Good non-elite CS Schools in the US?

Sorry to not answer your question, but if possible you could also consider basically any Canadian school that offers a CS degree. I don't think any would be considered elite, certainly not by cost or entry criteria, and like I say, they are all "good", even if there is some variation.

WPI, RIT, Northeastern, maybe RPI spring to mind. The better funded state universities (Texas, Michigan, etc) should have good programs and provide excellent networking potential too