Sportspeople from Paterson, New Jersey

Victor Michael Cruz (born November 11, 1986) is a former American football wide receiver. He played college football at UMass, and signed with the New York Giants as an undrafted free agent in 2010. With the Giants he won Super Bowl XLVI over the New England Patriots, and made the 2012 Pro Bowl.

Rory Darnell Sparrow (born June 12, 1958) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Andrés Yungo Torres Feliciano Jr., (born January 26, 1978) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He stands 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) tall and weighs 195 pounds (88 kg) and is a switch-hitter. Torres played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, New York Mets and San Francisco Giants.

Rubin "Hurricane" Carter (May 6, 1937 – April 20, 2014) was an American-Canadian middleweight boxer, wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for murder, until released following a petition of habeas corpus after almost 20 years in prison.

Lawrence Eugene Doby (December 13, 1923 – June 18, 2003) was an American professional baseball player in the Negro leagues and Major League Baseball (MLB) who was the second black player to break baseball's color barrier and the first black player in the American League. A native of Camden, South Carolina and three-sport all-state athlete while in high school in Paterson, New Jersey, Doby accepted a basketball scholarship from Long Island University. At 17 years of age, he began his professional baseball career with the Newark Eagles as the team's second baseman. Doby joined the United States Navy during World War II. His military service complete, Doby returned to baseball in 1946, and along with teammate Monte Irvin, helped the Eagles win the Negro League World Series.

Timothy Mark Thomas (born February 26, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player.

Ricardo McDonald (born November 8, 1969) is a former linebacker in the National Football League that played for the Cincinnati Bengals, Chicago Bears, and the Denver Broncos. He played college football for the University of Pittsburgh.

Marcel Cornelius Shipp (born August 8, 1978) is an American football running back and current coach. He played as a running back in the National Football League (NFL) from 2001 to 2008 for the Arizona Cardinals and Houston Texans. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2001, and played with them through the 2007 season. He was signed for a short time by the Texans in 2008. He played college football at University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass). Shipp was last the running backs coach for the New York Jets.

William Aloysius "Blondie" Purcell (March 16, 1854 – February 20, 1912), was an American Major League Baseball player born in Paterson, New Jersey. He played for a total of 12 seasons while playing for eight different teams in two leagues. He appeared in 1097 games, mainly in the outfield, but did pitch in 79 games throughout his career, as well as other infield positions.

Zoogz Rift (born Robert Pawlikowski; July 10, 1953 – March 22, 2011) was an American musician, painter and professional wrestling personality.