Rice Owls

Rice Owls

The Rice Owls are the sports teams for Rice University in Houston. Their name comes from the owls on the school's crest. Rice University is part of NCAA Division I, the top level of college sports in the United States.

Rice University has teams for eight men’s sports and eight women’s sports. In the past, they were part of the Southwest Conference, but that group ended in 1996. Now, the Rice Owls play in the American Conference.

One of Rice’s big rival teams is the crosstown Houston Cougars. Rice University is one of the smaller schools in NCAA Division I football. It has just a few more students than the University of Tulsa and the three FBS United States service academies.

Rice Owls have fun traditions. The Marching Owl Band, or "MOB," plays funny skits and routines. Rice's mascot is Sammy the Owl. The school used to keep live owls on campus, but they don’t do that anymore. Rice also has cheerleaders and a dance team that perform at games.

Rice Owls play their home games in special buildings made just for their sports. Rice Stadium is where they play football. This stadium was where John F. Kennedy gave a famous speech in 1962 about sending a man to the moon. Reckling Park is where the baseball team plays.