UA is not a “deal” though for a kid from Michigan if that is not where the kid wants to go. I would imagine there are kids that grow up in Michigan who really want to go to Michigan ( or MSU , etc.) and they and their parents are happy to have that happen, despite the fact that they may have been able to get a better “deal” financially elsewhere. . It is a really personal choice that every family makes in terms of how much to spend for college. I would have been happy to have my older kid look at Pitt because they were offering tons of merit money at the time for kids with his stats and we have family there. I mentioned the idea of looking closely at Pitt but he said he preferred to go to UVa, we could pay with some sacrifice (and some help from him by working every summer and taking minimal loans), so case closed. We still considered instate tuition at UVa and Virginia Tech a “deal.” and a bargain compared to pricier alternatives. But when I see these kinds of threads about going the merit route at places like UA, I do admit to feeling a twinge that we paid instate cost for 2 kids. I know I could do a lot right now if I had that money back! But they enjoyed their college years so really have no regrets. UA sounds great though and a great opportunity. If a kid really doesn’t want to go to or doesn’t particularly care about going to their own state school , (or the money isn’t there to do so),it sounds like a wonderful alternative, and certainly a great “deal” for families that want and/ or need merit aid . It also sounds like a fun college experience, lots of good football, lots of merit money and good ABET accredited programs .