Friend attended the University of Chicago, where he was a track star. He twice won the Big Ten long jump championship. Friend was the captain of Chicago's Big Ten champion track team, the first time one of the university's teams had won the Big Ten Championship. He was selected for the United States team for the 1906 Intercalated Games (sometimes termed the 1906 Olympic Games) in Athens and won a bronze medal in the long jump, finishing fourth in the 100 metre hurdles. He also played football in college, though never at the varsity level.