33 Notable alumni of Georgia Southern University
Updated: June 15, 2026 EliteDegrees
Georgia Southern University is ranked #1,003 in the world and #265 in United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 33 notable alumni from Georgia Southern 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 Georgia Southern University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. John Mohring
1984-. (aged 42)
Canadian football player
American football player
John Mohring Jr. is an American former professional football linebacker who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and Arena Football League (AFL). He played college football for the Georgia Southern Eagles.
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2. Shawn Arévalo McCollough
1971-. (aged 55)
Shawn Arévalo McCollough is president and CEO of the American Board for Certification of Teacher Excellence in Washington, DC. A former superintendent of schools, principal, and teacher, McCollough's reform efforts have been recognized by George W. Bush, and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings and U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige.
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3. Ronald 'Bo' Ginn
1934-2005 (aged 71)
politician
Ronald Bryan "Bo" Ginn, was an American politician who represented Georgia's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1973 to 1983.
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4. Charles Floyd Hatcher
1939-. (aged 87)
lawyer
politician
Charles Floyd Hatcher is an American politician and lawyer from the U.S. state of Georgia. He served in Congress as a Democrat.
5. Isaiah Crawley
1998-. (aged 28)
basketball player
Isaiah Deion Crawley is an American professional basketball player who last played for Dziki Warszawa of the Polska Liga Koszykówki, the top division in Poland. He played college basketball for Columbia State Community College and Georgia Southern.
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6. Björn Kjerfve
1944-. (aged 82)
writer
oceanographer
Björn Kjerfve is a Swedish-American oceanographer. Kjerfve's expertise is in coastal and estuarine physical oceanography. He has served at the University of South Carolina, Texas A&M University, and the American University of Sharjah.
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7. Marilyn Avila
1949-. (aged 77)
politician
Marilyn Avila is a former Republican member of the North Carolina House of Representatives. She first won office in the 2006 election, and she represented the state's 40th house district from 2007 until 2017. She was defeated by Democrat Joe John in the 2016 election. In 2018, she attempted to make a comeback for her old seat, but she lost...
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8. Luis A. Aguilar
lawyer
Luis Alberto Aguilar is an American lawyer and former U.S. government official.
9. Tookie Brown
1995-. (aged 31)
basketball player
Quindarious Deavundre "Tookie" Brown is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Georgia Southern University and was named the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year.
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10. Tre Bussey
1991-. (aged 35)
basketball player
Tre Bussey is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Georgia Southern University where he was named a third-team All-Southern Conference honoree.
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11. Marty Pevey
1962-. (aged 64)
baseball player
Marty Ashley Pevey is an American professional baseball manager and former Major League catcher and coach. He has been the manager of the Chicago Cubs' Triple-A affiliate, the Iowa Cubs of the International League, since 2013. Pevey stood 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighed 185 pounds (84 kg); he batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
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12. Everett Teaford
1984-. (aged 42)
baseball player
Everett James Teaford is an American baseball coach and former professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals and Tampa Bay Rays, and in the KBO League for the LG Twins.
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13. James Kicklighter
1988-. (aged 38)
film director
James Kicklighter is an American film director, producer, and writer from Bellville, Georgia.
14. Fred Stokes
1964-. (aged 62)
American football player
Louis Fred Stokes is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end for 10 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Georgia Southern Eagles. He played in the NFL for the Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams, Washington Redskins and New Orleans Saints
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15. Charlton Young
1971-. (aged 55)
basketball player
basketball coach
Charlton Young is an American college basketball assistant coach at University of Miami and the former head coach of the Georgia Southern University Eagles men's basketball team, located in Statesboro, Georgia. He was the head coach of the Eagles from 2009–2013 and was the twelfth coach in the history of the program, replacing Jeff Price. The Eagles were collectively and...
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16. Jason Burnell
1997-. (aged 29)
basketball player
Jason Scott Burnell is an American professional basketball player for Pallacanestro Brescia of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A. He played college basketball for Jacksonville State.
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17. Victor Roache
1991-. (aged 35)
baseball player
Almon Victor Roache is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He was selected in the 1st round, 28th overall, by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2012 Major League Baseball draft, but never played in the majors after 6 seasons in Minor League Baseball.
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18. Julius Jenkins
1981-. (aged 45)
basketball player
Julius Jenkins is an American professional basketball player, who most recently played for Science City Jena of the Basketball Bundesliga.
19. Charlie Norwood
1941-2007 (aged 66)
dentist
business executive
politician
Charles Whitlow Norwood Jr. was an American politician who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 until his death in 2007. At the time of his death, Norwood was the representative of the 10th district of Georgia.
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20. Keisha Waites
1972-. (aged 54)
politician
Keisha Sean Waites is an American politician from the state of Georgia. A Democrat, she served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2012 to 2017, representing southeast Atlanta, College Park, East Point, Hapeville, Forest Park, Hartsfield Jackson Airport, Porsche Headquarters and parts of Clayton and DeKalb counties. She also served as a member of Atlanta City Council for Post...
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21. Casey Cagle
1966-. (aged 60)
politician
banker
Lowell Stacy "Casey" Cagle is an American politician who served as the 11th lieutenant governor of Georgia from 2007 to 2019.
22. Jen Jordan
1974-. (aged 52)
lawyer
politician
Jennifer Lyn Auer Jordan is an American lawyer and politician who represented District 6 in the Georgia State Senate from 2017 to 2023. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She was the party's nominee for Attorney General of Georgia in the 2022 election, losing to Republican incumbent Chris Carr.
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23. Patrika Darbo
1948-. (aged 78)
television actor
film director
actor
film actor
Patrika Darbo is an American actress. She made her big screen debut appearing in the 1988 romantic comedy film It Takes Two and later appeared in The 'Burbs, Daddy's Dyin': Who's Got the Will? (1990), Spaced Invaders (1990), Leaving Normal (1992), In the Line of Fire (1993) and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). Darbo played Roseanne...
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24. Mychael Knight
1978-2017 (aged 39)
fashion designer
Michael Anthony Knight Jr. was an American fashion designer.
25. Ghazala Hashmi
1964-. (aged 62)
academic
politician
Ghazala Firdous Hashmi is an American politician serving as the 43rd lieutenant governor of Virginia since 2026. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as a Virginia state senator for the 15th district from 2020 to 2026. She is the first Asian-American and Muslim elected to statewide office in Virginia, along with being the first Muslim woman to...
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26. Druski
1994-. (aged 32)
comedian
Drew Desbordes, known professionally as Druski, is an American comedian, actor, and influencer. He is known for his sketch comedy, Coulda Been Records, and collaborations with various musicians in their music videos, including Jack Harlow, Drake, Lil Yachty, and others.
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27. Cole Swindell
1983-. (aged 43)
songwriter
singer-songwriter
recording artist
singer
Colden Rainey Swindell is an American country music singer and songwriter. He has written singles for Craig Campbell, Thomas Rhett, Scotty McCreery, and Luke Bryan, and has released four albums for Warner Bros. Records Nashville. He has released thirteen singles, eight of which have reached number one on the Hot Country Songs and/or Country Airplay charts. Five more singles have...
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28. Walton Goggins
1971-. (aged 55)
actor
television actor
film actor
photographer
film producer
Walton Sanders Goggins Jr. is an American actor. He has starred in various television series, including The Shield (2002–2008), Justified (2010–2015), Vice Principals (2016–2017), The Righteous Gemstones (2019–2025), Invincible (2021–present), Fallout (2024–present), and The White Lotus (2025). He was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Justified and The White Lotus, and...
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29. Michael P. Boggs
1962-. (aged 64)
lawyer
politician
Michael P. Boggs is an American lawyer who served as the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia from 2022 until 2025. He served as an associate justice of the court starting in 2017. He is a former judge of the Georgia Court of Appeals and a former nominee to be a United States district judge of the United...
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30. Van R. Johnson
columnist
political pundit
politician
talk show host
radio personality
Van R. Johnson II is an American politician who has served as the mayor of Savannah, Georgia since 2020. He is the fourth African-American mayor in the city's history. Before becoming Mayor, he served four terms as Alderman for the Savannah City Council's 1st District.
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31. William McDonald Wheeler
1915-1989 (aged 74)
accountant
teacher
politician
William McDonald Wheeler (July 11, 1915 – May 5, 1989) was a U.S. Representative from Georgia.
32. Leslie C. Smith
military officer
Leslie C. Smith is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who last served as the 66th Inspector General of the United States Army. Since 2002, he has served as the vice president for leadership and education at the Association of the United States Army
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33. Adrian Peterson
1979-. (aged 47)
American football player
Adrian Lewis Peterson is an American former professional football running back. Peterson played 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He is widely considered to be one of the greatest running backs in football history. He played college football for the Oklahoma Sooners, setting the freshman rushing record with 1,925 yards in 2004. Named a unanimous All-American that year,...
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