If I had a youngster interested in engineering and who I thought might be going down the athletic recruiting path, I’d focus on the academic pathways that could help check off some of the engineering requirements in the first year or two of college.
If there are options to pursue chemistry, physics, CS, and math at a level in HS that provides credit for those courses in college, or allows the option of opting/testing out, that can provide a lot more flexibility in the first year of college than an engineering student might otherwise have. Especially wrt lab-heavy courses, which can be a real logistical challenge for team sport athletes.
Only if academically appropriate, obviously. And depending on the school and field of engineering it might not make sense to avoid the intro sequence in one or all of these disciplines. But having the option is something a parent can be thinking about early on that might pay dividends down the road.
Once you get to the point of having conversations with coaches I think the questions you have will get answered pretty quickly. I assumed from your username that your kid is pursuing a team sport but I know that’s a big assumption. Individual sports present less of an issue with engineering but as others mentioned there are plenty of team sport athletes doing engineering. If the coach thinks it’s a problem, it isn’t going to be a mystery to you. I’ve only really seen that at the P5 level with team sports and it was just a practical issue with scheduling and team practice and travel.
And keep in mind that athletic recruiting might look different in several years. NIL, realignment, etc., are likely to change recruiting at the powerhouse sports schools in significant ways. It’s not clear whether or how any of that will affect the more academic schools or mid-major type schools that aren’t part of that world but target some of the same recruits.