ClutchPoints
The Brendan Sorsby saga finally came to an official end on Tuesday, as the star quarterback will not be eligible to play college football or in the NFL in 2026. After parting ways with Texas Tech, Sorsby planned to enter the NFL through the supplemental draft.
However, on Tuesday, the NFL essentially told Sorsby to kick rocks. The league has decided to not hold a supplemental draft this summer, as is their right, leaving the former Cincinnati quarterback with no avenue to join the NFL this season.
Sorsby will likely fight this decision, and his attorney said after the decision that they will go through the NFLPA to attempt to find a way into the league. However, it feels like a long shot that this decision changes, which means Sorsby won’t be on an NCAA or NFL field this fall.
Of course, this seems like a harsh punishment for Sorsby, and maybe it is. But is it the right one? Let’s get into his unique situation and the reasons why the NFL would be planting its flag here.
To put a long story short, Sorsby was bolting to the NFL to avoid punishment from the NCAA. The star signal-caller was found to have gambled on college football games, including Indiana football games while he was a redshirt with the Hoosiers back in 2022. This obviously is a major no-go and sets a terrible precedent in college football if he was allowed to play.
As such, the NCAA tried to rule him ineligible, but Sorsby received a temporary injunction against the NCAA from a judge that would have allowed him to play this fall. After days of terrible press an criticism from all over the college football world, directed at both Sorsby and Texas Tech, the two sides agreed to part ways and the Cincinnati transfer turned his attention towards the supplemental draft.
Simply put, it’s clear that Sorsby is only entering the supplemental draft to avoid the punishment that was likely coming from the NCAA. If he wanted to go to the NFL after last season, he could have, and he was slated to be a potential first-round pick if he came out and had a solid showing in the pre-draft process.
If the NFL were to hold the supplemental draft, it would set a poor precedent for other players who lose their eligibility for disciplinary reasons like Sorsby did, especially in a fashion that puts the integrity of the game of football in question. By taking this stand and not letting him enter the NFL until the 2027 draft, the league is putting its foot down against using the supplemental draft as an outlet or a backup plan for escaping the wrath of the NCAA.
One of the major talking points around Sorsby leading into the supplemental draft, or the decision to not hold...
