Brendan Sorsby granted injunction to play for Texas Tech in 2026
The NCAA could be facing an unprecedented situation in 2026.
Lubbock County (Texas) Judge Ken Curry ruled Monday to grant Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby a temporary injunction to play football for the Red Raiders in 2026. Sorsby had filed a lawsuit against the NCAA after he was ruled ineligible for placing bets on Indiana football games while he was a redshirt freshman for the Hoosiers in 2022.
Sorsby has admitted to placing bets on Indiana and his teammates while he was on the bench. In a court filing, Sorsby admitted to at least 40 Indiana-related bets while with the team, but said that he was always betting on his teammates to succeed.
The NCAA will likely appeal the ruling. Sorsby will not participate in Texas Tech's first two games as a condition of the injunction. The Red Raiders open the season in Lubbock against Abilene Christian and then play at Oregon State.
In his decision, Curry said that Sorsby and his legal team had "demonstrated that he will suffer a probable, imminent, and irreparable injury" if the court did not issue the temporary injunction.
The NCAA issued a statement shortly after the ruling was made:
"The NCAA strongly disagrees with the court's ruling in Sorsby's case and is deeply concerned about the damaging, far-reaching and broadly destabilizing ramifications of this outcome — which undermines and corrupts the integrity of sports. The NCAA is committed to supporting student-athlete mental health but must continue to aggressively defend against actions that defraud college athletics and threaten competitive integrity, such as betting on one's own sport."
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Sorsby's attorneys argued that the NCAA did not act by its own rules in failing to consider Sorsby's wellbeing when ruling him ineligible. Sorsby recently completed an inpatient stay at a treatment facility for a gambling addiction, an affliction that is officially recognized as a mental health disorder.
The NCAA has said that it did take Sorsby's mental health into account and that his gambling addiction does not mean he can avoid the consequences of his actions. It also said that Sorsby will be the first player to compete either collegiately or professionally after admitting to betting on his own team.
Sorsby placed thousands of bets over the past four years and even used accounts from friends and family members to wager. His betting continued after he transferred to Texas Tech during the offseason. Sorsby, who starred for Cincinnati, committed to Texas Tech for his final season of college football after the 2025 season.
Per NCAA rules, players who bet on their own sport or team face the permanent loss of eligibility. Former Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers lost his eligibility after betting on ISU while as a bench player, and numerous former basketball players have had their eligibility stripped for their roles in a widespread college basketball match-fixing scheme.
