You're mistaking activity for achievement. Colorado State's "core" is a core that went 5-7 last year. Building slowly is just a fancy excuse for losing. The portal is how you win now, and teams aggressively using it are trying to actually compete for championships. Your "culture" lost to Colorado's "circus" last season, remember? Chemistry doesn't matter if your taletn level is in the bottom half of the league. Those teams collecting players are collecting better players than you have. Respect is earned on the field, and until you start winning meaningful games, you're just the quiet team at the bottom of the standings.