For thousands who crowded the MSU auditorium Monday, Ron Paul is not just their pick for president. He's their idol.

"I love Ron Paul!" one student exclaimed while waiting to get into the auditorium.

"When I'm 76, I want to be just like him, running for president and inspiring other people," said Yuri Mayorchak, a local realtor.

"The other three candidates act like three blind mice as if they cannot find their copy of the constitution and they can't find Article I Section 8 which outlines the things federal government can do," said Chuck Geshlider, another supporter.

The congressman kept his campaign message short and sweet.

"I settled for one word, and that is liberty," he said to a crowd of more than 3800 people.

And every word out of his mouth was music to their ears. The energy and passion his supporters had was loud, intense, and unmistakable.

But before he took the state Dr. Paul caught up with us one-on-one.

"If you build a bomb or a weapon or a drone missile and it gets blown up, what do you have for all your effort? Nothing. But if you spend that same amount of money here and you build a house, or to provide medical care, you acutally increase the standard of living. Right now the way we're going, medicare and medicaid, they're all going to fail because the debt is unsustainable," he said.

Student organizers said they were optimistic about the primary. They think the student vote could make a big difference and hope all those who showed up to hear him speak Monday will turn up to the polls Tuesday as well.