The Washburn Ichabods are the athletic teams that represent

Washburn University Washburn University (WU) is a public university in Topeka, Kansas, United States. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional programs in law and business. Washburn has 550 faculty members, who teach more than 6,100 u ...

, located in

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa language, Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the Capital (political), capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the County seat, seat of Shawnee County, Kansas, Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the ...

, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

ranks, primarily competing in the

Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) is a List of NCAA conferences, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division II, Division II level, headquartered ...

(MIAA) since the 1989–90 academic year. The Ichabods previously competed in the

Central States Intercollegiate Conference The Central States Intercollegiate Conference (CSIC) was an American intercollegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1976 to 1989. It was known to be one of the toughest NAIA c ...

(CSIC) of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA) from 1976–77 to 1988–89; in the

Great Plains Athletic Conference The Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) is a List of college athletic conferences in the United States, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located ...

(GPAC) from 1972–73 to 1975–76; in the

Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC), commonly known as the Rocky Mountain Conference (RMC) from approximately 1910 through the late 1960s, is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (N ...

(RMAC) from 1968–69 to 1971–72; in the

Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Central Intercollegiate Conference (CIC) was an American intercollegiate athletic conference that operated from 1928 to 1968. It was less often referred to as the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIAC), particularly towards the begin ...

(CIC) from 1940–41 to 1967–68 (which they were a member on a previous stint from 1923–24 to 1932–33); as an Independent from 1933–34 to 1939–40; and in the

Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The KCAC is the oldest conference in the NAIA and the second oldest in the United Stat ...

(KCAC) from 1902–03 to 1922–23.

Nickname

The "Ichabods" nickname is named after the university's contributor

Ichabod Washburn Ichabod Washburn (1798–1868) was an American Congregational deacon and industrialist from Worcester County, Massachusetts. His financial endowments led to the naming of Washburn College, now Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas and the foundat ...

, who was also the founder of

Worcester Polytechnic Institute '' , mottoeng = "Theory and Practice" , established = , former_name = Worcester County Free Institute of Industrial Science (1865-1886) , type = Private research university , endowme ...

. Prior to the 2013–14 season, the women's athletic teams were known as the "Lady Blues". On May 24, 2013, the Lady Blues nickname was dropped. President

Farley Farley may refer to: People * Farley (name), a list of people with the given name or surname Places Antarctica * Mount Farley * Farley Massif Australia * Farley, New South Wales * Farley railway station England * Farley, Derbyshire * Farle ...

stated that "From the moment a student arrives on campus, until the time they graduate and are alumni, they are "Ichabods", not a "Lady Blue"."

Varsity teams

Washburn competes in 16 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, tennis and track & field (indoor and outdoor); while women's sports include basketball, cross country, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball.

Basketball

Men's

Washburn claims one national championship. Washburn won five straight games to claim the 1925 AAU National Championship, becoming the fourth school to claim an AAU title (joining Utah (1916), N.Y.U. (1920), and Butler (1924). They defeated St. Phillips Athletic Club, 34–11, in the final. In 1987, the Washburn men's basketball team defeated West Virginia State 79–77 to win the NAIA national championship at

Kemper Arena The Hy-Vee Arena, previously known as Kemper Arena, is an indoor arena located in Kansas City, Missouri. Prior to conversion to a youth sports and community gymnasium facility, Kemper Arena was previously a 19,500-seat professional sports arena ...

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more ...

Women's

Coached by

Ron McHenry Ronald McHenry (born January 21, 1962) is an American former college women's basketball coach at Washburn University. During his 22 seasons at Washburn, he led the Ichabods to one national championship, seven conference regular season and tourn ...

since 2000, the Ichabods posted a record of 35–2, setting a school record for wins and capturing the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Women's Division II Basketball National Championship by defeating

Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University (SPU) is a private Christian university in Seattle, Washington. It was founded in 1891 in conjunction with the Oregon and Washington Conference of the Free Methodist Church as the Seattle Seminary. It became the Seat ...

70–53.

Football

Washburn began playing

Football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

in 1891 with a record of 1 win and 4 losses. In 1907, under

Garfield Weede Garfield Wilson Weede (November 26, 1880 – November 21, 1971) was an American football, basketball, and track and field coach and athletic director. He was one of the first college coaches to "break the color line" and allow racial integration a ...

the team completed a perfect season of 8 wins and 0 losses to be declared champions of the ''Kansas Conference'', forerunner to the

. The program has won 8 conference championships in its history. The current head coach is

Craig Schurig Craig Schurig (born March 2, 1965) is an American football coach and former player. He is the current head football coach for Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas and he held that position since the 2002 season. He is the 40th person to hold the ...

, who has held the position since the start of the 2002 season and led his team to a victory in the

Mineral Water Bowl The Mineral Water Bowl is an annual American NCAA Division II college football bowl game between teams from the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and an at large opponent hosted in Excelsior Springs, Missouri at Tiger Stadium. History ...

in 2004. Former coaches at Washburn include

John H. Outland John Henry Outland (March 17, 1871 – March 24, 1947) was an American football player and coach. He played football at Penn College in Oskaloosa, Iowa, the University of Kansas, and the University of Pennsylvania. He was twice named an All-Ame ...

, Bert Kennedy,

Dick Godlove Richard Milan Godlove (January 24, 1905 – September 15, 1985) was an American football and basketball coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas from 1936 to 1942 and ...

Ellis Rainsberger Ellis Dwight Rainsberger Sr. (October 20, 1932 – July 17, 2021) was an American football and Canadian football player, coach, and scout. He served as the head football coach at Washburn University (1962–1964), Southern Illinois University Car ...

, Harold "Bud" Elliott,

Tony DeMeo Tony DeMeo (born July 5, 1948) is a former American football coach. He served as the head football coach at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York from 1975 to 1978, Mercyhurst College—now known as Mercyhurst University—in Erie, Pennsylvania ...

Notable alumni

Brian Folkerts Brian Folkerts (born January 30, 1990) is an American football center for the Arlington Renegades of the XFL. He played college football at Washburn. Early years Brian was born the son of Tim and Margie Folkerts. He attended Hazelwood Central Hi ...

–

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

and

AFL AFL may refer to: Sports * American Football League (AFL), a name shared by several separate and unrelated professional American football leagues: ** American Football League (1926) (a.k.a. "AFL I"), first rival of the National Football Leagu ...

offensive lineman *

Mal Stevens Marvin Allen "Mal" Stevens (April 14, 1900 – December 6, 1979) was an American football player, coach, naval officer, and orthopedic surgeon. He served as the head football coach at Yale University from 1928 to 1932 and at New York University f ...

–

College Football Hall of Fame The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vote ...

r *

Cary Williams Cary Eric Williams (born December 23, 1984) is a former American football cornerback. He played college football at Washburn and was drafted by the Tennessee Titans in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Williams has also played for the Bal ...

–

Philadelphia Eagles The Philadelphia Eagles are a professional American football team based in Philadelphia. The Eagles compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The team plays ...

cornerback and

Super Bowl XLVII Super Bowl XLVII was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Baltimore Ravens and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

champion with

Baltimore Ravens The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...

Michael Wilhoite Michael Wilhoite (born December 7, 1986) is an American football coach and former linebacker who is currently the outside linebackers coach for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washburn Uni ...

–

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

Linebacker *

Corey Ballentine Corey Ballentine (born April 13, 1996) is a Jamaican professional American football cornerback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Washburn, and was selected by the New York Giants in th ...

–

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

Defensive Back *

Thomas Huber Thomas Huber (born 18 November 1966 in Palling, Bavaria) is a German climber and mountaineer. He lives in Berchtesgaden with his family. His brother and climbing partner is Alexander Huber and the two are called "Huberbuam" (Huberboys) in the B ...

–

LTV Steel Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV) was a large American conglomerate which existed from 1961 to 2000. At its peak, it was involved in aerospace, airlines, electronics, steel manufacturing, sporting goods, meat packing, car rentals, and pharmaceuticals, am ...

References

External links

* {{Kansas Sports