Hoosier Daddy?

Tom and I are proud to be Hoosiers now that we are living in Indiana. But what is a "Hoosier?" We wondered the same thing. The welcome committee in our ward gave us a sheet with possible explanations because the exact meaning of the term remains a mystery. Many believe that the word comes from pioneers greeting night callers with "Who's yere?" Others think it comes from "Hoosier's Men" in reference to laborers for an early Indiana contractor named Sam Hoosier. Still others trace the word's orgin to "husher," a term applied to men (usually river boat workers) who were able to "hush" any challengers because of their strenth. The theory favored by James Whitcomb Riley, the Hoosier poet, maintained that the word came from the pugnacious habits of Indiana's settlers. when fighting, they bit off the ears of their opponents. A settler coming into a tavern the morning after a fight, seeing an ear on the floor, would say "Whose ear?" and this led to the term "hoosier."

Which theory is correct? You can choose your favorite.