How would one fail an ACT? You are just given a number. I assume they're using "fail" as shorthand for failed to get necessary score to be admitted to a college. "Failing" for one player is differerent than "failing" by another depending on what their high school GPAs were. So hypothetically, (I don't know their admission guidelines) an applicant to Harvard, who scored a 30, failed the ACT? Well, there's no written standard for test scores for non-athletes. The NCAA requires (through a combination of GPA and ACT/SAT scores) a certain minimum standard to be met.