Quote Originally Posted by ShotgunDawg View Post
I understand what you are saying, but I feel that this is the MSU attitude that we have to get rid of.

To me it is ingrained in MSU to people to believe that you earn what you get, and, if you don't earn it, then you shouldn't get it.

The problem with this attitude is that we play in the SEC West and earning anything is extremely tough and not something that we can depend on year in and year out.

Some other teams in our conference don't earn anything either, but they still get a ton of positive publicity because they promote themselves, even if delusional, and have created a positive perception of themselves to the average on-looker. This helps out of state recruiting immensely.

We are MSU people, and I am an MSU person. Overall, I think the way we think the way we think does more good for us than bad, but I think it hurts us in this case. In order to take the next step with our football program, we must do better with out of state recruiting, and, in order to do that, we must create a better perception of ourselves outside this state.

Agree or disagree, that's the way I see it. Some of the complaining that I and others do on this site may seem a little over the top, and certainly rubs many people with the "Salt of the earth, MSU attitude" the wrong way. I get it..., but I also see it as necessary.
I also want us to improve our national perception, and I also agree that "hype" and "marketing" is a big part of that. But obviously we can only control so much; complaining about journalists or the rankings of other teams does nothing to further our national brand.

And on the topic of hype... I promise you that "no hype" is better than "undeserved hype, followed by being exposed". You want to constantly be meeting or exceeding expectations. With this in mind, there is really nothing good that can come from high rankings this early in the season (Think 2012 for us).

RougeDawg - I just read your post as well. You make fair points. I would just say that workplace performance is almost always measured subjectively, and that's how opinions/polls are being formed currently in week 3. BUT - by the end of the season, the cream rises to the top and the polls start to reflect the results on the field.