Does he want to be intellectually challenged and just hasn't figured out the right path yet?

If he wants a challenge, it sounds like he should look for professors offering undergraduate research opportunities. It doesn't necessarily have to be directly in CS. I worked with a professor on a polymer chemistry project while earning my undergraduate CS degree. He got someone who could troubleshoot data acquisition hardware and write software for analysis; I got to learn more about chemistry and statistics. It was a fantastic experience.

I was at a small liberal arts college. I would presume that there would be even more research opportunities at a Big 10 university, though I don't know if it is hard to make personal contacts on such large campuses.