Pro Football Rumors
A Texas judge handed a stunning defeat to the NCAA on Monday, granting an injunction to Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby that keeps him eligible for the 2026 season. The NCAA has unsurprisingly appealed the decision, per Justin Williams of The Athletic, sending the case to the Court of Appeals for the Seventh District of Texas.
Sorsby admitted to an extensive history of sports betting and entered a treatment facility for gambling addiction earlier this year. Between his own bets and bets placed by friends on his behalf, he has wagered over $130k in the last four years – two at Indiana and two at Cincinnati – including at least 40 bets placed on the Hoosiers’ football team while he was a member.
That was widely thought to be the kiss of death for Sorsby’s college career. The NCAA ruled him permanently ineligible and denied Texas Tech’s reinstatement request, leaving his lawsuit against the association as his last path to suiting up for the Red Raiders this year. The lawsuit itself would not be resolved before the season, so Sorsby sought an injunction to restore his eligibility as the legal process played out. He is entering his fifth and final college season, so winning the injunction could allow him to play this year and declare for the 2027 NFL Draft before the case is resolved and essentially escape punishment from the NCAA. The NCAA is seeking an “accelerated appeal,” on the injunction, per ESPN’s Max Olson, though there is no guarantee that it is resolved before the season.
Sorsby was not expected to succeed in the injunction hearing in Lubbock County District Court last week. He needed to show that he had a strong chance of eventually winning the lawsuit, and by his own admission, he broke the NCAA’s clear and inviolate gambling rules. His legal team argued that his diagnosed gambling and anxiety disorders made him protected under the NCAA’s constitution. The association contended that they did consider Sorsby’s mental health but it should not grant him an exception to the consequences of his gambling infractions which undermined the integrity of college sports.
Judge Ken Curry sided with Sorsby, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, ruling that he “demonstrated a probable right to relief on his claims.” He also wrote that the 22-year-old would “suffer a probable, imminent, and irreparable injury” if he cannot suit up for the Red Raiders this fall, citing Sorsby’s personal development, Texas Tech’s success, and his ability to “make an informed decision regarding whether or not to enter the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft.”
The NCAA released a statement expressing their disagreement with the ruling and concern about “the damaging, far-reaching and broadly destabilizing ramifications of this outcome — which undermines and corrupts the integrity of sports.” Sorsby’s lead attorney Jeffrey Kessler called it a “just result,” noting that the two-game suspension that is part of the ruling was their original offer to the NCAA.
The rest of the college sports world was left stunned by...
