Why is Purdue called the Boilermakers? Mascot name explained
If you can look Purdue Pete in the eyes and tell him that you have no earthly idea what a Boilermaker is, you are a braver man than me, sir. Purdue University competes in the Big Ten in all sports. While it has great tradition on the football field, it has consistently had one of the better men’s basketball teams in recent years under Matt Painter. He is great at his job, until March, where he simply runs out of gas.
So as you get ready to get ready for some March Madness, let me explain to you what in tarnation is a dang Boilermaker. I know it is something you can order over the bar to get you feeling right late at night, but there is more to this one-of-a-kind nickname that this heavy combo of a cocktail concoction. Basically, the nickname comes from an old football rivalry that doesn’t exist anymore.
Purdue used to play Wabash College a lot back in the late 1890s. In one such game, Purdue drubbed Wabash 18-4 and started to earn unofficial nicknames such as “a great big burly gang of corn-huskers”, “grangers, “pumpkin-shuckers”, “railsplitters”, “blacksmiths,” “cornfield sailors”, and “foundry hands”. Essentially, it has everything to do with tough, blue-collar guys making things.
Then in 1891, Purdue annihilated poor Wabash again, this time to the tune of 44-0. Wabash, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana, saw its local newspaper refer to the Purdue players with this glorious headline in the Crawfordsville Daily Argus New on October 26, 1891:
