I’ve been research this as well for my nephew, and UofA has the nose ahead on this for all the reasons mentioned above. Eller is on the rise in rankings w a new Dean from Purdue who promises to shake things up.
Re: location - Tucson is just 1.30m from Phoenix, so it isnt in the boonies. Many kids end up in tech in Phoenix (Intel and like) for internships and jobs. SoCal (LA/SD) is a few hours drive - same as ASU.