Rice fans,
Congrats on making yet another regional this year after a bumpy start (which happens to us all).
I was looking at the RPI and CUSA has been very stout, as the #6 baseball conference.
http://warrennolan.com/baseball/2017/conferencerpi
Short of the Big 12, CUSA really is becoming a treasure box for the Owls programs. I think its been flying under many peoples radars.
Once Rice can get football and basketball dominant in the conference, CUSA will be the optimal place for Rice to be outside of the P5.
I say that because of the built in recruiting advantages of being CUSA's outpost in Houston.
Ask any coach, and they will tell you that the most desirable jobs across the board are the Top 2-3 jobs in each conference. I believe that Rice is a Top 2-3 CUSA job.
I've watched many a game in Rice Stadium and no other CUSA team has it so good.
Unlike every other conference outside of the Big 12, Rice also has 3 other peer Texas institutions. That's huge for the future.
Anyway, I've grown to become a big CUSA baseball fan and it doesn't get much better than Rice and Southern Miss. Football and Hoops can become just as good. Look at what WKU is doing in both sports.
I know it didn't seem ideal at first but I really think Rice has found a good landing spot. I hope the Texas Quartet can do more together in the future to make this house a home. The brand is strong in Texas.