The two most bike-friendly cities in the US (Minneapolis and Portland) are not on or near the coast.
Any "best schools" ranking will show you that at least 7 out of the first 10 districts are not in coastal cities.
I'm not sure where you've lived before or if you have family or kids to have researched this matter seriously but the US offers a lot of choice depending on where you are in life and how you want to live it.
Discarding half the country as a "desolate wasteland" can only narrow your options in life.
The “best schools” have been exposed for the scam they are under the pandemic. The schools can’t open and are providing the next few semesters of lectures through Zoom while trying to keep their prices. In turn, students are suing for lower tuition. I hope these institutions crash as they only serve as gatekeepers of career progress favoring those with money. Google’s employee performance indicators show that there is no correlation between the prestige of the school an employee graduated from and the success of the employee at the company. That lead them to ditch the college degree requirements for good.
SF's roads and highways are abysmal. I've had smoother rides on graded dirt roads. Plenty of places are doing just fine, and you don't have to worry about catching covid while trapped in a sardine can under the bay.
If you're relying on raising a family, property might be cheaper but often the best school, universities and opportunities are located in or close to the major coastal cities.
There might be a few 'tech oasis's' (such as Austin) but if you move or live close to those cities you'll find that CoL quickly rises with fewer benefits than living near the coast.