"The whole "give the kid a chance to work out elsewhere" is mostly meaningless boilerplate coach-speak. In the end he did what he had to do, absolutely, but let's not award the HC for his high-mindedness and candor."
The coach did the kid a huge favor.
If the kid begins attending he loses a year and can't transfer and play immediately to D1.
The coach did the same thing at Nevada and UA. By being honest up front he allows the kids the chance to play; might upset parent and player, but better to be eligible to play than heading to a JUCO on the way back to D1.
The coach keeps touch with all his recruits on a constant basis.
Obviously, the mantra of pick the school regardless of baseball didn't happen here. If it did, he would be walking on.