40 Notable alumni of
Idaho State University
Updated:
Idaho State University is 1398th in the world, 489th in North America, and 458th in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 40 notable alumni from Idaho State University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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William Petersen
- Enrolled in Idaho State University
- Studied in 1974
- Occupations
- stage actorfilm produceractortelevision actorfilm actor
- Biography
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William Louis Petersen is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Gil Grissom in the CBS drama thriller series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (2000–2015), for which he won a Screen Actors Guild Award and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award; he was further nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards as a producer of the show. He reprised his role as Gil Grissom in the sequel CSI: Vegas, which premiered on October 6, 2021.
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Jared Allen
- Occupations
- American football playercurler
- Biography
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Jared Scot Allen is an American former professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for 12 seasons. A five-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro selection, he recorded 136 career sacks. He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2025.
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Marvin Lewis
- Occupations
- American football coachAmerican football player
- Biography
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Marvin Roland Lewis Jr. is an American professional football coach who is the assistant head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Previously, Lewis was the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals for 16 seasons. He came to prominence as the defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens from 1996 to 2001, whose defense in 2000 set the record for the fewest points allowed in a 16-game season and led the franchise to their first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXV. This success resulted in Lewis being named the Bengals' head coach, where he served from 2003 to 2018.
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Shay Carl
- Occupations
- actortelevision producer
- Biography
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Shay Carl Butler, known by his online alias Shay Carl, is an American YouTuber. He has three YouTube channels, two of which ("shaycarl" and "SHAYTARDS") have over three million subscribers. Butler and Corey Vidal developed a documentary called Vlogumentary on a $200,000+ budget that was funded with an Indiegogo campaign and raised by mostly from his viewers. Vlogumentary was released on April 20, 2016. Forbes called Butler one of the "most successful video entrepreneurs on YouTube" and in 2011 The New York Times featured Butler's production company Maker Studios.
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Sue Ane Langdon
- Occupations
- film actoractortelevision actor
- Biography
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Sue Ane Langdon is an American actress. She has appeared in dozens of television series and had featured roles in films such as A Guide for the Married Man and The Cheyenne Social Club, both directed by Gene Kelly, as well as The Rounders opposite Henry Fonda and Glenn Ford and two Elvis Presley movies, Roustabout and Frankie and Johnny.
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Dirk Koetter
- Occupations
- American football coachAmerican football player
- Biography
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Dirk Jeffrey Koetter is an American former college and professional football coach. He recently served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Boise State. He was the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL) from 2016 to 2018 and was the head coach at Boise State from 1998 to 2000 and at Arizona State University from 2001 to 2006, compiling a career college football record of 66–44 (.600). Koetter also served as the offensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, and the Buccaneers.
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Kevin Gilbride
- Occupations
- American football coachcoachAmerican football player
- Biography
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Kevin Bernard Gilbride is a former American football coach and player. He coached in the NFL for twenty years, spending seven of them as the offensive coordinator for the New York Giants, with whom he earned two Super Bowl rings. From 1997 to 1998, he was the head coach for the San Diego Chargers. Most recently, Gilbride served as the head coach for the New York Guardians of the XFL.
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Roger Williams
- Occupations
- musicianpianist
- Biography
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Roger Williams was an American popular music pianist. Described by the Los Angeles Times as "one of the most popular instrumentalists of the mid-20th century", and "the rare instrumental pop artist to strike a lasting commercial chord," Williams had 22 hit singles – including the chart-topping "Autumn Leaves" in 1955 and "Born Free" in 1966 – and 38 hit albums between 1955 and 1972.
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Stacy Dragila
- Occupations
- pole vaulterathletics competitor
- Biography
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Stacy Renée Mikaelson known as Stacy Renée Dragila is a former American pole vaulter. She is an Olympic gold medalist and a multiple-time world champion.
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Wally Buono
- Occupations
- head coachCanadian football player
- Biography
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Pasquale "Wally" Buono CM is a Canadian ex-football coach currently working as the vice president of football operations, alternate governor and the former head coach of the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and one of the most successful head coaches in league history. He spent 22 years as head coach of the Calgary Stampeders and the Lions, which is tied for the most seasons coached all-time. On September 19, 2009, Buono became the CFL's all-time winningest coach when his Lions beat the Toronto Argonauts 23–17, giving him 232 regular-season victories, passing Don Matthews. He retired in 2011 with a CFL record 254 regular-season wins as head coach, to focus on duties as general manager for the Lions. In 2016, Buono came out of retirement to coach the Lions again through the 2018 season. In the final home game of the 2018 season, Buono was honored with the Bob Ackles Award as he was retiring from football with the most wins as a coach.
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Maria Sánchez
- Occupations
- association football player
- Biography
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María Guadalupe Sánchez Morales is an American professional soccer player who plays as a forward for San Diego Wave FC of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). Born in the United States, she also plays for the Mexico national team.
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Ron Boone
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Ronald Bruce Boone is an American former professional basketball player. He had a 13-year career in the American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA). Boone set a record for most consecutive games played in professional basketball history with 1,041 and claims to have never missed a game from when he started playing basketball in the fourth grade until his retirement. Boone is the current color commentator on Utah Jazz broadcasts.
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Josh Hill
- Occupations
- American football player
- Biography
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Joshua James Hill is a former American football tight end. He played college football for Idaho State and was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2013. He played with the team through the 2020 season.
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Matt Gutierrez
- Occupations
- American football player
- Biography
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Matthew Paul Gutierrez is an American former professional football quarterback. He was signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He played college football at Idaho State.
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Antonio Taguba
- Enrolled in Idaho State University
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts in study of history
- Occupations
- executive officer
- Biography
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Antonio Mario Taguba is a retired major general in the United States Army. He was the second American citizen of Philippine birth to be promoted to general officer rank in the United States Army.
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Ed Sanders
- Occupations
- boxer
- Biography
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Hayes Edward "Big Ed" Sanders was an American heavyweight boxer who won an Olympic gold medal in 1952.
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Arthur Cronquist
- Occupations
- botanist
- Biography
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Arthur John Cronquist was an American biologist, botanist and a specialist on Compositae. He is considered one of the most influential botanists of the 20th century, largely due to his formulation of the Cronquist system as well as being the primary co-author to the Flora of the Pacific Northwest, still the most up to date flora for three northwest U.S. States to date. Two plant genera in the aster family have been named in his honor. These are Cronquistia, a possible synonym of Carphochaete, and Cronquistianthus, which is sometimes included as a group within Eupatorium. The former was applied by R.M. King and the latter by him and Harold E. Robinson.
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Evan Dietrich-Smith
- Occupations
- American football player
- Biography
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Evan Blake Smith is a former American football center. He was a member of the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As a member of the Packers, he won Super Bowl XLV against the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played college football at Idaho State University.
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George V. Hansen
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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George Vernon Hansen was a Republican politician from the U.S. state of Idaho. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives for 14 years, representing Idaho's 2nd district from 1965 to 1969 and again from 1975 to 1985.
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Don Aslett
- Occupations
- motivational speaker
- Biography
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Donald Andrew Aslett was an American businessman, author, and expert in cleaning and housekeeping. He co-founded Varsity House Cleaning Company in 1957, which later evolved into Varsity Facility Services, a major building service contractor. Aslett authored numerous books on cleaning and organization, advocating for efficient, clutter-free living. He also founded the Museum of Clean in Pocatello, Idaho, which showcases a vast collection of cleaning artifacts and promotes environmentally-friendly practices. His contributions earned him recognition, including induction into the Idaho Hall of Fame.
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B. Lynn Winmill
- Occupations
- lawyerjudge
- Biography
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Barry Lynn Winmill is a senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Idaho.
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Beulah Ream Allen
- Enrolled in Idaho State University
- In 1916 studied teaching
- Occupations
- nursephysician
- Biography
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Beulah Ream Allen was an American nurse, physician, and civilian physician during World War II. After graduating with a nursing degree in 1922, she worked as a supervising nurse and headed the educational department for the LDS Hospital in Salt Lake City. She worked as a hospital inspector for the state of Utah until 1928, when she moved to San Francisco to attend medical school. While earning her degree at the University of California, San Francisco, she worked as a nurse in the Bay Area. Upon her graduation in 1932, she moved to the Philippines, where she opened a medical practice.
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Rafi Ahmed
- Occupations
- immunologistuniversity teachermicrobiologist
- Biography
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Rafi Ahmed is an Indian-American virologist and immunologist. He is the Charles Howard Candler Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Emory University, where he is also the director of the Emory Vaccine Center and a Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar in Vaccine Research. In 2009, he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.
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Diane Anderson-Minshall
- Occupations
- print journalistLGBTQ rights activist
- Biography
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Diane Anderson-Minshall is an American journalist and author best known for writing about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender subjects. She is the first female CEO of Pride Media. She is also the editorial director of The Advocate and Chill magazines, the editor-in-chief of HIV Plus magazine, while still contributing editor to OutTraveler. Diane co-authored the 2014 memoir Queerly Beloved about her relationship with her husband Jacob Anderson-Minshall throughout his gender transition.
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Keith Reemtsma
- Occupations
- surgeon
- Biography
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Keith Reemtsma was an American transplant surgeon, best known for the cross-species kidney transplantation operation from chimpanzee to human in 1964. With only the early immunosuppressants and no long-term dialysis, the female recipient survived nine months, long enough to return to work.
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Dick Randolph
- Occupations
- businesspersonpoliticianteacher
- Biography
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Richard L. Randolph is a longtime insurance agency owner in Fairbanks, Alaska who is best known as the first person to be elected to partisan office under the banner of the Libertarian Party with his election to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1978. He was re-elected in 1980. After Alaska greatly increased its revenue from the development of oil, Randolph advocated the repeal of the state income tax. The effort was successful, with Alaska being one of only two states where residents pay neither an income nor a sales tax—the other being New Hampshire. He was also the LP's gubernatorial nominee in 1982, garnering nearly 15 percent of the vote.
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Frederick Hammersley
- Occupations
- painter
- Biography
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Frederick Hammersley was an American abstract painter. His participation in the 1959 Four Abstract Classicists exhibit secured his place in art history.
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Lawrence Butler
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Lawrence Eugene Butler was an American basketball player. He led NCAA Division I in scoring while playing for the Idaho State Bengals during the 1978–79 season. Butler was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 1979 NBA draft although he never played professionally.
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Jeff Cook
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Jeffrey James Cook is a retired American professional basketball player.
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Mark C. Schwartz
- Occupations
- military officer
- Biography
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Mark C. Schwartz is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who last served as the United States Security Coordinator of the Israel-Palestinian Authority. Previously, he commanded the Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan. In November 2020, he was announced to replace Lieutenant General Eric Wendt as commander of the NATO Special Operations Headquarters, but the Senate did not take any action on his nomination.
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Eddie Johnson
- Occupations
- Canadian football playerAmerican football player
- Biography
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Edward Lynn Johnson is an American former professional football punter. He was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round of the 2003 NFL draft. He played college football at Idaho State.
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Mike Burns
- Occupations
- basketball coachbasketball player
- Biography
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Michael Edward Burns is an American assistant men's college basketball coach at Boise State.
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Bobby Dye
- Occupations
- basketball coachbasketball player
- Biography
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Robert Lloyd Dye is an American former basketball coach.
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William D. Hansen
- Born in
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United States - Occupations
- businessperson
- Biography
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William D. Hansen is an American businessman and a former Deputy Secretary of Education who served in the George W. Bush administration from 2001 to 2003.
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Verne Duncan
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Verne Allen Duncan is an American politician from the state of Oregon. As an educator and moderate Republican, he has become outspoken in protest of policies of his own party he views as extreme.
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James A. McClure
- Occupations
- lobbyistpoliticianlawyermilitary officer
- Biography
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James Albertus McClure was an American lawyer and politician from the state of Idaho, most notably serving as a Republican in the U.S. Senate for three terms from 1973 to 1991. He also served three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1967 to 1973.
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Annette Markham
- Occupations
- academic
- Biography
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Annette Markham is an American academic, Chair Professor of Media Literacy and Public Engagement at Utrecht University, adjunct professor at RMIT University in Melbourne, and Adjunct Professor of Information Studies at Aarhus University, Denmark. She is Director of RMIT's Digital Ethnography Research Centre. She has served on the executive committee of the Association of Internet Researchers since 2013. She publishes research in the area of Internet studies, digital identity, social interaction, innovative qualitative methods for social research, and Internet research ethics.
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Charley Parks
- Years
- 1946-.. (age 79)
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Charles Parks is an American retired professional basketball player who spent one season in the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a member of the Denver Rockets (1968–69). He went to high school at St. Ignatius College Preparatory in San Francisco, where he was named the city's prep player of the year. Parks attended San Francisco City College before playing college basketball for the Idaho State Bengals. In his first season with the Bengals in 1966–67, he was an all-conference selection in the Big Sky Conference after finishing third in the conference in scoring, averaging 20 points per game. He moved from playing forward to guard in 1967–68, when he was named second-team all-conference. In two seasons at Idaho State, he averaged 18 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Parks signed with Denver after they drafted him in the tenth round of the 1968 ABA draft. He was also selected in the seventh round of the 1968 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns.
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Fred Parkinson
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Fred Raymond Parkinson was an American politician from Oregon.
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Fred S. Martin
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Fred S. Martin is an American politician and a Republican former member of the Idaho State Senate, representing District 15 from 2012 until 2022.
