Home Of Ferris State Hockey Featured Among "America's Best Hockey Towns"
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Big Rapids, Mich. - The home of Ferris State University's NCAA Division I men's ice hockey program, Big Rapids, has received acclaim yet again as it continues to be tabbed as one of the nation's top hockey cities in a recent study.
The Bulldogs' hometown has been chosen 18th nationally in Smart Asset's "America's Best Hockey Towns" for 2020, the latest top 20 listing in various reports for the community.
The study by Smart Asset ranked 113 cities and towns with either NHL, AHL, ECHL or NCAA Division I teams. All were compared based on fan intesity and quality of life along with metrics such as average attendance, perentage of stadium capacity, etc.
"Hockey is a big part of the fabric of the Big Rapids and Ferris State community," said FSU head coach Bob Daniels. "Our players always have appreciated the support from our fan base and the home-ice advantage it gives our team."
FSU ranked again as one of the leaders of all member schools of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) and among the top cities home to NCAA Division I hockey programs across the country. A number of future Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) schools, who will begin play in the newly-formed league next year, are also included in the top 25 report.
In past year's studies, Big Rapids has ranked among the country's top cities in several criteria, including friendliness and engagement of NCAA Division I hockey fans, which refers to the number of Twitter followers and Facebook likes per capita. Ferris State Hockey has also helped Big Rapids be listed among the top squads overall in performance level of an NCAA Division I hockey team and the Ewigleben Ice Arena has ranked among the top arenas in the country for stadium accessibility of college hockey venues in past years.
The quality of life factors considered in this year's listing included such things as median household income, median monthly housing costs, violent crime rate, property crime rate and dining and entertainment establishments per 100,000 residents.
The Bulldogs, who have reached the NCAA Final Eight three times since 2012, will embark on their 46th campaign this coming fall and again face again one of the country's toughest schedules as they seek their fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last nine years.
Since 2012, the Bulldogs have made three NCAA Tournament appearances and advanced to the NCAA Final Eight all three times. FSU has also won two conference regular-season championships along with capturing the WCHA's Broadmoor Trophy once as the league's Final Five Champion. Along with a Frozen Four berth and national title game showing in 2012, FSU also has reached the regional final and the final eight of the NCAA Tournament in both 2014 and 2016.