Cruise was asked to leave the St Francis Seminary in Cincinnati after being caught stealing alcohol, reported Contactmusic.
The actor's school friend Shane Dempler said, "I tossed about six, most broke, but we managed to get a couple and hide them in the nearby woods.
"The priests didn't even realise until some of the other boys found out about our plan and snuck into the woods and got drunk."
Dempler, who studied alongside the 50-year-old star between 1976 and 1977, said he and his pal were interested in priesthood but were too young to have made a serious decision about their careers.
"He had a very strong Catholic faith. We went to Mass, spent time in the chapel and enjoyed hearing stories from the priests. We thought the priests had a great lifestyle and we were really interested in priesthood.