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Star college quarterback Brendan Sorsby continues to make headlines, but not the kind Texas Tech University is reportedly paying him millions of dollars for. According to a Monday ESPN report, the former Lake Dallas High School standout is set to check himself into rehab treatment for gambling addiction.
“Sorsby’s decision to seek treatment for gambling addiction, according to sources, came in the wake of the discovery of Sorsby making thousands of online bets on a variety of sports via a gambling app, which jeopardizes his eligibility with Texas Tech,” reported ESPN college football insider Pete Thamel.
As Sorsby takes a leave of absence from the team, Texas Tech told ESPN in a statement that the university “is committed to supporting Brendan through his recovery process and to ensure his long-term health and well-being.”
Sorsby grabbed headlines in January when he signed with Texas Tech for millions of dollars, something that still sounds odd to many who have followed college football for many years. Thanks to changes in laws that allow college athletes to make money from their names, image and likeness (NIL), Sorsby and others, including former University of North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker, now command contracts larger than some NFL players receive.
The NIL era cleared the way for Sorsby’s former school, the University of Cincinnati, to sue him for breach of contract in February after the QB announced his intention to play for Texas Tech.
According to the ESPN report on Monday, Sorsby allegedly bet on University of Indiana football to win while he played for the Hoosiers as a true freshman in 2022, a season in which he played in a single game as a reserve. He did play in a single game that season, but the report says Sorsby is not accused of betting on that game.
Although law enforcement is reportedly not looking into Sorsby’s betting, the NCAA is currently investigating the matter since collegiate athletes are prohibited from betting on college and professional sports.
This case comes as many experts sound the alarm over an online gambling crisis involving young men in the U.S. A recent Business Insider report detailed how online sports betting has led some young Americans into massive amounts of debt, with a consumer bankruptcy attorney saying, “They’re betting hundreds of dollars per hour, and not really knowing it.” NPR reported in February that it is often young men who “are particularly likely to get in too deep,”
Thirty states have legal online sports gambling, while many others, including Texas, where traditional gambling is still illegal, currently allow people to place money on prediction markets. Thanks to a couple of key differences, prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket allow users to wager on just about any event, including elections and sports.
Reps from those platforms will be quick to say their users are buying contracts, not placing bets, but the results play out the same. Guess right, win some money. Guess wrong, lose money.
The ease of online gambling and prediction markets has helped fuel the upward trajectory of users. An April study from St. Bonaventure University reported that 52% of men ages 18–49 have an active sportsbook account and 46% of them are actively betting.
It is unclear when Sorsby will return to the team. As Sorsby’s legal matter with his former school represents a new era for the college sports landscape, this announcement is an unfamiliar sign of the times as well. With the first Texas Tech football game not until September, head coach Joey McGuire is thinking about Sorsby the person, not the high-priced quarterback.
“We love Brendan and support his decision to seek professional help,” McGuire said in a statement to ESPN. “Taking this step requires courage, and our primary focus is on him as a person. Our program is behind Brendan as he prioritizes his health.”
