Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby has reportedly declared for the NFL Supplementary Draft, defusing what was shaping up to be a potentially explosive confrontation between the Big 12, NCAA, and his new school.
Sorsby’s eligibility became a hotbed of controversy after USA Today revealed that the recent transfer student had placed thousands of bets on college and pro sports, including wagers on his own team when he was a backup quarterback at Indiana.
Placing bets on games involving your own team is specifically outlawed by the NCAA.
Despite that, a judge in Lubbock, Texas, where Texas Tech is located, last week granted Sorsby an injunction against the NCAA, allowing him to play this year after serving a two-game suspension at the start of the season.
This ruling created a firestorm of controversy in an already controversy-plagued college football landscape.
On Monday, the Big 12 filed suit against Texas Tech and the Texas attorney general for the right to sanction the school if they play the quarterback in any games this year. In addition, the NCAA filed its appeal of last week’s ruling in Sorsby’s favor.
The ramifications of the judge’s decision were felt in other areas as well, as other schools began canceling sporting events against Texas Tech in protest of their plans to play a quarterback who had flagrantly violated NCAA rules.
With the very real possibility of losing the tough legal battle ahead and the deadline to enter the NFL Supplemental Draft only a week away, Sorsby has opted to forgo fighting in court to preserve his college eligibility and instead enter the NFL.
Texas Tech, which had invested in Sorsby to the tune of a $5 million NIL contract as they pursued back-to-back Big 12 championships and a return to the College Football Playoff (CFP), will now have to turn to Will Hammond, who missed spring ball while recovering from a torn ACL.