If you get admitted to an okay masters program and obtain a high GPA (3.8+), and you do some publishable research then you would have a fighting chance to get i

If you get admitted to an okay masters program and obtain a high GPA (3.8+), and you do some publishable research then you would have a fighting chance to get into a decent PhD program. Keep in mind that getting into top 50 PhD programs in the US is very competitive, but showing that you have the skill to do research by already having a publication or two will dramatically help your chances. Graduate students are the cogs that keep a professor's lab churning out research, and showing that you are capable of that will help tremendously to get into a PhD program. So, I do think it is possible to "redeem" yourself, and I know several people that have done this. I also went to a low ranked state school for undergrad, went to a higher ranked school for my MS, and then did a PhD at a well ranked university.