The controversial Brendan Sorsby decision marks an inflection point in college sports. Will it spark needed change?
On Monday, District Judge Ken Curry in Lubbock County, Texas, granted Texas Tech Red Raiders quarterback Sorsby a temporary injunction from the NCAA, restoring his eligibility after he was found gambling. He admitted to placing at least 40 bets on the Indiana Hoosiers while he served as a backup for the team from 2022-23, but maintains he never wagered on games he played.
The ruling has been widely considered a disgrace, highlighting many of the problems with college sports. But moments like this can serve as the impetus for change.
Will the Brendan Sorsby ruling be a “thunderbolt moment”?
“Look, I think it’s about as good an example as you’re ever going to have of a thunderbolt moment,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said Tuesday (h/t Ben Portnoy of the Sports Business Journal). “So many of the folks that I deal with every day, either through email or text or phone calls, were shocked by this. And I think for a lot of them, it’s going to create a more significant thought process, participation, engagement around where [Washington Senator Maria Cantwell] and [Texas Senator Ted Cruz] are. That’s probably a good thing.”
Cruz (Republican) and Cantwell (Democrat) introduced the bipartisan Protect College Sports Act, a bill intended to better regulate NIL (name, image, and likeness) and the transfer portal in college sports. It’s still moving through the legislative process. The Texas senator says his bill would’ve prevented Sorsby from regaining his eligibility.
“We explicitly protect the ability to guard eligibility and for gambling,” Cruz told Yahoo Sports college football reporter Ross Dellenger on Wednesday. “The idea you have players gambling on their sports and a hometown judge says they get to play, that’s messed up.”
