I agree with the above post. Your friend should do something this year that will really make him stand out as a unique applicant. He should definitely volunteer somewhere and if he's even a little interested in research it would be awesome for him to get involved in something he could be published on. Med schools LOVE this sort of thing and when he gets in, he'll be asked about it throughout his career. Things like going on a medical missions trip overseas, volunteering at a shelter, coaching a team, etc. are all great ideas. If the above options aren't available to your friend, he should find clinical medical work somewhere. They will pay close attention to what he did this past year to better his application, but the simple fact that he's re-applying is greatly increasing his chance of getting in. All my friends that didn't get in their first year got in their second.
Good luck to you!
Des🙂