Judge Grants Temporary Injunction Allowing QB Brendan Sorsby to Play for Texas Tech
Texas Tech's 2025 football season ended with a loss in the College Football Playoff, but it was clear that the program was headed in a positive direction. The Red Raiders won the Big 12 for the first time ever, and a school-record nine players from the team were selected in this year's NFL Draft.
Shortly after the end of the season, the Red Raiders would land one of the biggest talents in the transfer portal. Quarterback Brendan Sorsby joined Texas Tech after spending time at Indiana and Cincinnati, with many believing him to be the best player at his position in the portal.
Weeks after his commitment to Texas Tech, reports surfaced that Sorsby was under NCAA investigation pertaining to sports betting. The NCAA found that Sorsby had wagered approximately $90,000 on both pro and college sports over the last four years, including 40 bets on Indiana football while he was a member of the team.
The NCAA ruled Sorsby ineligible after these findings, and also rejected an appeal by Texas Tech for his reinstatement last week. On Monday, a judge presiding over the case made a ruling that could pave the way for Sorsby to play this season for the Red Raiders.
Brendan Sorsby Could Play for Texas Tech This Season
According to ESPN, Sorsby has been granted a temporary injunction that prevents the NCAA from punishing him for violating its sports gambling rules.
Judge Ken Curry ruled that Sorsby's attorneys sufficiently claimed that the player would suffer "probable, imminent and irreparable injury" if he is unable to play football this season.
The NCAA can appeal the ruling established on Monday, but the process could end up lasting through the 2026 season itself, potentially rendering another decision pointless.
"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 organization said in a statement following Judge Curry's ruling.
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."
Sorsby's Texas Tech Debut Could Come in September
Sorsby's counsel has argued that the NCAA ruled him ineligible without considering his well-being, citing gambling addiction as an issue the NCAA should work to protect players against due to the associated mental health ramifications.
The NCAA believes that it acted with Sorsby's best interest at heart, and that the consequences and precedent of his actions are not excused or outweighed by the mental health concerns.
Sorsby has acknowledged placing nearly 3,000 bets during his time at Indiana, and over 160 bets during his time as the starting quarterback at Cincinnati. He's also admitted to making bets while at Texas Tech, and says that he's sent over $65,000 to friends to cover bets made during his college career.
The NCAA notified Texas Tech of Sorsby's gambling history in April, and he entered an in-patient rehab program to address gambling and anxiety disorders that same month.
The conditions of Sorsby's reinstatement will likely cause him to miss the first two games of Texas Tech's season. We'll see if he makes his Red Raider debut at home in Lubbock on September 18 against fellow Big 12 opponent Houston.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 8, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 9:58 AM.