27 Notable alumni of Morehead State University
Updated: June 14, 2026 EliteDegrees
Morehead State University is 2718st in the world, 1st in North America, and 706st in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 27 notable alumni from Morehead State 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 Morehead State University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Ed Olwine
1958-. (aged 68)
baseball player
Edward R. Olwine is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the Atlanta Braves from 1986 to 1988.
2. Jay Kalk
1975-. (aged 51)
guitarist
Jay Kalk, AKA Jay Ernest, AKA Jayder is an American and International touring and recording artist formerly based out of Los Angeles, Phoenix, Honolulu, who currently resides in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has recorded and performed with many artists such as Go Jimmy Go, Warsaw Poland Brothers, and 3 Minute Hero. His most recent endeavor, Church of Cash, is a Johnny...
+ show more
3. Johnny Ray Turner
1949-. (aged 77)
politician
Johnny Ray Turner is an American politician. He is a former Democratic member of the Kentucky Senate, representing the 29th District from 2001 to 2021. He served as Minority Caucus Chair from 2003 to 2014.
+ show more
4. Dennis M. Cavanaugh
1947-. (aged 79)
lawyer
judge
Dennis Michael Cavanaugh is a retired United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.
5. Dan Swartz
1934-1997 (aged 63)
basketball player
Daniel S. Swartz was an American basketball player born in Owingsville, Kentucky. He scored 2,088 points in his high school career and was just shy from breaking Wah Wah Jones’ national high school scoring record.
+ show more
6. David Aliu
1981-. (aged 45)
basketball player
David Aliu is a British former basketball player. He last played for Cheshire Phoenix in the British Basketball League (BBL). Aliu was part of the Mersey Tigers' treble-winning 2010/11 team, and in November 2011, became the Tigers' record points scorer in the BBL.
+ show more
7. Jimmy Higdon
1953-. (aged 73)
businessperson
politician
James Cecil Higdon Jr. is an American politician who has served as a member of the Kentucky Senate since 2009. He represents the 14th district, which includes LaRue, Marion, Nelson, Spencer, and Washington Counties. He currently serves as the chair of the senate transportation committee. Higdon is not running for reelection in 2026.
+ show more
8. David A. Tapp
1962-. (aged 64)
judge
David Austin Tapp is a judge of the United States Court of Federal Claims and a former circuit court judge from Kentucky.
9. Chad Posthumus
1991-2024 (aged 33)
basketball player
Chad Ryan William Posthumus was a Canadian professional basketball player. He played collegiate basketball with UBC, Howard College, and Morehead State.
+ show more
10. Demonte Harper
1989-. (aged 37)
basketball player
Demonte Tyrone Harper is an American professional basketball player for Élan Chalon of the LNB Pro A. He played college basketball at Morehead State University.
+ show more
11. Walt Terrell
1958-. (aged 68)
baseball player
Charles Walter Terrell is an American former Major League Baseball player. A starting pitcher, Terrell pitched from 1982 to 1992 for the New York Mets (1982–1984), Detroit Tigers (1985–1988), San Diego Padres (1989), New York Yankees (1989), Pittsburgh Pirates (1990), and the Tigers (1990–1992).
+ show more
12. Taylor Davis
1989-. (aged 37)
baseball player
Taylor Matthew Davis is an American former professional baseball catcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs and Pittsburgh Pirates.
+ show more
13. William E. Barber
1919-2002 (aged 83)
military officer
William Earl Barber was a United States Marine Corps colonel. He fought on Iwo Jima during World War II and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir during the Korean War.
+ show more
14. Denny Doyle
1944-2022 (aged 78)
baseball player
Robert Dennis Doyle was an American professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies, California Angels, and Boston Red Sox. Listed at 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) and 175 pounds (79 kg), he batted left-handed and threw right-handed.
+ show more
15. Liz Johnson
1974-. (aged 52)
bowler
Elizabeth Ann Johnson is an American professional bowler who currently competes on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour, and in some events on the PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour. She initially became known as an 11-time winner on the PWBA Tour, which included the first of her six U.S. Women's Open titles in 1996, before that organization suspended operations...
+ show more
16. Mike Gottfried
1944-. (aged 82)
head coach
American football player
Mike Gottfried is an American sportscaster and former college football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at Murray State University (1978–1980), the University of Cincinnati (1981–1982), the University of Kansas (1983–1985), and the University of Pittsburgh (1986–1989), compiling a career college football record of 76–55–4. Gottfried played college football at Morehead State University as a quarterback...
+ show more
17. Desi Banks
1993-. (aged 33)
actor
comedian
American football player
Desi Terrell Banks Jr. is an American comedian and actor. He played two seasons of college football for Morehead State as a wide receiver.
18. Xavier Moon
1995-. (aged 31)
basketball player
Xavier Moon is an American professional basketball player for Zenit Saint Petersburg of the VTB United League. He played college basketball for Northwest Florida State and Morehead State. The nephew of former NBA basketball player Jamario Moon, he won CEBL Player of the Year three years in a row from 2019 to 2021 while playing for the Edmonton Stingers.
+ show more
19. Donnie Tyndall
1970-. (aged 56)
basketball coach
Donald Joseph Tyndall is an American basketball coach currently working as the head coach for Chipola College of the NJCAA. Tyndall played college basketball at Iowa Central Community College and Morehead State and has been a basketball coach since 1994. His teams are known for pressing and playing an unconventional match-up zone, a highly successful variation of the defensive system...
+ show more
20. Rocky Adkins
1959-. (aged 67)
basketball player
politician
Rocky James Adkins is an American politician from Kentucky. He is a member of the Democratic Party and is serving as a senior advisor to the Governor of Kentucky, Andy Beshear. He is a former member of the Kentucky House of Representatives, representing the 99th District of the Kentucky House from 1987 to 2019. His House district was in eastern...
+ show more
21. Kenneth Faried
1989-. (aged 37)
basketball player
Kenneth Bernard Faried Lewis is an American professional basketball player for Panathinaikos of the Greek Basketball League and the EuroLeague. Known as "the Manimal" due to his hustle on the court, he attended Morehead State University for four years, twice being named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year. He finished his collegiate career as the NCAA all-time leading...
+ show more
22. Steve Inskeep
1968-. (aged 58)
journalist
Steven Alan Inskeep is an American journalist who is currently one of the four rotating hosts of Morning Edition and Up First on National Public Radio. Before being a host of Morning Edition, Inskeep covered the Pentagon, the 2000 presidential campaign of George W. Bush, the U.S. Senate, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and was host of Weekend...
+ show more
23. Jon Rauch
1978-. (aged 48)
baseball player
Jon Erich Rauch is an American former professional baseball pitcher. At 6 feet 11 inches (2.11 m), he is tied with Sean Hjelle as the tallest player in Major League Baseball (MLB) history. He is also an Olympic Gold Medalist in baseball.
+ show more
24. Steve Kazee
1975-. (aged 51)
singer
actor
television actor
Steven Michael Kazee is an American actor and singer. He is best known for starring as Guy in the musical Once for which he was awarded the 2012 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. Kazee began his professional acting career in the mid-2000s, and from 2005 until 2013 acted in a series of Broadway...
+ show more
25. Phil Simms
1955-. (aged 71)
sports commentator
American football player
Phillip Martin Simms is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons with the New York Giants. After playing college football for the Morehead State Eagles, Simms was selected in the first round by the Giants as the seventh overall pick in the 1979 NFL draft. Simms was named Most Valuable...
+ show more
26. Ron Lewis
1946-. (aged 80)
Christian minister
academic
politician
Ronald Edward Lewis is an American retired politician who was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from 1994 to 2009, having represented the 2nd congressional district of Kentucky.
+ show more
27. Karam Mashour
1991-. (aged 35)
basketball player
Karam Mashour is an Arab-Israeli professional basketball player for Maccabi Ramat Gan of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He played college basketball for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and Morehead State University, before playing professionally in Israel and France. In 2016–17, he was the top rebounder in the Israel Basketball Premier League.
+ show more