Transfer quarterback Brendan Sorsby will not play for Texas Tech this fall and has instead declared for the NFL supplemental draft. This decision brings an end to an intense legal battle over his college eligibility, which stemmed from his acknowledged thousands of impermissible bets totaling at least $90,000 on college and professional sports. These wagers included over 40 bets on his own team, Indiana, during his freshman year in 2022, though he did not bet on games in which he played.
Sorsby's move to the supplemental draft comes after he secured a temporary injunction on June 8 against the NCAA, which would have allowed him to play for Texas Tech. However, both the NCAA and the Big 12 Conference had filed challenges against this injunction, with the NCAA arguing it undermined the integrity of college sports and the Big 12 threatening sanctions against Texas Tech if Sorsby played. Sorsby still needs this injunction dismissed to be eligible for the NFL supplemental draft.
The NFL has a stringent policy on gambling, and Sorsby's past actions present significant challenges. The league's 2018 policy explicitly prohibits betting on NFL games or other sports by league personnel due to potential risks to competition integrity. In 2023, the NFL intensified efforts to educate players on betting rules, following suspensions of 10 players for gambling violations. Despite being projected as a potential first-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft, Sorsby now faces the uncertainty of whether any NFL team will risk a draft selection on him, and how Commissioner Roger Goodell will handle his situation if he is drafted. He tentatively plans to work out for NFL teams on July 10 at a Dallas-area high school.
