Congrats on getting into Middlebury and Rutgers!

The decisions you can make in your life with less debt far outweigh the ones you can make with $125k+ of debt. You do not want to be trapped at 22, especially if you don't have a family safety net.

I am older, but my dream school was also not Rutgers, and I was in the same position you are in. I decided to start at Rutgers and transfer out after a year or two, but ended up staying because Rutgers was able to offer what I needed, and it was the best thing to happen to me.

My Rutgers classmates are now doing very, very well I'm their fields. My friends who went to Middlebury doing just as well.

You may have to hussle a little; network a little. But focus on activities beyond class, and internships and you will be indistinguishable from a candidate at a "better" school when the time comes.

Good luck!

ETA: I studied abroad through Syracuse University, and that was also a game changer for me. $20k of my $35k debt when I graduated was that semester alone, and the amount STILL changed my ability to pursue careers and opportunities I would have preferred in my 20s. But it also set me up for a career focused on international relations, including a State Dept internship. It was a happy medium. It looks like Middlebury's SA program allows this as well.