Dean's Hatred of Hunter on 'Off Campus' Has Even Book Readers Confused

Hockey romances are apparently the new thing sweeping the nation. Off Campus is following the success of Heated Rivalry, and tells the story of a boy and girl who pretend to date one another before eventually falling for each other. Based on a book series of the same name, many book readers are naturally happy to be able to see the story on their TVs.

Even some book readers are confused, though, by the hatred that Dean Di Laurentis, one of the main character Garrett's close friends, has for Hunter. Both Dean and Hunter are hockey players, and some are wondering why Dean seems to have such a visceral hatred of Hunter. Here's what we know.

Hunter's name gets brought up as Dean, John and Logan are brainstorming ways to get Briar University's hockey team back on track after their wins are wiped away during the eighth episode. Hunter's name comes up as a possible solution, as Logan points out that he "tore up the ice" at last year's tryouts. Dean, however, is not at all interested in a world where Hunter joins the team.

"F--k no. F--k that guy," Dean says. “Jensen offered him a spot on the team and he turned it down… The reason is that he’s a selfish d--k with a piss-poor attitude, and I’m not f--king playing with him.”

John tries to offer a suggestion, but Dean suggests that they drop it. While it's possible that Dean just really doesn't like Hunter's attitude, his reasons for not wanting Hunter on the team seem to be far more deep-seated and personal than that.

What's more, the animosity between Dean and Hunter is not something that's being translated from the books, so even those who have read them are confused by this adaptation choice. In the books, Dean is a mentor figure for Hunter, and Hunter also becomes roommates with Dean's sister and eventually develops a crush on her.

The Off Campus fandom has started to suspect that that might be the reason Dean is so upset with Hunter.

We'll have to wait until the TV show returns for a second season to better understand exactly why Dean seems to hate Hunter so much, but it's possible that Hunter hurt Dean's sister in some way in the past, and Dean is still carrying a grudge for that reason.

Ultimately, though, we won't know for sure until the show returns for a second season. It seems like the main reason this tidbit was included is to remind us of what season 2 might hold on the drama front.

It's possible that there will be something particularly juicy between Hunter and Dean in the second season, but it's also possible this conflict will resolve itself pretty quickly. As Off Campus heads into its second season, it seems like the plan will be to broaden the show's scope, and give room for more characters to have interesting, compelling stories.