fallfish

I was in the same position, 17th ranked school compared to a 2nd. I ended up choosing the 17th because I knew I would be happier. I had more funding, I got the sense they wanted me more and would be more supportive. I loved the lab group and the opportunities I'd have were amazing (I likely will be able to do field work out in the Pacific Ocean!!). The prof at this school is also younger so he is pretty on top of things especially getting funding and publishing. He was also more outgoing and would definitely introduce me to the right people and help me network. I start there this fall so I can't give any hindsight advice. 
The other school though highly ranked also had some red flags, similar to what you mentioned for your school B. Students weren't super happy and had some issues with the program. The prof was great, but not very outgoing and would probably not introduce me to many people. There were only 2 years of funding offered as well. 
In my opinion, I would much rather be happy with what is going to be several years of your life. Plus, like what's been said, retention of students and sticking through the long haul of a Ph.D is hard for a lot of people. I think the connections you make along the way are definitely more important than the name of the school you went to. 
So I vote school A all the way. Who cares what people think. The important people will be happy for you no matter what you choose. Plus, it's your life, not theirs. You do you! 

Basically in the same boat so I'm curious to see what others have to say.
I think it's a tough but you need to choose the program that you will thrive in--a lot of opportunities to publish and stand out. And that may not necessarily be the best ranked program. Plus, if you're miserable (as the other students are), there's a chance you may lose motivation. Graduate student retention is a concern. 

I agree that you need to pick a place you'll thrive in. It's just a big decision and I know if I pick school A people will make comments about it. I guess I shouldn't care about those comments though if it'll get me to where I need to be in terms of my end goal...

Those asking about UCLA, I called the advisor I wanted to work with to see what the status was and she told me she had offered positions to 3 students and they had all taken them. So I never really got a rejection, but I knew I wouldn't go there or get an offer. 
Might be worth calling the advisor you hope to work with? This may only be applicable to PhDs though, not sure about Masters. 

Yea, I know what you mean. I turned down Georgia Tech, which is a higher ranked program. For me having gone to Michigan for undergrad and a masters I felt like Georgia Tech was a bit too much like Michigan, and not in a good way. I've gotten the sense that higher ranked schools like that get by on their ranking instead of actually giving students focused attention and support. I've even heard of poor experiences at programs like MIT and Stanford. These programs think, well you're already at a high ranked school what else do you want? At least that is how I felt at Michigan. No one really wanted to see me succeed during my graduate studies, they just wanted to take my money and leave me with minimal job prospects. Plus everyone was so competitive with each other. Definitely not what I am looking for, I want a more collaborative environment. But that's my personal preference based on my needs and goals, which is different for everyone. 
I also think the supervisor you have is one of the most important aspects of deciding where to do a Ph.D. You have to interact with this person for a long time. People keep telling me you have to be passionate about the research. If you don't like them or their research, it's going to be a tough 4-5 years. Not only that, but I also considered the connections the professor had for getting me potential internships and overall networking. 
Btw, I don't think Virginia Tech is a bad option at all. I thought of applying there and got shut down outright by a professor because my GPA was too low in undergrad, lol. No matter what, I think you'll be in a good place regardless of what you choose. Good luck!!!

Yea, I know what you mean. I turned down Georgia Tech, which is a higher ranked program. For me having gone to Michigan for undergrad and a masters I felt like Georgia Tech was a bit too much like Michigan, and not in a good way. I've gotten the sense that higher ranked schools like that get by on their ranking instead of actually giving students focused attention and support. I've even heard of poor experiences at programs like MIT and Stanford. These programs think, well you're already at a high ranked school what else do you want? At least that is how I felt at Michigan. No one really wanted to see me succeed during my graduate studies, they just wanted to take my money and leave me with minimal job prospects. Plus everyone was so competitive with each other. Definitely not what I am looking for, I want a more collaborative environment. But that's my personal preference based on my needs and goals, which is different for everyone. 
I also think the supervisor you have is one of the most important aspects of deciding where to do a Ph.D. You have to interact with this person for a long time. People keep telling me you have to be passionate about the research. If you don't like them or their research, it's going to be a tough 4-5 years. Not only that, but I also considered the connections the professor had for getting me potential internships and overall networking. 
Btw, I don't think Virginia Tech is a bad option at all. I thought of applying there and got shut down outright by a professor because my GPA was too low in undergrad, lol. No matter what, I think you'll be in a good place regardless of what you choose. Good luck!!!

Yea, I know what you mean. I turned down Georgia Tech, which is a higher ranked program. For me having gone to Michigan for undergrad and a masters I felt like Georgia Tech was a bit too much like Michigan, and not in a good way. I've gotten the sense that higher ranked schools like that get by on their ranking instead of actually giving students focused attention and support. I've even heard of poor experiences at programs like MIT and Stanford. These programs think, well you're already at a high ranked school what else do you want? At least that is how I felt at Michigan. No one really wanted to see me succeed during my graduate studies, they just wanted to take my money and leave me with minimal job prospects. Plus everyone was so competitive with each other. Definitely not what I am looking for, I want a more collaborative environment. But that's my personal preference based on my needs and goals, which is different for everyone. 
I also think the supervisor you have is one of the most important aspects of deciding where to do a Ph.D. You have to interact with this person for a long time. People keep telling me you have to be passionate about the research. If you don't like them or their research, it's going to be a tough 4-5 years. Not only that, but I also considered the connections the professor had for getting me potential internships and overall networking. 
Btw, I don't think Virginia Tech is a bad option at all. I thought of applying there and got shut down outright by a professor because my GPA was too low in undergrad, lol. No matter what, I think you'll be in a good place regardless of what you choose. Good luck!!!

@fallfish I'm sure it's relieving to finally know where you're going! I'm jealous lol
 
I'm still somewhat undecided but heavily leaning towards VT for the opportunity to work with a particular professor. The other school I was seriously considering was Stanford but as people mentioned, I think there are some issues in the department that make me pretty uncomfortable. My only concern about choosing VT is I don't want to prevent myself from being able to land an awesome faculty job in the future by choosing a lesser ranked program. But I think I can do some really awesome work there so maybe it will balance out, idk. If it wasn't for that, I would probably accept already. It's the perfect research fit. 

I have applied to a variety of PhD programs, most in Civil Engineering. I applied to Oregon State University (two programs: Civil Engineering and Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science), UCLA (Civil Engineering), Georgia Tech (Ocean Science Engineering/Civil Engineering), North Carolina State University (Civil Engineering) and Delaware (Civil Engineering). 
I don't have a background in engineering so I wasn't really sure how I'd fair plus my undergrad GPA wasn't the best. So far I have gotten into North Carolina State, Oregon State (Civil program) and Georgia Tech. Super excited!!

Yes!
I wouldn't worry about this awkwardness. I think Prof A is just really hopeful that you will get the NSF-GRFP and is letting you know that basically you're in his group for sure if you get that. Shortly afterwards, he must have realised that sounded like he would only take you if you got the GRFP so he corrected himself. However, the important takeaway message is that he has no funding for you right now. That may change with successful grants and such, but this means you'll probably be funded via departmental sources such as TAships. I'd certainly factor this into the decision.
It's unfortunate that he doesn't know all the details of your application. Some people are just very absent-minded or maybe he had a lot on his mind that day, or he is just awkward about these things. In addition, there's no reason to expect the prof to remember the details of your application package---you probably spent a ton of time on it but they read it over very quickly and probably has not looked at it again since then. There are two scenarios to consider here:
1. Prof A may just be this absent-minded all the time to everyone and is very bad at small talk, it's not personal. So you just have to decide if this working relationship is a good fit for you. Remember that your advisor doesn't need to be your friend but you do need to feel like they support you. I know lots of people with super awkward advisors and they never ever talk about anything other than work/research because it just gets so painful. This could be fine since these people find mentorship from other people for things like career advice etc. It's probably better to have a nice and supportive advisor with cringe-worthy small talk conversations than a smooth talker that is very charismatic but doesn't actually care about your success at all. I also know a lot of people with advisors that are charismatic but unsupportive and they wished they made a different choice in the past.
However, if you feel the dynamic does not work for you and would get in the way of getting what you need from your advisor, then that's a good reason to consider someone else!
2. Prof A may not be that interested in you after all and these are signs that he won't really care about you as a student.
Based on the other information here, it sounds more like (1) than (2). Prof A spent a lot of time with you earlier to help with the application process etc. But you know your interactions best, and even if it's (1), as I said above, you might prefer a different dynamic.
It's great that you have a Prof B to also consider. I think what I said above about the balance between interactions with your advisor vs. how much you think your advisor will support you. I think having someone show interest in you attending is nice, but it's not the be all and end all. Sometimes people are very different when they want you to make a decision in their favour than when you actually make the decision. Prof B sounds great, so I'd look into what it might be like to work for Prof B. If you can visit and talk to the profs, scope out the feel of the lab/group and talk to students, that would be really helpful. 
In any case, it does sound like you have two profs (both A and B ) that have shown interest in you and spent time trying to convince you to come. It's a matter now of deciding which prof's style fits you better. Just keep in mind that many people believe in a mentoring network approach to training, and you are able to find mentorship/advising from other people on campus besides your advisor, if it turns out your advisor is lacking in some areas of mentorship you might like. Even if your advisor is wonderful, it's still a good idea to develop several mentors over the course of your graduate degree and hear different perspectives.

@strawberrykatI went to UMich for undergrad and for a masters degree (neither in engineering) but, if you have any questions about Ann Arbor, let me know! It's an amazing place. Great school!

I have applied to a variety of PhD programs, most in Civil Engineering. I applied to Oregon State University (two programs: Civil Engineering and Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science), UCLA (Civil Engineering), Georgia Tech (Ocean Science Engineering/Civil Engineering), North Carolina State University (Civil Engineering) and Delaware (Civil Engineering). 
I don't have a background in engineering so I wasn't really sure how I'd fair plus my undergrad GPA wasn't the best. So far I have gotten into North Carolina State, Oregon State (Civil program) and Georgia Tech. Super excited!!