Most states have a pre-basic program which weeds out a lot of the misfits and unfits. If he just enlisted in August, they found him out pretty quickly and gave him his discharge.
If it didn’t involve criminal behavior (like, maybe just being nuts), the discharge would be honorable.
Techically, you’re not really in the military until you graduate from basic or receive your commission. Up until you swear in at the end of basic training they can seperate you administratively. That’s what they do with all the washouts at basic.