Someone got into Stanford... Granted, into the modern religious thought, ethics & philosophy program. But I am guessing it means the Stanford results should be released soon. *stress*
The main thing I have been warned about second tier programs is funding. Some of these schools have great schools, amazing resources, and excellent branding but at the end of the day, some of them just don't have the same means of funding as the big names do.
I know I am going insane because I keep checking my inbox, seeing if Stanford has gotten back to me, only to remind myself that they are 3 hours behind me and hoping it means I will hear later in the day....
In my experience, you want to balance both sadly. Get into a good and prestigious program/school and make sure they give you decent funding... Sadly, it seems to be the state of the market and the field.