Heck of a reason but even for some -my engineer kid - the $30,500 off tuition made it cheaper than UTK. So that happens too - where an OOS is cheaper than in state - even outside of NMF. And some just prefer one over the other to begin with. They are substitutional for sure but not environmentally identical. And housing may (or may not) be different - single room, shared bath at Bama most likely - if it matters to you check about UTK.
But with NMF, you have ‘options’ - and you likely will have more beyond these two. You still have a lot of schools you are waiting on as I recall.
I forget - have you looked at Tulsa - I know you have smaller schools on your preferred list. At least last year over a quarter of their class was Natl Merit.
The good news is - no matter what - you’re going to a great school.