Phone connection was a great idea! It worked. Then we tried direct modem connection, which worked also. Then we tried VPN, which also worked. So, turns out the router is really old and crappy and also the issue. Wasn't able to find a setting that fixed the router so he is going to use VPN until it gets replaced (which it's well past due for replacement being 10ish years old and about the lowest quality you can buy). Thanks for the help!
