23 Notable alumni of Elon University
Updated: June 13, 2026 EliteDegrees
Elon University is ranked #1,604 in the world and #393 in United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 23 notable alumni from Elon University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Elon University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. W. S. Renn, Jr
1928-2021 (aged 93)
head coach
American football coach
William S. Renn Jr. was an American football coach. He was the 23rd head football coach at The Apprentice School in Newport News, Virginia and he held that position for two seasons, from 1967 until 1968. His coaching record at Apprentice was 5–8–2. Renn died from Alzheimer's disease on August 23, 2021, at the age of 93.
+ show more
2. Phillip Kellam
1956-. (aged 70)
politician
Phillip Kellam is a politician from a well known political family in Virginia Beach. A member of the Democratic Party, he has served as the Commissioner of the Revenue for Virginia Beach since 1998. He ran for Congress in Virginia's 2nd congressional district in 2006.
+ show more
3. Steven Kinney
1987-. (aged 39)
association football player
Steven Kinney is an American soccer player who plays as a defender. He is currently without a club.
4. Hap Perry
1896-1986 (aged 90)
basketball coach
Lindsay Jackson "Happy" Perry Sr. was an American football, basketball, and baseball coach. He served as the head football coach at Elon University from 1946 to 1947, compiling a record of 8–11–1. He graduated from Elon in 1923, with a Bachelor of Arts degree. His hometown was Wingate, North Carolina.
+ show more
5. Thad A. Eure
1899-1993 (aged 94)
politician
Thaddeus Armie Eure was an American politician who holds the record for longest tenure as an elected official in the United States, serving as North Carolina Secretary of State from 1936 to 1989.
+ show more
6. Nat Robertson
1963-. (aged 63)
politician
Nat Robertson is an American businessman and politician, who served as the mayor of Fayetteville, North Carolina, from December 2, 2013, through December 2017. Robertson had previously served in the Fayetteville City Council for eight years (four terms). Mayors of Fayetteville are elected to two-year terms.
+ show more
7. Yasmine Arrington
1993-. (aged 33)
model
Yasmine Alexandra Arrington is the Founder and Executive Director of ScholarCHIPS and a 2015 winner of the Peace First Prize, the JM Kaplan Innovation Prize and DC Social Innovation Prize.
+ show more
8. Christopher Knight
1973-. (aged 53)
film producer
Robert Christopher Knight is a blogger and filmmaker based in Greenville, South Carolina who received much attention for a video he uploaded to YouTube and a subsequent copyright infringement clash with Viacom. The incident has since gone on to be cited in numerous legal writings and court cases involving digital copyright and the interests of corporations versus independent content producers.
+ show more
9. William E. Gortney
1955-. (aged 71)
military officer
William Evans "Bill" Gortney is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as the sixth commander of United States Northern Command and the 23rd commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). He previously served as the Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command from 14 September 2012 to December 2014 and Director of the Joint Staff from 1 July...
+ show more
10. Will Neff
1989-. (aged 37)
Twitch streamer
actor
presenter
William Savidge Ebers Neff is an American Twitch streamer, YouTuber, and actor. He is the co-host of the game show Name Your Price, alongside fellow Twitch streamer AustinShow. He is also a co-host of the Fear& podcast.
+ show more
11. James S. Denton
1951-2018 (aged 67)
editor
publisher
James Steele Denton was the publisher and editor of World Affairs and the director of the World Affairs Institute in Washington, D.C. Previously Denton was the executive director of Heldref Publications, founded by Jeane J. Kirkpatrick and her husband Evron.
+ show more
12. Frank Haith
1965-. (aged 61)
basketball coach
Frank James Haith Jr. is an American men's basketball coach, currently serving as an assistant coach at Texas A&M University. He previously served as head coach of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane from 2014 to 2022, and prior to that he served as the head coach at the University of Miami and the University of Missouri, leaving both programs in the...
+ show more
13. NGHTMRE
1990-. (aged 36)
disc jockey
DJ producer
Tyler Marenyi, better known by his stage name Nghtmre (stylized as in all caps; pronounced "nightmare"), is an American DJ and electronic dance music producer from Raleigh, North Carolina.
+ show more
14. Wes Durham
1966-. (aged 60)
sports commentator
Dallas Wesley Durham is an American sportscaster. He is a play-by-play announcer for ESPN and ACC Network coverage of college football and basketball.
15. Lexie Fyfe
1969-. (aged 57)
professional wrestler
Mary Beth Bentley, better known by her ring name Lexie Fyfe, is an American professional wrestler. She has wrestled in various independent wrestling promotions, most notably for Shimmer Women Athletes. She is a one-time NWA World Women's Champion. She also appeared on WWE Raw as the "fake Hillary Clinton."
+ show more
16. Barrett Wilbert Weed
1988-. (aged 38)
singer
actor
Barrett Wilbert Weed is an American actress and singer. She is best known for originating the roles of Veronica Sawyer in the Off-Broadway production of Heathers: The Musical and Janis Sarkisian in the Broadway production of Mean Girls. She also voices Octavia "Via" Goetia in Helluva Boss.
+ show more
17. Rich Blomquist
1977-. (aged 49)
screenwriter
Rich Blomquist is an American writer, producer and occasional actor. He was a staff writer for The Daily Show in 2003–2006, 2009 and 2011.
18. Jack McKeon
1930-. (aged 96)
baseball manager
John Aloysius McKeon, nicknamed "Trader Jack," is an American former manager and front-office executive in Major League Baseball (MLB).
19. Elijah Bryant
1995-. (aged 31)
basketball player
Elijah Brigham Bryant is an American professional basketball player for Hapoel Tel Aviv of the Israeli Ligat HaAl and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for the Elon Phoenix and Brigham Young Cougars.
+ show more
20. Chris Wood
1988-. (aged 38)
television actor
stage actor
actor
film actor
Christopher Charles Wood is an American actor. He is known for his role as Kai Parker in the sixth season of the CW's television series The Vampire Diaries in 2014, after previously appearing on The CW's The Carrie Diaries in the role of writer Adam Weaver in 2013. He also starred in the 2016 CW television series Containment in the...
+ show more
21. Grant Gustin
1990-. (aged 36)
television actor
stage actor
singer
film actor
Thomas Grant Gustin is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Barry Allen / The Flash on The CW series The Flash (2014–2023) as part of the Arrowverse and as Sebastian Smythe on the Fox series Glee. Trained in musical theater, his first major credit was as part of the 2010 national tour of West Side...
+ show more
22. Eugene McDaniel
1931-. (aged 95)
United States Naval Aviator
Eugene Barker McDaniel is a retired United States Navy captain, Naval Aviator and a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. He was released from captivity on 4 March 1973 after six years of confinement.
+ show more
23. Shane Gillis
1987-. (aged 39)
actor
comedian
writer
Shane Michael Gillis is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and podcaster. Gillis started performing comedy in 2012, and in 2016, along with fellow stand-up comedian Matt McCusker, began co-hosting Matt and Shane's Secret Podcast, the most subscribed-to podcast on Patreon as of 2024. Gillis had a breakout year in 2019; the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal named him one...
+ show more