> Once AA is overturned, that's it—hands off the scale

Or change it so it is not race based. Instead make it geographical.

Say you want to admit 1000 students from the US. Partition the US into 1000 districts, with 1 student admitted per district.

Gerrymander the district boundaries to make sure that you get the racial demographics you want.

Have fun watching the Supreme Court try to explain why that is not OK but it is OK to gerrymander congressional districts to ensure Black people are underrepresented.