<p>If a college coach tells you that he has given you a "likely" letter or something equivalent, do you physically get something in writing that says that you are virtually admitted?</p>
<p>or do you just have to take the coach's word for it?</p>
<p>Depends on the school.</p>
<p>A D1-A school can have you sign a letter of intent, which would mean you're in. You've committed. They've committed.</p>
<p>At a D II or III school you can only verbally commit, so there's no actual guarantee until you've got an acceptance letter in hand.</p>
<p>And at the Ivies (D I-AA) you have the coach's word and (possibly) likely letters, depending on the school. That said, coaches only have so much control and I can name 3 kids off the top of my head who were rejected even though a coach told them they were in. (Although, 2 of those kids were from Cornell, so maybe it's just that school that has a problem).</p>
<p>Ask the coach. He/she will be able to tell you how much influence they have.</p>
<p>All the disappointed Ivy athletes I know were told they were in at Princeton! (1 swimmer at Yale, too)</p>
<p>A signed D-1 LOI does NOT mean you are in. Every year a number of kids fail to qualify under NCAA or the school's own admissions office well after the LOI is signed. Steve Spurrier just went crazy when he had a couple of players rejected by the school despite meeting NCAA minimums. UVa had a guy admitted who can't play because he did not meet NCAA minimums. At least he can still enroll.</p>
<p>I wish WashU would make a golf team.</p>
<p>An Ivy likely letter is a letter, not just a verbal statement from a coach. It comes from the admissions office and is an assured admit. As with anyone else, the college can withdraw admission if you flunk out of high school, or in some other way fail to live up to your side of the bargain.</p>