| | George Steinbrenner, owner of New York Yankees (attended for graduate work) |
| | R. L. Stine, children's author of Goosebumps series (B.A., 1965) |
| | Jack Nicklaus, often considered the greatest golfer of all time (attended) |
| | Patricia Heaton, Emmy Award-winning actress on Everybody Loves Raymond (B.A., 1980) |
| | Fred Lazarus, Jr., the founder of Federated Department Stores |
| | James Thurber, author and humorist (attended but did not graduate) |
| | Bobby Knight, coach at Texas Tech University Basketball Hall of Fame (B.A., 1962) |
| | Judith Miller, former New York Times reporter (jailed for not revealing sources), 2002 Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting |
| | Jerry Lucas, NBA star, Basketball Hall of Fame |
| | William “Mil” Batten, former CEO of JC Penney Co.(1958-1974), former President of The New York Stock Exchange(1976-1984) (B.S. 1932) |
| | Christopher M. Connor, Chairman and CEO of Sherwin-Williams Company (B.S. 1978) |
| | Ralph S. Cunningham, former President and CEO of Citgo (B.S. 1964; M.S. 1966) |
| | Harry R. Drackett, inventor of Windex (B.S. 1907) |
| | Paul F. Iams, founder of The Iams Company (B.S. 1937) |
| | Leslie Wexner, CEO & chairman, Limited Brands corporation (B.S. 1959) |
| | Vince Doria, VP of ESPN and director of SportsCenter (1970) |
| | Glenn E. "Bo" Schembechler, Former football coach of the Michigan Wolverines (Master's 1952) |
| | Jim Jinkins, animator and creator of the animated Doug television series |
| | Gary LeVox, Lead singer of the Hit Country music group, Rascal Flatts |
| | Troy Smith, 2006 Heisman Trophy winner |
| | Chris Spielman, former NFL linebacker with the Detroit Lions, Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns |
| | Jack Tatum, football player for the Oakland Raiders, author |
| | Woody Hayes, Ohio State football coach and educator, M.A. |
| | Kirk Herbstreit, ESPN sports analyst and former OSU quarterback |
| | Santonio Holmes, NFL wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers |
| | Urban Meyer, head coach of the Florida Gators (M.A. 1988) |
| | Patrick Markey Producer of films including A River Runs Through It and White Oleander (B.A.; M.A.) |
| | Lou Groza, famous football kicker and Pro Football Hall of Famer, Lou Groza Award namesake |
| | A.J. Hawk, NFL linebacker for the Green Bay Packers |
| | W.M. Kiplinger, among first two journalism graduates and founder of Kiplinger's |
| | Frank Stanton, Longtime President of CBS; considered the father of television news |
| | Charles Kettering, Electrical Engineer, Founder of Delphi Auto Parts, Vice -President of Research for General Motors, invented electric starter for automobiles, Co-founder (along with Alfred Sloan) of Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in 1945 (B.S. 1904) |
| | Paul Hamm, Gymnastics 2004 Athens Olympic Games Gold Medal, Two Silver Medals |
| | Morgan Hamm, Gymnastics 2004 Athens Olympic Games Silver Medal |
| | Blaine Wilson, Gymnastics, 2004 Athens Olympic Games Silver Medal |
| | Katie Smith, Basketball 2000 Sydney Olympic Games Gold Medal; 2004 Athens Olympic Games Gold Medal |
| | John Havlicek, NBA star, Basketball Hall of Fame |
| | Jim Jackson, NBA player |
| | Cris Carter, former NFL wide receiver |
| | Joey Galloway, NFL wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| | Eddie George, Heisman Trophy winner 1995, former NFL football player |
| | Greg Oden, 1st Team All-American, 2007 |
| | Michael Redd, NBA player for the Milwaukee Bucks |
| | Paul Brown, famous coach, member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and namesake of Paul Brown Stadium (M.A. 1940) |
| | Earle Bruce, College Football Hall of Fame coach |
| | Archie Griffin, only two-time (1974 & 1975) Heisman Trophy winner, current president of The Ohio State University Alumni Association |
| | Mike Nugent, NFL kicker for the New York Jets |
| | Orlando Pace, NFL offensive lineman |
| | Jim Parker, Offensive tackle for the Baltimore Colts and Pro Football Hall of Fame |
| | Nick Swisher, MLB baseball player (Oakland Athletics) |
| | Will Allen, NFL Free safety for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| | Paul Warfield, Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver |