Not an opinion. We played publics because we lived in an area that didn't have enough privates to fill our schedule. We won a few and got drilled a lot. If we were to be thrown into the playoffs with similar sized schools we would have gotten killed. There are giant privates there and there's not a single one that can hold its own in football against the same size publics. The best athletes in the state go to public schools. There's a reason. I'm not sure what it is but there's a reason. That's what the publics here need to work on figuring out I guess. However, there is just as much whining there about recruiting in the publics as there are the privates. Any time you have a powerhouse program people will believe that you are doing something against the rules.
Also, in TX there is no attendance zone. You can live a hundred miles a way and drive in every day to a private and be eligible. You would think this would create athletic magnets but it doesn't.