SCOTUS Deference to Michigan Law vs. VMI

Why did the Court defer to the curricular expertise of the Michigan Law faculty under strict scrutiny, but not to the curricular expertise of the VMI faculty under intermediate scrutiny?

I wonder if Bobby Braddock has an insight on this issue in his song about cultural differences between the "jet set" and the "Chevro-let set":

No, We're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
Our steak and martinis
Is draft beer with weenies
Our Bach and Tchaikovsky
Is Haggard and Husky
No, we're not the jet set
We're the old Chevro-let set
But ain't we got love

Did the Court defer to fellow academic "jet setters" at Michigan Law while refusing to defer to "Chevro-let setters" on the VMI faculty?

Does cultural power, as opposed to the rule of law, explain at least some of the Court's SDP and Equal Protection decisions?