MAY 2: According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Pete Thamel, Sorsby has retained prestigious sports lawyer Jeffrey Kessler in an effort to keep his eligibility to play for Texas Tech this year. Kessler’s work spans the gamut of sports headlines. From the landmark antitrust cases that established the concept of free agency in the NFL to the NCAA v. Alston Supreme Court case that led to the ability for college athletes to be compensated through NIL to the USWNT’s successful efforts for equal pay to successful outcomes in both the “Bountygate” and “Deflategate” controversies, Kessler has been known to blaze trails as a litigator.
Schefter initially offered that, should Kessler not be successful in preserving Sorsby’s eligibility, the former Bearcats quarterback would have a deadline of June 30 to declare for the supplemental draft. He followed this up with a clarification that Sorsby must apply to be approved for the supplemental draft based on his application and the underlying circumstances surrounding his application. He also relayed that the NFL does not have a deadline set for the supplemental draft.
APRIL 29: The NFL Draft has come and gone, and we ended up with two Day 1 quarterbacks when it was all said and done. When we were taking a look at potential first-round passers early on, former Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby‘s name was mentioned as a name to watch. Now at Texas Tech via transfer portal, Sorsby’s future could be in jeopardy due to a gambling problem that has landed him in an addiction program, per ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Sorsby’s entry in a treatment program came following news that the two-time transfer had made “thousands of online bets on a variety of sports via a gambling app,” putting his eligibility to play at his new school in danger. The NCAA forbids student athletes from betting on college and professional spots and are reportedly investigating Sorsby’s gambling activity. Per Thamel’s sources, that activity includes bets on a team for which Sorsby played at the time they were placed.
Sorsby began his collegiate career at Indiana, and in 2022, he was a true freshman for the Hoosiers in the process of redshirting. Thamel reports that Sorsby bet on the Hoosiers to win individual games that season, but none of those bets were placed on the singular game in which he made a brief appearance that year. Those with knowledge of the situation note that Sorsby has not been tied to any potential attempts to influence outcomes to profit off bets and that his gambling habits were not ever put on the radar of law enforcement.
As a Hoosier, Sorsby showed promise but left room for improvement with his overall accuracy. After transferring to Cincinnati, he saw big improvement in a full-time starting role and had his biggest year for the Bearcats last year as a redshirt junior, throwing for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns, and only five interceptions. When he entered the transfer portal a second time, he immediately became one of the hottest names on the market. Following visits to LSU and Texas Tech, he committed to the Red Raiders on a reported NIL deal worth more than $5MM.
Texas Tech could be out of luck, though, as the NCAA’s strict policy against gambling could mean his time as QB1 in Lubbock is over before it ever began. With the onset of NIL and online sports betting in recent years, the NCAA amended its guidelines in 2023. The new guidelines dictate that wagers over $800 could lead to the loss of up to 30 percent of a season of eligibility. Cumulative bets greatly exceeding $800 could lead to permanent ineligibility. A college athlete betting on another school in their own sport could lead to 50 percent of a season suspension, while wagering “on their own games or on other sports at their own schools” could result in “permanent loss of collegiate eligibility in all sports.”
According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, every college football staffer he asked seemed to believe that the NCAA would revoke Sorsby’s eligibility. In order to continue his career in Lubbock, Sorsby would then have to “file a lawsuit and seek an injunction” to play. If ruled ineligible, Breer offered up that Sorsby could then head for the NFL by way of the supplemental NFL Draft. The supplemental draft is usually reserved for players who bypass the April draft in favor of extra years of eligibility they believe will be granted before the NCAA ultimately denies them. The early-summer event hasn’t taken place in either of the past two years due to no players declaring for it.
Breer and Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports laid out opposing viewpoints on the situation for Sorsby, who would have to be approved by the NFL for the supplemental draft. Breer mentioned the cases of former Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor, who was banned from the university’s athletic program after withdrawing following allegations of making thousands of dollars for autographs, and former Baylor wide receiver Josh Gordon who had been suspended by the team for his marijuana use. Both players were accepted into the supplemental draft and selected.
Breer believes that, based on these past cases and based on the league’s recent partnerships with gambling companies potentially altering their disposition, Sorsby may be able to move past the NCAA situation by opting for the NFL. Jones, though, is under the impression that, if the NCAA rules Sorsby ineligible by June and he’s able to apply for the supplemental draft, the NFL would not realistically approve him to enter, citing the league’s history of hard judgment of gambling players. He pointed out that, currently, players who bet on their own teams, as Sorsby has previously done, face a two-year ban as punishment.
Even if the league does allow Sorsby to enter the supplemental draft, he would need to be selected by an NFL team. Breer offered up that any of the several teams that punted on the quarterback position in the draft this year with the intention of investing in next year’s class might be willing to throw a second- or third-round pick in for Sorsby, but a source Jones has in the league reportedly called the 22-year-old “untouchable” at this point in time.
Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire and the school both expressed support for Sorsby and his decision to seek professional help through the addiction program in statements released to the media. At the time, their focus is on Sorsby “as a person” while he prioritizes his health, and any other concerns will have to wait for the future, after he receives the help he needs.
Bro can work at Draftkings if football doesn’t pan out
not likely. casinos don’t hire their customers
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What a mess. The guy may well not have been a very high pick next year anyway, but he could have been and now that’s pretty unlikely. And he was slated to make millions this year.
It’s almost like young sports fans and athletes shouldn’t be inundated with ads for an extremely addictive habit that’s rightfully forbidden for people who play the game.
Not excusing this, but the NFL has partnerships with a few betting sites, which, if you know the history, is insane. NFL fought tooth and nail against legalizing sports wagering for decades. Their argument was that legalizing wagers would compromise the integrity of the sport. Then poof, they now support legalization when they get a cut. Just terrible hypocrisy.
The problem isn’t wagering per se, but the in-game prop/fantasy bets that are offered that you can make on your phone instantaneously. These prop bets are highly addictive with bad odds and are losers for most folks. They need to be banned. Makes it much harder for insiders to get an advantage. Parlays are another sucker bet. If you want to wager, make straight bets and be done with it.
Agreed on all counts. it feels like the chicken farmers have gone in with the foxes.
I agree. And for what? More money? As if Goodell doesn’t have enough. As if the league doesn’t have enough. Goodell is an empire builder. Expand internationally. Play 18 games. It’s one thing to sell the excitement of the NFL to Australians, but another to partner with wagering sites that exploit human weakness for cash. Almost like partnering with drug dealers.
They are and always will be, money grubbing hypocrites, who continue to say one thing and do another.
It’s unfair to all the other players who were suspended for gambling if Sorsby doesn’t lose all his remaining eligibility. If he still gets to play than all those other players should get their eligibility back.
Ask the Colts how well drafting a gambling QB in the first round works out. I forget his name, but spent a ton of time in prison.
Art Schlichter. 1st rounder, 4th overall! Rough story.
Might have a future playing for the Houston Gamblers in the UFL
For starters you are have to be completely naive to think the people enforcing the discipline here haven’t engaged in gambling themselves at one time or another. It’s ludicrous that these people apparently don’t care about a player committing more serious offenses (wreckless driving, drug and weapon arrests, sexual and domestic abuse) but go into a panic if someone wagers $800.
betting on your own team undermines the credibility of the entire sport. They don’t want to be seen as the WWE.
I think you meant betting against your own team but that argument has no traction because in football a player would have to convince the coaching staff and entire lockerroom to go along with the plan and what incentive would they have to do that?
on ones own team as a QB you can force props for WR’s and RB’s very easily. It’s gamebreaking from specifically that spot on the roster.
OL betting the over on sacks etc.
@crosseyed Because players on a team have inside information the general public doesn’t.
Kirsten – The vast majority of bets are on spreads and/or totals. Maybe 5-10% of wagered money goes to prop bets and if the books see a huge wager there…they immediately become suspicious.
Plus 3 – Inside information is useless if the weather conditions suddenly sour during a game and no inside information can provide advance notice of injuries or turnovers.
Absent that $5MM, it certainly puts a hamper on this kids plans for hookers and blow this summer.
Hearts and prayers.
If hes good enough, theyll find a way to excuse just about anything so I wouldnt put too much doubt on his future
I’m glad for him that he’s getting help. Having dealt with a gambling addiction in my family, I’ve seen that it’s every bit the disease that drug addiction is. In its own way, it’s worse; gambling addiction happens to a lot of “clean cut, stellar citizen” kind of people. Their teeth aren’t falling out, no obvious physical manifestations… Nothing that most people could see as red flags.
While he might not be in 1% status, $5MM in a single year can conceivably set a reasonable person up for life. He’ll likely lose that, so he’ll likely pay a heck of a price. I’m truly hoping he can straighten himself out.
Gambling is our next big healthcare crisis.
The NFL has a huge interest in gambling and have for years. The Injury report was initiated by Rozelle to shield gambling aspects. From the 80’s to let’s 90’s CBS Sports owned the company that set all Vegas sports lines yet were heavily involved and connected to NFL and NCAA March Madness. Now they are heavily connected via ownership shares to the current sports gambling companies…So are ESPN/Disney, CBS, NBC and FOX. Leagues and games are rigged. It’s been going on for years
If he’s that dumb, he has no business playing quarterback at the pro level. You have to be coach level smart to succeed at quarterback as a pro.