Take Nat'l Guard scholarship or join Nat'l Guard during college?

I am an incoming freshman to college and I am enrolled for the ROTC courses at my school. Knowing that I would have to serve in the military for 8 years after college but also wanting to have a civilian life and wanting to obtain my master's degree as soon as I graduate from college, I made the decision to serve in the National Guard for those 8 years. Currently, I have been researching the ARNG scholarships that are available. However, I talked to an ARNG recruiter and he told me that it would be better to join the Nat'l Guard thru the SMP program while in college because there would be more monetary benefits than that of the ARNG scholarships. But what I am concerned about that is that it might be a lot to handle in college. So my question is, should I apply for an ARNG scholarship or should I join the National Guard?