Look at this: ESPN’s Paul Finebaum has the back of Brendan Sorsby. One day after the NCAA denied Sorsby’s request for reinstatement, meaning the Texas Tech quarterback will not be allowed to play this fall for the Red Raiders. However, Finebaum was quick to call out the NCAA, and specifically highlight its hypocrisy.
Finebaum said on ESPN’s Get Up, “I think he should have been suspended for a couple of games, but to kick him out for the whole season I think is wrong. And while what he did, on paper, is terrible, we’re talking about the NCAA, the most hypocritical an organization in the history of mankind, coming down on somebody for gambling while they have their own side gambling deals, and while gambling is pervasive everywhere. So, three-game suspension perhaps, but keeping him out for the whole season is wrong.”
Sorsby recently filed suit against the NCAA, with the goal both of securing Sorsby’s reinstatement and of getting a decision that would allow him to apply for the NFL’s supplemental draft before the June 22 deadline. A hearing has been set for June 1.
The NCAA deemed Sorsby permanently ineligible due to a result of its investigation into his gambling violations, which include bets made on Indiana football in 2022 while Sorsby was a member of the Hoosiers. Texas Tech will appeal the NCAA’s decision, according to a letter from university president Lawrence Schovanec sent to Tech supporters on Tuesday.
Sorsby’s Tough Road Ahead
Finebaum makes some excellent points, however, it’s going to be an uphill battle, even with Texas Tech on his side to help appeal the NCAA’s decision. Permanent ineligibility is the punishment for players who bet on games involving their own team, according to updated NCAA sports-betting guidelines passed in 2023.
Sorsby completed an “intensive inpatient treatment program” last week for a gambling disorder, while Tech’s letter notes “a meaningful step forward in what will be a long recovery,” adding “This week, we will welcome Brendan back to campus.”
“We believe the right thing to do is to not ruin this young man’s college career for something that happened four years ago,” Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt said Tuesday from Big 12 meetings in Frisco, Texas. “There’s penalties for everything that you do, and we would accept that and expect that, but at the same time, let’s help this young man who has been very vulnerable and has admitted to some wrongdoings.”
