— co-founder, Intel Corporation ''(studied two years at SJSU; graduated from U.C. Berkeley)'' *Louis Nguyen — Chairman and CEO, Saigon Asset Management *

Ed Oates Edward A. Oates (born 1946) is an American businessman. He co-founded Software Development Labs in August 1977 with Larry Ellison, and Bob Miner. Software Development Labs later became Oracle Corporation. Education and early employment Ed Oate ...

— co-founder, Oracle Corporation * Daniel R. Scoggin — founder and CEO,

TGI Fridays TGI Fridays (operating in the UK as FRIDAYS) is an American restaurant chain focusing on primarily American cuisine and casual dining. The restaurant's founder said the name stood for "Thank God It's Friday", although some television commercial ...

* Mike Sinyard — founder and CEO,

Specialized Bicycle Components Specialized Bicycle Components, Inc., colloquially known as and stylized as SPECIALIZED, is an American company which designs, manufactures and markets bicycles, bicycle components and related products under the brand name "Specialized", as well ...

* James E. Thompson — founder and chairman, Crown Worldwide Group

Film, theatre, and TV

* Coby Bell — actor; best known for his role as

NYPD The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...

officer Tyrone Davis, Jr. on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

drama ''

Third Watch ''Third Watch'' is an American crime drama television series created by John Wells and Edward Allen Bernero that aired on NBC from September 26, 1999, to May 6, 2005, with a total of 132 episodes spanning over six seasons. It was produced ...

'' *

Danny Lee Clark Danny Lee "Nitro" Clark (born May 21, 1964) is an American athlete, television personality, author, actor, and producer. He is best known for his role as gladiator Nitro on the TV show '' American Gladiators''. He is also a health and fitness exp ...

— actor, writer and producer; played Nitro on '' American Gladiators'' *

Rosanna DeSoto Rosanna DeSoto (born September 2, 1950) is an American actress who has performed in films and television. She is best known for her roles in ''Stand and Deliver'', for which she won an Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female, and in '' ...

— film actress, best for her role of Connie Valenzuela in the 1987 film '' La Bamba'' * Debrah Farentino — film and television actress; model ''(attended SJSU; transferred to

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...

)'' *

Jerry Juhl Jerome Ravn Juhl (July 27, 1938 – September 27, 2005) was an American television and film writer, best known for his work with The Muppets. Biography Juhl was born in St. Paul, Minnesota; his family moved to Menlo Park, California, when ...

— head writer and producer for ''

The Muppets The Muppets are an American ensemble cast of puppet characters known for an absurdist, burlesque, and self-referential style of variety- sketch comedy. Created by Jim Henson in 1955, they are the focus of a media franchise that encompasses ...

'' and ''

Fraggle Rock ''Fraggle Rock'' (also known as ''Jim Henson's Fraggle Rock'' or ''Fraggle Rock with Jim Henson's Muppets'') is a children's musical fantasy comedy puppet television series about interconnected societies of Muppet creatures, created by Jim Hen ...

'' *

Omar Benson Miller Omar Benson Miller (born October 7, 1978) is an American actor. He is known for his work as Walter Simmons on '' CSI: Miami'' (2009–2012), as Charles Greane on ''Ballers'' (2015–2019), as the voice of Raphael Raffaello Sanzio da Urb ...

— actor *

Steve Silver ''Steve Silver's Beach Blanket Babylon'' was the world's longest-running musical revue. The show began its run in 1974, at the Savoy Tivoli and later moved to the larger Club Fugazi in the North Beach district of San Francisco. The show was cr ...

— founder of

Beach Blanket Babylon ''Steve Silver's Beach Blanket Babylon'' was the world's longest-running musical revue. The show began its run in 1974, at the Savoy Tivoli and later moved to the larger Club Fugazi in the North Beach district of San Francisco. The show was crea ...

, a popular cabaret show in San Francisco *

Kurtwood Smith Kurtwood Larson Smith (born July 3, 1943) is an American television and film actor. He is known for playing Clarence Boddicker in ''RoboCop'' (1987), Robert Griggs in ''Rambo III'' (1988), and Red Forman in ''That '70s Show'' (1998–2006), as ...

— actor, best known for the role of Red Forman on ''

That '70s Show ''That '70s Show'' is an American television period teen sitcom that aired on Fox from August 23, 1998, to May 18, 2006. The series focuses on the lives of a group of six teenage friends living in the fictional town of Point Place, Wisconsin, ...

'' *

The Smothers Brothers The Smothers Brothers are Thomas ("Tom" – born February 2, 1937) and Richard ("Dick" – born November 20, 1938), American folk singers, musicians, and comedians. The brothers' trademark double act was performing folk songs (Tommy on acoustic gu ...

— comedians *

Bobbi Starr Bobbi Starr is an American former pornographic actress. Starr also became a director for Evil Angel. Her directorial debut was ''Bobbi's World'', a female POV movie. Early life and education Starr expressed an ambition to study pre-med, wi ...

—

pornographic Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

actress *

Luis Valdez Luis Miguel Valdez (born June 26, 1940) is an American playwright, screenwriter, film director and actor. Regarded as the father of Chicano film and theater, Valdez is best known for his play '' Zoot Suit'', his movie '' La Bamba'', and his cre ...

—

Chicano Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...

playwright, screenwriter and director best known for his movie '' La Bamba'' *

Yousef Erakat Yousef Saleh Erakat (; born January 22, 1990), also known as FouseyTube or Fousey, is an American YouTuber who produces parodies, vlogs, comedy sketches and interviews. He also has two other channels, Fousey and DoseOfFousey. Early life Yousef E ...

— Actor, Comedian, Vlogger

Journalism

Chauncey Bailey Chauncey Wendell Bailey Jr. (October 20, 1949 – August 2, 2007) was an American journalist noted for his work primarily on issues of the African American community. He served as editor-in-chief of '' The Oakland Post'' in Oakland, California, ...

— ''Oakland Post'' editor-in-chief; murdered in 2007 * Grant Brisbee — San Francisco Giants writer for

The Athletic ''The Athletic'' is a subscription-based sports website that provides national and local coverage in 47 North American cities as well as the United Kingdom. ''The Athletic'' also covers national stories from top professional and college sports ...

* Kim Komenich — photojournalist, filmmaker and teacher; Pulitzer Prize winner (1987) * John Kouns — photojournalist during the

Civil Rights Movement The civil rights movement was a nonviolent social and political movement and campaign from 1954 to 1968 in the United States to abolish legalized institutional racial segregation, discrimination, and disenfranchisement throughout the Unite ...

Tony Kovaleski Anthony Carl "Tony" Kovaleski (born 1959) is an investigative reporter currently working at Denver ABC Scripps' KMGH-Channel 7. Previously Kovaleski worked at NBC Bay Area, KNTV in the San Francisco Bay Area. From 2001 to 2011, he was the investig ...

— broadcast journalist ( KNTV-TV); multiple Emmy awards; winner of the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award (2010) * Steve Lopez — newspaper columnist, ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

''; novelist *

Dave Meltzer David Allen Meltzer (born October 24, 1959) is an American journalist who reports on professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Since 1983, he has been the publisher and editor of the ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON''). He has als ...

—editor of the ''

Wrestling Observer Newsletter The ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter'' (''WON'') is a newsletter that covers professional wrestling and mixed martial arts. Founded in print in 1982 by Dave Meltzer, the ''Wrestling Observer'' website merged with Bryan Alvarez's ''Figure Four W ...

'' * Anacleto Rapping — photojournalist and teacher; three-time Pulitzer Prize winner *Marcio Sanchez — photojournalist; Pulitzer Prize winner (2021) * Steve Starr — photojournalist; Pulitzer Prize winner (1970) * Julie Tilsner — author, contributing editor for ''Parenting Magazine'' and former ''Businessweek'' reporter * David Willman — reporter; Pulitzer Prize winner (2001)

Miscellaneous

Christopher Darden Christopher Allen Darden (born April 7, 1956) is an American lawyer, author, actor, and lecturer. He worked for 15 years in the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office, where he gained national attention as a co-prosecutor in the O. J. S ...

— prosecutor in the

O. J. Simpson murder case ''The People of the State of California v. Orenthal James Simpson'' was a criminal trial in Los Angeles County Superior Court starting in 1994, in which O. J. Simpson, a former National Football League (NFL) player, broadcaster and actor, was ...

Dirk Dirksen Dirk Dirksen (August 25, 1937 – November 20, 2006) was a music promoter and emcee of the San Francisco punk rock clubs Mabuhay Gardens and On Broadway in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Dirksen was nicknamed the "Pope of Punk." Dirksen was bor ...

— godfather of San Francisco

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

; tour manager for

The Doors The Doors were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential rock acts ...

Iron Butterfly Iron Butterfly is an American rock band formed in San Diego, California, in 1966. They are best known for the 1968 hit " In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida", providing a dramatic sound that led the way towards the development of hard rock and heavy metal musi ...

The Supremes The Supremes were an American girl group and a premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s. Founded as the Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, the Supremes were the most commercially successful of Motown's acts and the most successf ...

and

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

; owner of the

Mabuhay Gardens The Mabuhay Gardens, also known as The Fab Mab or The Mab, was a former San Francisco nightclub, located at 443 Broadway Street, in North Beach on the Broadway strip area best known for its striptease clubs. It closed in 1987. History The Ma ...

punk club in San Francisco (attended SJSU, but did not graduate) * Rob Janoff — Graphic designer best known for his creation of the

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ' ...

logo * Harry W. Jenkins — Major General, U.S. Marine Corps *

Jessica McClintock Jessica Gagnon McClintock (June 19, 1930 – February 16, 2021) was founder, President and CEO of Jessica McClintock, Inc., an American retail company based in San Francisco, California. She was a designer of formalwear for women. In 2013, after ...

— fashion designer * Anthony Poshepny, aka Tony Poe — legendary CIA paramilitary officer *

Edward Soriano Edward Soriano (born 12 November 1946) is an American retired lieutenant general. He is the highest-ranking Filipino American officer to have served in the United States military, and the first promoted to a general officer. Born in the Philippi ...

— Lieutenant General,

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

; , highest ranking

Filipino American Filipino Americans ( fil, Mga Pilipinong Amerikano) are Americans of Filipino ancestry. Filipinos and other Asian ethnicities in North America were first documented in the 16th century as slaves and prisoners on ships sailing to and from New ...

in the United States military

Politics and government

* Richard C. Baldwin — Associate Justice of the

Oregon Supreme Court The Oregon Supreme Court (OSC) is the highest state court in the U.S. state of Oregon. The only court that may reverse or modify a decision of the Oregon Supreme Court is the Supreme Court of the United States.James T. Beall Jr. — California Assemblyman, 24th district, and former

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259, as of the 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring San Benito County together f ...

Supervisor * Lee P. Brown — former

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

; former

Police Commissioner of New York City The New York City Police Commissioner is the head of the New York City Police Department and presiding member of the Board of Commissioners. The commissioner is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Mayor of New York City, mayor. The c ...

; former Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy *

Ben Nighthorse Campbell Ben Nighthorse Campbell (born April 13, 1933) is an American Cheyenne politician who represented Colorado's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1987 to 1993, and as a United States Senator from Colorado f ...

— former U.S. Senator from

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...

* Albert E. Carter — former U.S. Congressman *David C. Casas — former mayor of Los Altos and Los Altos city council member *

Cindy Chavez Cindy Chavez (born April 7, 1964) is an American politician who serves as the Santa Clara County supervisor representing district two, which is home to nearly 400,000 residents in Downtown, East, and South San Jose. Her public service career began ...

— former member of San Jose City Council and former vice mayor of San Jose * Judy Chirco — San José City councilmember, District 9 * William Clark, Jr. — former U.S. Ambassador to India *

Michael Deaver Michael Keith Deaver (April 11, 1938 – August 18, 2007) was a member of President Ronald Reagan's White House staff serving as White House Deputy Chief of Staff under James Baker III and Donald Regan from January 1981 until May 1985. Early ...

— Deputy White House Chief of Staff for President Ronald Reagan * Robert Doerr — former Mayor of San Jose, California (1956–1958) *

Paul Fong Paul Fong () (born August 5, 1952) is an American politician. He is a former Democratic California State Assembly member from the 28th district. As a former Assemblymember, Fong continues to fight for the rights of workers to a living wage and ...

— California Assemblyman, 22nd district *

Robert "Bob" Foster Robert Foster (born January 1, 1947) is an American former businessman and politician who served as the mayor of Long Beach, California. He was elected in a runoff election in 2006. Prior to serving as mayor, Foster climbed the ranks of Southe ...

—

Mayor of Long Beach, California This is a list of mayors of Long Beach, California. The current mayor is Rex Richardson who has been in office since December 20, 2022. He is the first black person to hold the position. History Prior its creation, the equivalent to the office ...

; former President,

Southern California Edison Southern California Edison (or SCE Corp), the largest subsidiary of Edison International, is the primary electricity supply company for much of Southern California. It provides 15 million people with electricity across a service territory of ap ...

; former CSU Trustee *

Mike Honda Michael Makoto "Mike" Honda (born June 27, 1941) is an American politician and former educator. A member of the Democratic Party, he served in Congress from 2001 to 2017. Initially involved in education in California, he first became active in ...

—

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

from California *

Lou Henry Hoover Lou Hoover (née Henry; March 29, 1874 – January 7, 1944) was an American philanthropist, geologist, and First Lady of the United States from 1929 to 1933 as the wife of President Herbert Hoover. She was active in numerous community organizatio ...

— former First Lady of the United States *

Johnny Khamis Johnny Khamis is an American politician from San Jose, California and was a member of the San Jose City Council, representing District 10. Khamis is a Christian of Palestinian descent. He grew up in San Jose and attended local public schools, ...

— Councilmember on the San Jose City Council * Linda J. LeZotte — San Jose City councilmember, District 1 * Evan Low — California State Assemblyman; member of

California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus The California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus (formerly the California Legislative LGBT Caucus) is an American political organization formed in June 2002 and composed of openly lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender members of the California State Legisl ...

Gus Morrison Gus Morrison (1934/1935 – December 14, 2023) was an American politician and engineer. Morrison served as the Mayor of Fremont, California, for three different tenures: 1985 to 1989, 1994 to 2004, and 2012. On January 30, 2012, Morrison was appo ...

— Mayor of Fremont, California (1985–1989; 1994–2004; since January 2012) *

Gaylord Nelson Gaylord Anton Nelson (June 4, 1916July 3, 2005) was an American politician and environmentalist from Wisconsin who served as a United States senator and governor. He was a member of the Democratic Party and the founder of Earth Day, which launch ...

— former U.S. Senator; Governor of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

; founder of Earth Day * Lyn Nofziger — White House advisor to

presidents President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

and Ronald Reagan * Robert Rivas — California State Assemblyman * Ed Rollins — National Campaign Director for

Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

– Bush (1984) and Mike Huckabee (2007); regular guest political analyst on CNN ''(attended SJSU; graduated from CSU Chico)'' * Jim Silva — California State Assemblyman; former mayor of

Huntington Beach Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, Orange County in Southern California, located southeast of Downtown Los Angeles. The city is named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 duri ...

* Laurie Smith — Sheriff,

; first female county sheriff in the history of the state of California * Fernando Torres-Gil — first assistant secretary for aging at the Department of Health and Human Services in the Clinton Administration; associate dean of the School of Public Affairs at UCLA *

Joe Trippi Joseph Paul Trippi (born June 10, 1956) is an American political strategist who has worked on several gubernatorial, United States Senate, and Congressional campaigns, including Jerry Brown for Governor of California and Doug Jones for U.S. Sen ...

— presidential campaign manager for

Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 2009 ...

(2004) *

Sim Tze Tzin Sim Tze Tzin (; born 6 February 1976) is a Malaysian politician who served as the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry in the Pakatan Harapan (PH) administration under former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and former Mini ...

— Malaysian politician *

Carole Ward Allen Carole Ward Allen is an American politician, professor, and political consultant. She is a member of the Democratic Party, and serves as the chief executive officer of CWA Partners, LLC. As a mass transportation executive in the State of Califor ...

— former BART board director, District 4; former Oakland port commissioner * Kent Wiedemann — former U.S. Ambassador to

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailan ...

* Ken Yeager — politician, member of

Board of Supervisors

Science and technology

* Barbara Bekins – hydrologist and

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...

fellow *

Daniel W. Bradley Daniel W. Bradley (born 13 July 1941) is an important American virologist who, along with Michael Houghton, Qui-Lim Choo and George Kuo at Chiron Corporation, worked to help isolate the Hepatitis C virus in 1989. He graduated from San José Stat ...

— co-discoverer of Hepatitis C * Sarah Clatterbuck — computer engineer *

Ray Dolby Ray Milton Dolby (; January 18, 1933 – September 12, 2013) was an American engineer and inventor of the noise reduction system known as Dolby NR. He helped develop the video tape recorder while at Ampex and was the founder of Dolby Lab ...

— engineer, founder of Dolby Laboratories ''(studied two years at SJSU; graduated from Stanford University)'' *

Dian Fossey Dian Fossey (, January 16, 1932 – ) was an American primatologist and conservationist known for undertaking an extensive study of mountain gorilla groups from 1966 until her murder in 1985. She studied them daily in the mountain forests of R ...

—

ethologist Ethology is the scientific study of animal behaviour, usually with a focus on behaviour under natural conditions, and viewing behaviour as an evolutionarily adaptive trait. Behaviourism as a term also describes the scientific and objectiv ...

and

gorilla Gorillas are herbivorous, predominantly ground-dwelling great apes that inhabit the tropical forests of equatorial Africa. The genus ''Gorilla'' is divided into two species: the eastern gorilla and the western gorilla, and either four or fi ...

expert * Charles Ginsburg — engineer, inventor of the

videocassette recorder A videocassette recorder (VCR) or video recorder is an electromechanical device that records analog audio and analog video from broadcast television or other source on a removable, magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the reco ...

;

National Inventors Hall of Fame The National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) is an American not-for-profit organization, founded in 1973, which recognizes individual engineers and inventors who hold a U.S. patent of significant technology. Besides the Hall of Fame, it also oper ...

inductee *

Jan Koum Jan Koum ( ua, link=yes, Ян Кум; born Yan Borysovych Kum, ua, Ян Борисович Кум, on February 24, 1976) is a Ukrainian-American billionaire businessman and computer engineer. He is the co-founder and former CEO of WhatsApp, a ...

— billionaire entrepreneur, co-founder and CEO of

WhatsApp WhatsApp (also called WhatsApp Messenger) is an internationally available freeware, cross-platform, centralized instant messaging (IM) and voice-over-IP (VoIP) service owned by American company Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook). It allows use ...

; managing director at Facebook, Inc. ''(attended SJSU, but did not graduate)'' *

— scientist, author of Moore's Law * Roger Wakimoto — atmospheric scientist, tornado expert, director of NCAR and NSF * James Lewis Wayman — 2013 Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

Sports

Baseball

* Jeff Ball — former

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

player,

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Y ...

* Aaron Bates — Major League Baseball player,

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Founded in as one of the American League's eigh ...

* Mike Brown — former Major League Baseball player, California Angels and Pittsburgh Pirates *

Ken Caminiti Kenneth Gene Caminiti (April 21, 1963 – October 10, 2004) was an American third baseman who spent 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Houston Astros (1987–1994, 1999–2000), San Diego Padres (1995–1998), Texas Rangers ( ...

— former Major League Baseball player, Houston Astros et al. *

Anthony Chavez Anthony Francisco Chavez (born October 22, 1970) is a retired professional baseball player who played 13 professional baseball seasons. In 1992, he made the 2nd Team All Big West Conference out of San Jose State University and a 50th round select ...

— former Major League Baseball player, California Angels * Chris Codiroli — former Major League Baseball player, Oakland Athletics *

Kevin Frandsen Kevin Vincent Frandsen (born May 24, 1982) is an American sports broadcaster and former professional baseball utility player. Frandsen played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Philadelph ...

— Major League Baseball player, Philadelphia Phillies * Gary Hughes — former Major League Baseball assistant coach, Chicago Cubs * Pat Hughes — play-by-play radio broadcaster for Chicago Cubs * Jason Jimenez — former Major League Baseball player, Detroit Tigers and

Tampa Bay Devil Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since its inception, the team's home ve ...

Randy Johnson Randall David Johnson (born September 10, 1963), nicknamed "The Big Unit", is an American photographer and former professional baseball pitcher who played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (1988–2009) for six teams, primarily the Seattle M ...

— former Major League Baseball player,

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in Bos ...

* Brad Kilby — Major League Baseball player, Oakland Athletics * Hal Kolstad — former Major League Baseball player, Boston Red Sox *

Mark Langston Mark Edward Langston (born August 20, 1960) is an American former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched for the Seattle Mariners (1984–1989), Montreal Expos (1989), California / Anaheim Angels (1990–1997), San Diego Padres (1 ...

— former Major League Baseball player,

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The team joined the American League as an expansion team ...

, California Angels, et al. * Larry Lintz — former Major League Baseball player,

Montreal Expos The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...

et al. * John Oldham — former Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds * Jason Simontacchi — former Major League Baseball player,

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

and

Washington Nationals The Washington Nationals are an American professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C.. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. From 2005 to 2007, the team played in RFK Stadiu ...

Anthony Telford Anthony Charles Telford (born March 6, 1966) is a retired professional baseball pitcher who currently works for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). As a player, the Baltimore Orioles selected him in the third round of the 19 ...

— former Major League Baseball player,

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. As one of the American League's eight charter ...

, Montreal Expos, et al. * Carlos Torres — Major League Baseball player,

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

Basketball

Tariq Abdul-Wahad Tariq Abdul-Wahad (born Olivier Michael Saint-Jean; November 3, 1974) is a French basketball coach and former player. As Olivier Saint-Jean, he played college basketball at Michigan and San Jose State. In 1997, the Sacramento Kings selected Sain ...

(Olivier Saint-Jean) — former NBA player (

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

) * Ricky Berry — former NBA player (Sacramento Kings) *

Coby Dietrick Coby Joseph Dietrick (born July 23, 1948) is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'10" forward/center from San José State University, Dietrick played thirteen seasons (1970–1983) of professional basketball in both the America ...

— former NBA player (

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

and Golden State Warriors) *

Dick Groves Richard G. Groves (born 1909/1910) was an English professional football player and manager. He was also active in cricket and rugby. Playing career Groves played an inside forward, for Bristol Rovers, Southampton, Plymouth Argyle and Torquay Uni ...

— former NBA player (

San Diego Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The team was established in 1967, and pl ...

) * Darnell "Dr. Dunk" Hillman — former NBA player ( Indiana Pacers,

New Jersey Nets New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

''et al.'') *

Ed Hughes Edward D. Hughes (October 23, 1927 – June 23, 2000) was an American football player and coach whose career spanned more than three decades. His most prominent coaching position came in 1971 when he served as head coach of the National Footbal ...

— former BAA player (

Washington Capitols The Washington Capitols were a former Basketball Association of America (forerunner of the National Basketball Association) team based in Washington, D.C. from 1946 to 1951. The team was coached from 1946 to 1949 by NBA Hall of Famer Red Auerbac ...

) * Stu Inman — former NBA player and coach (

Chicago Stags The Chicago Stags were a National Basketball Association team based in Chicago from 1946 to 1950. History 1946–47 season In the BAA's inaugural year, the Chicago Stags were placed in the Western Division, and after 60 games were tied with the ...

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

, ''et al.'') * Wally Rank — former NBA player ( San Diego Clippers) * Sid Williams — former NBA player (Portland Trail Blazers)

Football

* Courtney Anderson — former NFL

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

, Atlanta Falcons and Oakland Raiders *

Marcus Arroyo Marcus Cole Arroyo (born January 23, 1980) is an American football coach and former plauer. He served as the head football coach at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) from 2020 to 2022. Arroyo played college football as quarterback at San ...

— head football coach,

UNLV The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes th ...

Stacey Bailey Stacey Dwayne Bailey (born February 10, 1960) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at San Jose State. He was drafted in the third round (63rd overall) of the 1982 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons. Early years ...

— former NFL wide receiver, Atlanta Falcons * Keith Birlem — former SJSU quarterback, NFL player, member of San Jose State Hall of Fame * Kim Bokamper — former NFL

linebacker Linebacker (LB) is a playing position in gridiron football. Linebackers are members of the defensive team, and line up three to five yards behind the line of scrimmage and the defensive linemen. They are the "middle ground" of defenders, ...

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

* John Broussard — NFL wide receiver,

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...

* Gill Byrd — former NFL defensive back, San Diego Chargers; two NFL

Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...

appearances * Jim Cadile — former NFL guard, Chicago Bears *

Sheldon Canley Sheldon Lavell Canley (born April 19, 1968) is a former professional American football running back in the National Football League. He played professionally for the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Jets. Early life Canley was born in Santa B ...

— former NFL

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback to rush the ball, to line up as a receiver to catch the ball, and block. Ther ...

San Francisco 49ers The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...

and New York Jets *

Matt Castelo Matthew Alexander "Matt" Castelo (born March 26, 1986) is a former professional gridiron football linebacker. He was signed by the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football for the San Jose State Spartans. ...

— former NFL

, Seattle Seahawks; former CFL linebacker, Hamilton Tiger-cats * Steve Clarkson — nationally renowned quarterbacks coach; founder of Steve Clarkson Dreammaker quarterback camp * Sherman Cocroft — former NFL defensive back,

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...

*Clarence Cunningham — former AFL wide receiver, defensive back, running back, and kick returner; former

AF2 The AF2 (often styled as af2, and short for arenafootball2) was the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like its parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football ru ...

starter,

Stockton Lightning The Stockton Lightning were a professional arena football team based in Stockton, California. They were members of the Western Division of the National Conference of the arenafootball2 (af2). The Lightning joined af2 2006 as an expansion team. Th ...

; IFL free safety, Catania Elephants *

Neal Dahlen Neal (Neil) is a given masculine name and surname of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an Anglicisation of the Irish Niall which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "hon ...

— former SJSU quarterback, NFL manager and scout; holds the record for the most earned Super Bowl rings at seven * Rashied Davis — NFL wide receiver, Chicago Bears * Yonus Davis — CFL running back,

BC Lions The BC Lions are a professional Canadian football team based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Lions compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and play their home games at BC Place. The Lions played their first seas ...

* Steve DeBerg — former NFL

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divi ...

* David Diaz-Infante — former NFL and CFL

offensive guard Offensive may refer to: * Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative * Offensive (military), an attack * Offensive language ** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict in ...

, San Diego Chargers,

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquar ...

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team play ...

, and Sacramento Gold Miners * Oscar Donahue — former NFL wide receiver,

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansi ...

Terry Donahue Terrence Michael Donahue (June 24, 1944 – July 4, 2021) was an American football coach and executive. He served as the head coach at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) from 1976 to 1995, compiling a record of 151–74–8. His 15 ...

—

head football coach; College Football Hall of Fame inductee ''(attended SJSU for one year)'' *

Leon Donohue Leon Donohue (March 25, 1939 – August 11, 2016) was an American football offensive guard in the National Football League for the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at San Jose State University. Early years Donoh ...

, former NFL offensive lineman,

and

* Carl Ekern — former NFL linebacker, Los Angeles Rams; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance *

David Fales David Daniel Fales (born October 4, 1990) is a former American football quarterback. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He played college football at San Jose State. Fales played high school football ...

-NFL quarterback, New York Jets *

Mervyn Fernandez Mervyn L. Fernandez (born December 29, 1959), nicknamed Swervin' Mervyn, is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver with the BC Lions in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and Los Angeles Raiders in the Nati ...

—former NFL wide receiver,

Los Angeles Raiders The Los Angeles Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Los Angeles from 1982 to 1994 before relocating back to Oakland, California, where the team played from its inaugural 1960 season to the 1981 season and then agai ...

Coye Francies Coye Glenn Francies (born November 15, 1986) is a former American football cornerback. Francies grew up in Rancho Cordova, California and played college football at American River, Oregon State, and San Jose State. In the 2009 NFL Draft, the Cl ...

— NFL defensive back,

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

Jeff Garcia Jeffrey Jason Garcia (born February 24, 1970) is a former American football quarterback. After attending high school and junior college in Gilroy, California, Garcia played college football at San Jose State University. A four-time CFL All-Sta ...

— NFL quarterback,

''et al.''; four NFL Pro Bowl appearances *

Trestin George Trestin George (born August 24, 1983) is an American actor and former professional American football defensive back. He played for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League until he requested his release to be closer to his family. He was signe ...

— CFL defensive back, BC Lions * Jarron Gilbert – NFL defensive tackle, Chicago Bears * Charlie Harraway — former NFL running back,

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

and

* Paul Held — former NFL quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers * Willie Heston — former SJSU halfback; College Football Hall of Fame inductee ''(attended SJSU from 1898–1900; graduated from

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

)'' *

James Hodgins James William Hodgins (born April 30, 1977) is a former American football fullback. High school Hodgins graduated from Oak Grove High School in his birthplace of San Jose, California in 1995 and lettered in football, basketball, and track. C ...

— former NFL fullback,

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

et al. * Duke Ihenacho — NFL safety,

* Johnny Johnson — former NFL running back, New York Jets; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance; consensus choice for Rookie of the Year (1990) * Cody Jones — NFL defensive tackle, Los Angeles Rams; one NFL Pro Bowl appearance * James Jones — NFL wide receiver, Oakland Raiders * Rick Kane — former NFL running back, Detroit Lions *

Bob Ladouceur Robert Eugene Ladouceur (born July 3, 1954) is a retired American football coach. He began coaching the De La Salle High Spartans in Concord, California in 1979, when he was 25 years old. He took over a program that had never enjoyed a winning se ...

— among winningest high school football coaches in U.S. history; coached De La Salle High Spartans to 151 consecutive wins from 1992–2003 *

Bill Leavy Bill Leavy (pronounced LEE-vee; born February 13, 1947) is a retired American football official who officiated in the National Football League (NFL) from the 1995 through 2014 seasons, wore uniform number 127, and is also a retired San Jose, Cali ...

— NFL referee; officiated

Super Bowl XL Super Bowl XL was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Seattle Seahawks and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion f ...

Dwight Lowery Dwight Larte Lowery (born January 23, 1986) is a former American football Safety (American and Canadian football position), safety. He was drafted by the New York Jets in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at San ...

— NFL defensive back, New York Jets and two-time All-American at SJSU *

Joe Nedney Joseph Thomas Nedney (born March 22, 1973) is a former American football placekicker. Born and raised in San Jose, California, Nedney played college football at San Jose State and signed as an undrafted player with the Miami Dolphins in 1996. H ...

— NFL kicker, San Francisco 49ers * William Yaw Obeng —

Arena Football League The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...

lineman,

San Jose Sabercats The San Jose SaberCats were a professional arena football team based in San Jose, California. The SaberCats had been members of the Arena Football League (AFL) since 1995 (the year in which the team was founded); and until 2015, they belonged to ...

* Chris Owens — NFL defensive back, Atlanta Falcons * Tom Petitthome — former AFL player, San Jose Sabercats * Art Powell — NFL wide receiver, Oakland Raiders; Raiders' 7th all-time leading receiver * Waylon Prather — former NFL punter,

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

, New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals * Jim Psaltis — former NFL defensive back * David Richmond — NFL wide receiver, Cincinnati Bengals * Scott Rislov — AFL quarterback,

Al Saunders Alan Keith Saunders (born February 1, 1947) is an American football coach who most recently served as the senior offensive assistant for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). Personal life Saunders was born in the north Lo ...

— former NFL head coach for the San Diego Chargers * Rufus Skillern — CFL and NFL wide receiver,

and

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays it ...

Gerald Small Gerald Small (born August 10, 1956 in Washington, NC, died September 27, 2008 in Sacramento, California) was a professional American football player who played cornerback for seven seasons for the Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a profes ...

— former NFL defensive back, Miami Dolphins * Carl Sullivan — former NFL defensive end, Green Bay Packers * Adam Tafralis — CFL quarterback, Hamilton Tiger-Cats *

Tyson Thompson Tyson Calvin Thompson (born May 21, 1981) is a former American football running back/kick return specialist in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at San Jose State University. Early years Thompson at ...

—NFL kick returner, Dallas Cowboys *

Bob Titchenal Robert Alden "Titch" Titchenal (October 17, 1917 – July 5, 2009) was an American football player and coach. He played college football at San Jose State University from 1937 to 1939 and was captain of the school's undefeated 1939 team. He play ...

— former NFL linebacker, Washington Redskins and

Los Angeles Dons The Los Angeles Dons were an American football team in the newly formed football league the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) from 1946 to 1949, and played their home games in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Dons were the first pr ...

; one Pro Bowl appearance; former head football coach,

and SJSU *

Paul Varelans Paul Varelans (September 17, 1969 – January 16, 2021) was an American professional mixed martial artist. He competed in Ultimate Fighting Championship from 1995 to 1996, and had a worked match in Extreme Championship Wrestling in 1996. Backg ...

- retired professional MMA fighter formerly with the

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

* Dick Vermeil — NFL head coach; winning coach,

Super Bowl XXXIV Super Bowl XXXIV was an American football game played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on January 30, 2000, to determine the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1999 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion St. Louis ...

* Bill Walsh — NFL head coach; winning coach, Super Bowl XVI, Super Bowl XIX, and

Super Bowl XXIII Super Bowl XXIII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Cincinnati Bengals and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champ ...

;

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coa ...

inductee * Gerald Willhite — former NFL running back,

* Billy Wilson — former NFL receiver, San Francisco 49ers; six NFL Pro Bowl appearances * Louis Wright — former NFL defensive back, Denver Broncos; 1st round

NFL draft The National Football League Draft, also called the NFL Draft or (officially) the Player Selection Meeting, is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. Each team is given a position in the drafting o ...

pick; five NFL Pro Bowl appearances * Roy Zimmerman — former NFL quarterback, Washington Redskins; one Pro Bowl appearance

Golf

* Ron Cerrudo — PGA golfer and tour winner * Bob Eastwood — PGA golfer and tour winner *

Pat Hurst Pat Hurst (born May 23, 1969) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. Hurst's mother is originally from Japan and her father is an American of German heritage. She was born in San Leandro, California, and raised in th ...

— LPGA golfer and tour winner; #16 on the all-time LPGA money list *

Juli Inkster Juli Inkster (born Juli Simpson; June 24, 1960) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. With a professional career spanning 29 years to date, Inkster's 31 wins rank her second in wins among all active players on the LPGA ...

— LPGA golfer; two-time U.S. Women's Open winner (1999 and 2002); #4 on the all-time LPGA money list * Mark Lye — PGA golfer and tour winner *

Roger Maltbie Roger Lin Maltbie (born June 30, 1951) is an American professional golfer and on-course analyst for NBC Sports. Career Maltbie was born in Modesto, California and grew up in San Jose. He attended James Lick High School where he was a teammat ...

— PGA golfer and tour winner *

Janice Moodie Janice C. Moodie (born 31 May 1973) is a Scottish professional golfer who plays mainly on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour but is also a member of the Ladies European Tour. Amateur career Moodie was born in Glasgow. At age 11, she was taught to play ...

— LPGA golfer and tour winner * Arron Oberholser — PGA golfer;

AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am The AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is a professional golf tournament on the PGA Tour, held annually at Pebble Beach, California, near Carmel. The tournament is usually held during the month of February on three different courses, currently Pebble Be ...

winner (2006) *

Patty Sheehan Patty Sheehan (born October 27, 1956) is an American professional golfer. She became a member of the LPGA Tour in 1980 and won six major championships and 35 LPGA Tour events in all. She is a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame. Sheehan also ...

— LPGA golfer; two-time U.S. Women's Open winner (1992 and 1994) *

Ken Venturi Kenneth Paul Venturi (May 15, 1931May 17, 2013) was an American professional golfer and golf broadcaster. In a career shortened by injuries, he won 14 events on the PGA Tour including a major, the U.S. Open in 1964. Shortly before his death in 20 ...

— PGA golfer; 1964 U.S. Open winner and ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence twi ...

'' "Sportsman of the Year" *

Mark Wiebe Mark Charles Wiebe (born September 13, 1957) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He also played on the PGA Tour and Nationwide Tour. Early life Wiebe was born in Seaside, Oregon and grew up in Escon ...

— PGA golfer and tour winner

Olympic Games

* Charles Adkins — 1952 Olympian (

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermine ...

); gold medalist *

Kevin Asano Kevin Yoshimi Asano (born April 20, 1963) is a retired judoka from the United States, who won the silver medal in the men's extra-lightweight competition at the 1988 Summer Olympics. On his way to capturing the medal he beat Shinji Hosokawa, who ...

— 1988 Olympian (

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo"). ...

); silver medalist;

USA Judo USA Judo (officially known as United States Judo, Inc.) is a non-profit organization which represents all areas of U.S. judo practitioners, including athletes, coaches, referees and others. The organization is managed by a staff of seven at the U ...

Hall of Fame inductee * Bob Berland — 1984 Olympian (judo); silver medalist * Felix Böhni — 1980 and 1984 Olympian (pole vault) *Vinnie Bradford — 1984 Olympian (

fencing Fencing is a group of three related combat sports. The three disciplines in modern fencing are the foil, the épée, and the sabre (also ''saber''); winning points are made through the weapon's contact with an opponent. A fourth discipline, ...

) * Suzannah Brookshire-Gonzales — 2020 Olympian (softball) * Colton Brown — 2016 and 2020 Olympian (judo) * Ed Burke — 1964 and 1968 Olympian (

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

), U.S.A. Flagbearer at the 1984 Opening Ceremonies in Los Angeles *Russ Camilleri — 1960 and 1964 Olympian (freestyle and

Greco Roman wrestling Greco-Roman (American English), Graeco-Roman (British English), classic wrestling (Euro English) or French wrestling (in Russia until 1948) is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first mod ...

) * Robin Campbell — 1984 Olympian (track and field –

800 metres The 800 metres, or meters ( US spelling), is a common track running event. It is the shortest commonly run middle-distance running event. The 800 metres is run over two laps of an outdoor (400-metre) track and has been an Olympic event since t ...

) * John Carlos — 1968 Olympian (track and field – 200 meters); bronze medalist; best known for giving raised fist salute from the medalist's podium during the 1968 Summer Olympic Games in

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital city, capital and primate city, largest city of Mexico, and the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North Amer ...

* Dedy Cooper — 1980 Olympian (track and field – 110 meter hurdles) * Michelle Cox — 2020 Olympian (softball) * Jim Doehring — 1992 Olympian (track and field – shot put); silver medalist * Emma Entzminger — 2020 Olympian (softball) * Clara Espar Llaquet — 2020 Olympian (water polo); silver medalist * Lee Evans — 1968 Olympian (track and field – 4x400 meters and 400 meters); two-time gold medalist and world record holder * Jeff Fishback — 1964 Olympian (track and field) * George Haines — swim coach for seven U.S. Olympic teams; head swim coach at

and Stanford University *Steve Hamann — 1980 Olympian (

water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...

) *

Mike Hernandez Mike Hernandez (born December 4, 1952) is an American politician and activist, who served as a member of the Los Angeles City Council for the 1st district from 1991 to 2001, despite an arrest for cocaine possession in 1997 that led to a guilty p ...

— 1972 Olympian ( soccer) * Mitch Ivey — 1968 and 1972 Olympian (

swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...

); silver and bronze medalist * Margaret Jenkins — 1928 Olympian (track and field) *Stacey Johnson — 1980 Olympian (fencing) *Russ Lockwood — 1976 Olympian (Greco Roman wrestling) * Marti Malloy — 2012 Olympian (judo); bronze medalist * Keith Nakasone — 1980 Olympian (judo) *

— 1964 Olympian (judo) * Ray Norton — 1960 Olympian (track and field) * Christos Papanikolaou — 1968 Olympian (track and field –

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

); world record holder (first man over 18 feet) * John Powell — 1976 and 1984 Olympian (track and field – discus); two-time bronze medalist *

Raju Rai Rajiv Kumar "Raju" Rai (born February 3, 1983, in Lawrenceville, Georgia) is an American badminton player of Indian descent. He won a bronze medal, along with his partner Mesinee Mangkalakiri, in the mixed doubles at the 2003 Pan American Games ...

— 2008 Olympian (men's singles

badminton Badminton is a racquet sport played using racquets to hit a shuttlecock across a net. Although it may be played with larger teams, the most common forms of the game are "singles" (with one player per side) and "doubles" (with two players p ...

) *

Ronnie Ray Smith Ronald Ray Smith (March 28, 1949 – March 31, 2013) was an American athlete, winner of the gold medal in the 4 × 100 m relay at the 1968 Summer Olympics. He attended San Jose State College during the "Speed City" era, coached by Lloyd (Bud) W ...

— 1968 Olympian (track and field athlete – 4 × 100 meters); gold medalist and world record holder *

Tommie Smith Tommie C. Smith (born June 6, 1944) is an American former track and field athlete and former wide receiver in the American Football League. At the 1968 Summer Olympics, Smith, aged 24, won the 200-meter sprint finals and gold medal in 19.83&nb ...

— 1968 Olympian (track and field athlete – 200 meters); gold medalist; best known for giving raised fist salute from the medalist's podium during the 1968 Summer Olympic Games *

Willie Steele William Samuel Steele (July 14, 1923 – September 19, 1989) was an American athlete who competed mainly in the long jump. Steele won the gold medal in the long jump at the 1948 London Olympics. A two-time USA Outdoor champion, Stee ...

—1948 Olympian (track and field –

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

); gold medalist * Robyn Stevens — 2020 Olympian (20k race walking) * Jill Sudduth — 1996 Olympian ( synchronized swimming): gold medalist *

Mike Swain Michael Lee Swain (born December 21, 1960 in Elizabeth, New Jersey) is one of the most successful American judokas. He competed in countless international competitions. He is now the VP of Martial Arts at Dollamur, Sports LP wher ...

— 1988 Olympian (judo); bronze medalist; first American male to win the World Judo Championships *

Lynn Vidali Lynn Marie Vidali (born May 26, 1952), also known by her married name Lynn Gautschi, is an American former competition swimmer, Olympic medalist, and former world record-holder. As a 16-year-old high school student, Vidali represented the United ...

— 1968 and 1972 Olympian (swimming); silver and bronze medalist * Jim Zylker — 1972 Olympian (soccer)

Other

Isai Alvarado Joel Isai Alvarado, professionally known as Isai (pronounced "Isaiah"), is an American '' Super Smash Bros. 64'' player widely regarded as the game's greatest player of all time. He is credited with developing the modern ''Smash 64'' metagame and ...

— professional '' Super Smash Bros.'' player *

Joey Chestnut Joseph Christian Chestnut (born November 25, 1983) is an American competitive eater. As of 2022, he is ranked first in the world by Major League Eating. He is a California native and resides in Westfield, Indiana. Chestnut's height is ; his weigh ...

— competitive eater; world record holder * Shane Golobic — dirt track racing driver *

Krazy George Henderson Krazy George Henderson (born May 6, 1944) is an American professional cheerleader who created the Wave in 1979. Career Henderson began cheerleading while a student at California State University, San Jose in 1968, where he was also a member o ...

— professional cheerleader and self-proclaimed inventor of the

audience wave The wave (known as a Mexican wave or stadium wave outside of North America) is an example of metachronal rhythm achieved in a packed stadium when successive groups of spectators briefly stand, yell, and raise their arms. Immediately upon st ...

* Ryan Suarez — former MLS soccer player (

Los Angeles Galaxy LA Galaxy, also known as the Los Angeles Galaxy, are an American professional soccer club based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Galaxy competes in Major League Soccer (MLS), as a member of the Western Conference. The club began pla ...

and

Dallas Burn Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County wi ...

) * Yoshihiro Uchida — head coach, SJSU judo team; team coach, 1964 U.S. Olympic judo team; instrumental in developing organized intercollegiate judo competition in the U.S. *

Peter Ueberroth Peter Victor Ueberroth (; born September 2, 1937) is an American sports and business executive known for his involvement in the Olympics and in Major League Baseball. A Los Angeles-based businessman, he was the chairman of the Los Angeles Olymp ...

—

Commissioner (1984 –1989); U.S. Olympic Committee chair; ''Time'' magazine's " Man of the Year" * Robert Wall — actor and martial artist * Justin Willis — professional

Mixed Martial Artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

, current

Heavyweight

Faculty and staff

* James J. Asher —

Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

; inventor of

Total Physical Response Total physical response is a language teaching method developed by James Asher, a professor emeritus of psychology at San José State University. It is based on the coordination of language and physical movement. In TPR, instructors give commands t ...

(TPR) *

Dwight Bentel Dwight Essler Bentel (April 15, 1909 Walla Walla, Washington - May 16, 2012 Saratoga, California) was an American journalist and professor. He has been called "the father of journalism" at San Jose State University. In 1934, he founded the '' Sp ...

— driving force behind the development of the SJSU School of Journalism and Mass Communications * Elbert Botts — former chemistry professor;

California Department of Transportation The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Caltrans is headquartered in Sacr ...

employee; inventor of Botts dots * Celia Correas de Zapata — former Spanish professor; world expert on Latin American women's fiction; widely published author * Paul Douglass — English professor; renowned literary scholar; winner of the 2007 Elma Dangerfield award for his publication of new and original work related to the life and times of the poet

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and has been regarded as among the ...

; *Daniel Goldston — mathematics professor; developed breakthrough methods for proving there are arbitrarily large primes that are unusually close together *Lou Harrison — former composer-in-residence; world-renowned composer *Fred Iltis — Holocaust emigre and entomologist *Persis Karim — former co-director of the Persian Studies Program, and professor. *Jessica Mitford — former sociology professor; renowned muckraker, muckraking journalist; author of ''The American Way of Death'' *Bruce Ogilvie — psychology professor; renowned sports psychologist *Rudy Rucker — former computer science professor; renowned science fiction author; often credited as a founding father of cyberpunk *Frederick Spratt — art professor (1956–1989) and art department chair; known for his Color Theory paintings; founder of the Frederick Spratt Gallery in San Jose *Shelby Steele — former English professor; writer; documentary filmmaker; author of ''The Content of our Character''; Emmy Award winner; National Book Critics Circle Award winner *Allen Strange — Professor Emeritus of music; renowned musician and composer; author of ''Electronic Music: Systems, Techniques, and Controls'', a key text on modular analog synthesis; author of other texts on modern music practices *Lloyd (Bud) Winter — track coach; produced over 100 All-Americans and nine Olympians at SJSU; coached SJSU track team to two NCAA national titles; National Track and Field Hall of Fame inductee; author of ''So You Want to be a Sprinter''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:San Jose State University People San Jose State University, * San Jose, California-related lists Lists of California State University people, San Jose State University