Clemson University - Notable Alumni

Notable Alumni

  • David Beasley, South Carolina governor (1995–1999). Beasley ran for the South Carolina State House while a student at Clemson and transferred to the University of South Carolina upon taking office, from which he went on to graduate with a bachelor's degree and law degree.
  • Kris Benson, baseball player
  • Robert H. Brooks, founder of Hooters of America, Inc.
  • Jonathan Byrd, PGA Tour golfer
  • James F. Byrnes, U.S. Congressman, Senator, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (1941–1942), Secretary of State (1945–1947), Governor of South Carolina (1951–1955), and confidant of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. A dormitory on the eastern part of the university's campus is named after Byrnes. While not a graduate of Clemson, Byrnes was a Life Trustee of Clemson University (appointed in 1941).
  • Chad Connelly, Chairman of the South Carolina Republican Party
  • Brian Dawkins, professional football player, Denver Broncos free safety and 8 time Pro-Bowler.
  • Lt.Col. Jimmie Dyess, of the United States Marine Corps, the only person in history to earn both the Congressional Medal of Honor and the Carnegie Medal of Honor. Annually, the Semper Fi Society on campus holds a 5K in the Spring to honor LtCol Dyess and those Marines that served from Clemson.
  • Lucas Glover, PGA Tour golfer, 2009 U.S. Open champion
  • Nikki Haley, current Governor of South Carolina.
  • Stuart Holden, played soccer for the university until being signed with the Sunderland U.K. club in March 2005; played for the U.S. team in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and currently plays for the Bolton Wanderers U.K. club
  • Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney, United States Ambassador to the Republic of the Philippines. She received a Bachelors degree in Political Science from Clemson University. She was nominated by George W. Bush on November 3, 2005, confirmed by the United States Senate on February 16, 2006, and sworn in to office by Secretary Condoleezza Rice on March 6, 2006. On March 17, Kenney arrived in the Philippines to assume her duties as the first female ambassador to this former U.S. colony in Asia.
  • Nancy O'Dell, American television host and entertainment journalist.
  • Oguchi Onyewu, professional soccer player, currently plays for Málaga CF and is part of the US national team
  • William "Refrigerator" Perry, former NFL defensive lineman 3-time NCAA All-American (1982–1984)
  • Ben Robertson, war correspondent WW II, author
  • Phillip Sandifer (writer, recording artist) received a masters degree from the university.
  • Jim Speros, formerly the majority owner of the Baltimore Stallions of the CFL, UFL Norfolk; served on coaching staffs of the Washington Redskins and Buffalo Bills in the 1980s. Won a Super Bowl with the Washington Redskins; youngest assistant coach in NFL history; played linebacker at the university from 1978 to 1981; member of the championship winning 1981 Clemson Tigers football team.
  • C.J. Spiller, football player, Buffalo Bills running back and #9 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft
  • Strom Thurmond, U.S. Senator from South Carolina who was the longest-serving Senator in U.S. history.
  • David H. Wilkins Wilkins was elected Speaker of the House; the first Republican Speaker in the South since Reconstruction.
  • Betsy Banks Saul, founder of Petfinder.org, an online database of adoptable pets in the care of about 13,000 animal welfare organizations in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

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