But many questions remain. Why 11171 and not some other number? Why Eltonbrand? Why the part about Carolina? Alvirdimus did some research about this easter egg, which was later confirmed by Mark Nelson (AKA BlueDev), the one who put the easter egg in the game in the first place. First of all, 11171 is a reference to Mark Nelson's date of birth, the 1st of November 1971. Second of all, Mark went to Duke college, which had a basketball team by the name of "Duke Blue Devils", which is likely the reason why he chose the nickname BlueDev. Also, the NBA basketball player Elton Brand played on this team. And, about the Carolina part, it would appear that the North Carolina Tarheels are the Blue Devils' most hated rivals. Thanks, Alvirdimus.