Four pages filed in a West Texas district court in April revealed quarterback Brendan Sorsby had privately battled a gambling addiction through four college seasons and impermissibly wagered at least $90,000, according to ESPN. The NCAA’s investigation found thousands of bets on college and professional sports spanning his time at Indiana, Cincinnati and Texas Tech, including 40 wagers on Indiana football as a freshman in 2022.
While Sorsby entered a 35-day treatment program in Arizona, Texas Tech pursued the standard NCAA reinstatement process after the school had been told the severity of the violations would be difficult to overcome under existing precedent, ESPN reported. Sorsby’s lawyers sued the NCAA on May 18 seeking an injunction that could allow him to play; a retired Texas judge granted a four-page temporary injunction on the morning of June 8.
The injunction set off a cascade of disputes that pitted Texas Tech against the NCAA, Sorsby against the NCAA, the Big 12 against Texas Tech and ultimately Sorsby against the NFL, sources told ESPN. Athletic directors in the Big 12 wanted to hold Texas Tech accountable if the school played Sorsby, and the conference described the matter in a court filing as a fight over moral, ethical and legal issues.
ESPN reported the episode damaged Texas Tech’s reputation and strained its relationship with the Big 12. NCAA president Charlie Baker called the district court loss “a new low,” and the incident underscored limits on the association’s ability to enforce its rules while laying out how a conference might legally respond in similar situations.
The saga left few apparent winners: Sorsby is out millions of dollars and his playing career remains on hold, ESPN found. Texas Tech officials have said they believe they acted properly; board chair Cody Campbell said, “This thing was not tried in court…it was tried in the court of public opinion.” Sources in Lubbock also praised lead attorney Jeffrey Kessler’s performance at the hearing, and agent Ron Slavin compared Kessler to “the Harlem Globetrotters” while calling the NCAA “the Washington Generals.” ESPN spoke with multiple Big 12 athletic directors, university presidents and chancellors, NCAA staff and Texas Tech; Sorsby could not be reached for comment.
