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Brendan Sorsby’s attempt to play in 2026 will likely have to come through the court system.
The NCAA has blocked the Texas Tech QB’s request for reinstatement to play for the 2026 season as he recently completed inpatient treatment for a gambling addiction. Tech announced earlier this spring that Sorsby was seeking treatment after placing numerous bets throughout his college career and, in an open letter to the school Tuesday afternoon, president Lawrence Schovanec said the school would appeal the NCAA’s ruling.
“Recently, the NCAA issued an initial ruling that Brendan is permanently ineligible to compete,” Schovanec wrote. “Texas Tech will be appealing that decision. We believe that given the facts and the context of Brendan’s case, the NCAA’s ruling should be reversed or modified. As a generation of college athletes face the legalization and rapid proliferation of sports betting in our country, gambling addiction is rising to the point of epidemic among college aged men in particular.”
Sorsby, who transferred to Tech from Cincinnati over the offseason, placed bets on Indiana while he was a member of the Hoosiers in 2022. Per NCAA rules, players who bet on their own team can permanently lose their eligibility. The 2026 season is set to be Sorsby’s final season of college football.
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In a statement of his own, Sorsby said that he felt “more free and no longer fully at the mercy of my addiction.”
“Last Friday, I completed a residential treatment program for a diagnosed gambling addiction and anxiety disorder,” Sorsby wrote. “While I accept responsibility for my behavior and know that I have a lot of work ahead of me, for the first time in many years I feel more free and no longer fully at the mercy of my addiction. I am endlessly grateful to all who have supported me over the last several weeks, especially my family, friends, the experts and staff at Algamus Recovery Services, and the entire Texas Tech community.
“This is the start of a new beginning that I feel fortunate to have. I know recovery from addiction is a long road and I hope that my experience has in even some small way reduced the stigma associated with speaking up about addiction and getting help. I am committed to my ongoing treatment and being a resource to many other student-athletes and other kids out there dealing with gambling addiction and other mental health issues.
“With the support of my coaches, teammates and the university, I’m looking forward to returning to campus in Lubbock. If I’m blessed and fortunate enough to have the opportunity to continue my college career at Texas Tech, I know I will get the support I need, including through the school’s Center for Students in Addiction Recovery. I am deeply sorry to everyone I’ve disappointed and am committed to the hard and necessary work ahead.”
The NCAA’s denial comes less than two weeks after Sorsby filed a lawsuit against the NCAA in an attempt to regain his eligibility. Sorsby said in the suit that he “began placing small bets on the Indiana football team, typically in amounts between $5 and $50” while a redshirt freshman.
“All of these bets were in support of Indiana,” Sorsby wrote in an affidavit in the lawsuit. “In other words, I placed bets on Indiana to win a game or score more than a certain number of points or for the quarterback to throw for more than a certain number of touchdowns or yards.”
Following the lawsuit’s filing, Tech said that it had declared Sorsby ineligible and that it had begun the process of filing for his reinstatement through NCAA channels. Schovanec said in his letter that Sorsby would have significant support from the school as he returns to campus.
“As Brendan returns to campus and navigates his recovery, the following structure will be in place: ongoing outpatient clinical care; participation in group and individual therapy; mentor resources; treatment for his related anxiety disorder; active monitoring of his technological devices; installation of software to block betting sites from his devices; the appointment of a custodian to oversee his personal finances; and periodic compliance checks,” the letter said. “This is not a symbolic commitment. Each element reflects our conviction, and Brendan’s, that nothing matters more right now than his continued recovery. It is our duty to provide that support and that is support we are uniquely well-positioned to provide.”
Sorsby’s attorneys, who include notable attorney Jeffrey Kessler, argue that Sorsby’s gambling addiction is a clinically diagnosed disorder recognized by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and that the “NCAA has weaponized his condition to shore up a facade of competitive integrity, while simultaneously profiting from the very gambling ecosystem it polices.”
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Sorsby would not be the first power conference quarterback banned for betting on his own team. Ex-Iowa State QB Hunter Dekkers lost his eligibility for placing bets on the Cyclones while he was a backup.
The NCAA also prohibits athletes from betting on professional sports that are also NCAA-sanctioned sports. Per Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger, Sorsby has placed thousands of smaller bets and many of them were on professional sports.
Sorsby’s transfer to Texas Tech was one of the biggest portal moves of the offseason. Tech reportedly offered him an NIL deal worth north of $4 million to come to Lubbock for his final season after the Red Raiders won the Big 12 title but lost in the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff.
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