[prophetjohn]

I did a similar thing in Texas (Austin Community College -> Texas State University), albeit later in life. I'm on a 4-person engineering team where the other three when to Carnegie Mellon, Stanford and Princeton.

I guess I worked at a moderately "prestigious" consultancy for a while that is a large factor in me having this particular job, but it seems like top universities aren't all that important beyond your first few years in the industry.