In 1968, a large bone was discovered during the installation of a farm pond near Angola, Indiana, about 40 miles (65 km) north of Fort Wayne.
The farmer who owned the property contacted professors in the IPFW geology department, who identified his discovery as the leg bone of a mastodon.
In 1970, members of the geology club, led by professors who oversaw the excavation, successfully lobbied the student government committee charged with choosing a name for the university mascot to select the mastodon.
In a related reference, the Mastodon STOMP pep band instills school spirit among the fans during home matches and games.
The Summit League has called the athletic program "Fort Wayne" since 2012, in line with a conference initiative to use geographic names to describe metropolitan campuses such as IPFW.
When the school announced the athletic brand change, it noted,[3]Some Mastodon teams have already been using Fort Wayne on uniforms since this recommendation, but the use has been limited and resulted in some confusion.
Outside of northeast Indiana, there is also considerable confusion about the "IPFW" acronym, with misnomers being common—even among those involved in Division I athletics.Indiana University and Purdue University in Fort Wayne officially separated on July 1, 2018, with IU taking responsibility for IPFW's degree programs in health sciences and Purdue retaining all other academic programs.
[6] Because NCAA rules bar players from two different schools from competing on the same team, IU Fort Wayne students became ineligible for Mastodons athletics.
The official announcement of this move noted that PFW would be near the geographic center of its new league, with an average distance of 170 miles (274 km) from the other members.
[13] During its existence as IPFW, it hosted the 2000 NCAA Men's Volleyball Championship matches at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum, which is adjacent to the campus.
The IPFW Club Men's Ice Hockey Team is in its sixth season as a program and competes in the ACHA's North Region.