Yeah, I think that is more true than people who have gone to East Coast Ivies would care to admit. When my eldest was looking for her undergrad college, she wanted to major in Music Performance (Oboe). There was just no way we could afford the conservatories; but, her piano teacher told us to try Indiana University - Bloomington. We looked into it and, low and behold, it is one of the best Music Schools in the country. Who knew? In the middle of Indiana, great music school. Now, we had to pay out-of-state tuition; but, it was still way cheaper than a conservatory. (BTW, the out-of-state tuition we paid at UI-Bloomington, is now less than the in-state tuition at most of the colleges in WA state.)
I think it might be a better option for a lot of kids to look at which schools have a strong department in the area of study that you want. I know that, locally, the University of Washington in Seattle is where you can get a very good education if you want to get into medicine. My youngest daughter went to Washington State Univ. in the eastern portion of WA state (cow country) and that university has a very strong Communications Dept. (they have long waiting lists) and Architecture is also strong.
Perhaps those books on different colleges that they have should start putting in a section where they list the best colleges by degree program.
Bloomington is my hometown, IU has had a great music department for decades. I went To Purdue (95 on list), the Big 10 has 5 schools on the list. I concur there are many state schools where one can get good value, my son goes to WVU in ME.