@Florida2020 I was curious, so I checked flights from Fort Lauderdale and Fort Myers to Birmingham and found flights on Southwest with a total travel time of 3 - 5 hours (including short layovers). Then in Birmingham there is rail service or Uber/Lyft to Tuscaloosa. Not sure where exactly you are in FL, but since you mentioned Fort Lauderdale and Fort Myers I checked those airports.
If you go out of state to college (or somewhere far in FL) you will likely not go home regularly. I teach at a college and most of the out of state students go home at most at Thanksgiving, Winter Break, and Spring Break, and maybe for some other special event at home. Many only go home for Winter Break and maybe Spring Break.
You have great options in FL with BF… apply to Alabama, and a few other schools that may give you significant merit for your stats. You don’t have a decision to make until you have a decision to make, and a lot can change in terms of feelings and attitudes between junior and the end of senior year. Good to be asking questions, doing research and thinking ahead, and at this point keep your realistic options open.