Good players are good players no matter where they come from. Yes, proximity matters for some of the reasons you state. But there are numerous states that are as close or closer to Blacksburg than a lot of the 757, including TN, MD, NC, WVU, PA, and even SC. GA and NJ form a radius not that much further out. When you take that into consideration,the argument for focusing on in-state recruits diminishes greatly.