Purdue basketball

The Purdue Boilermakers are the official intercollegiate athletics teams representing Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana. As is common with athletic nicknames, the Boilermakers nickname is also used as colloquial designation of Purdue's students and alumni at large. The nickname is often shortened to "Boilers" by fans. Purdue is one of the few college athletic programs that is not funded by student fees or subsidized by the university.

In 1889, the Purdue football team played Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana, and won the game 18–4. Students from the college and citizens of Crawfordsville began calling the Purdue players "a great big burly gang of corn-huskers", "grangers", "pumpkin-shuckers", "railsplitters", "blacksmiths," "cornfield sailors", and "foundry hands". The Purdue students experienced hands-on education at the university, including the maintenance of a fully operational steam locomotive.