I have always respected guys who made Eagle Scout, though I never did (only made 2nd Class) because back then, recall you really did have to do stuff to get it. It wasn’t an esteem award.
As a kid observing the process, it seemed insurmountable to me, so when I saw a kid make it, I really was impressed. It carried weight with it.
It wasn’t an esteem award. You are right. In High School the kids that got the glory were the athletes and their accomplishments. My son was a band geek and a Boy Scout. He got a $2,500 college scholarship because he was an Eagle Scout.
Hey, you made 2nd class. That was something. One of my longtime friends made tenderfoot and never went up from there. That was something he bragged about. He joined up for the adventures not for any kind of rank.