Statewide policies can impact enrollment patterns of students. At one Texas University, 11th-grade Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills scores were predictive of success in students' first college-level mathematics course, but many students--those most at risk of failure--seem to have avoided taking a mathematics course in their first year at the institution. When placement accelerates a student's path through precollege-level sequences, it is not clear that the reduction of time to college-level coursework is concomitantly achieved. We recommend emphasizing the importance of completing mathematics courses early in students' academic careers.