Quote Originally Posted by 5049 View Post
Sure.

We are the state university of Mississippi. We pride ourselves on that blue collar attitude, where anyone can come and get their education if they work hard. Being that we are tied closely to the state of Mississippi, it means we are tied closely to the JUCO system. We all know the school is good, but unfortunately we have that ruling that made the admissions standards lower. It is what it is. In this vein, pretending to be some high level academic institution would be idiotic.

Playing on the blue collar part, we can and should be a solid choice for students/athletes in surrounding states who may want to get out of their home state, but still want to be/feel close to home.

That is our brand right now. We are the people's university. If you don't like it, first go puke, then you best make peace with it.

That is the best fit strategy for now. Maybe one day we can take that next step. I read where Clemson heavily invested their recruiting efforts into the NJ/NY area, and it worked for them (I have no idea why, I guess it is linked to their economy). If we are picking a far away land to invest efforts, that should be TX, since we have similar economic interests. Other than that, it's futile. Now, I'm talking big area here......we do a great job in Memphis, Birmingham, Mobile and Huntsville as it is.

I know we are talking football recruiting here, but I honestly believe that both efforts are interlinked.

And no, we should never shy away from any individual interested in our school, but when making strategic plans, you have to look big picture, not at individuals.
I agree. Mississippi should always be our first priority. I think that philosophy is what has helped push our program past Ole Miss.

Clemson probably recruits New York because it is a huge population center. Which means a lot of players/talent. I would imagine that while it's far going from South Carolina to New York is driveable in a day too.