Several prominent voices in college football are pointing to Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s gambling addiction as a warning of the dangers of sports betting.
Key Takeaways
- Sorsby allegedly placed thousands of bets, including ones on his own team.
- Kirby Smart said education is the best way to help young men avoid betting violations.
- Paul Finebaum believes more betting scandals are inevitable.
Sorsby had a reported minimum of $5 million in NIL money waiting for him in his fifth collegiate season and his first at Texas Tech after transferring from Cincinnati. The top-ranked player in the portal joined a Red Raiders team that dominated the Big 12 and went on a run to the College Football Playoff before falling to Oregon.
The team’s plans took a turn earlier this week when Sorsby was placed under NCAA investigation for betting on sports as a collegiate athlete. Allegedly, the gunslinger placed thousands of online wagers using a mobile sportsbook.
“Education. It's all you can do,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said while discussing sports betting among college athletes at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am golf tournament Wednesday, per CBS. “It's rampant. It's all over. You can't watch the TV station without an advertisement for gambling.
“The opportunity is there. It's much more prevalent in this day and age. Kids are having to grow up with it. They also have access to more money to gamble with. There's a lot of kids in my day and age that never would have gambled. They didn't have money to gamble with. They've got access to that.”
Former long-time Alabama head coach Nick Saban said student-athlete gambling was his “No. 1 concern” during his tenure because it was “difficult to control” something that was legal but against the NCAA's rules.
Texas Tech announced Monday that Sorsby is taking an indefinite leave to enroll in a rehabilitation program for gambling addiction. ESPN reported that the situation was considered a “mental health matter.”
Sorsby’s gambling history reportedly goes beyond simply placing bets on different teams. He allegedly bet on his own team to win games back when he began his college career at Indiana in 2022.
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More NCAA betting scandals to follow?
The NCAA is no stranger to gambling misconduct, whether that involves players or team personnel betting on or manipulating the outcomes of games and events.
Smart’s approach of “hop(ing) they listen and learn” is placed in good faith. However, College football expert Paul Finebaum believes the Sorsby incident could precede other high-profile betting scandals.
“I believe this is the tip of an iceberg,” Finebaum said recently on ESPN’s “Get Up.” . “This is a story that a lot of people have been waiting to happen ... I called Danny Sheridan last night, the well-known sports handicapping expert. He told me 75% of male college students bet on sports and more than 25%, according to his research, are athletes. This could be (an) epidemic.”
Once Sorsby clears rehab, he still faces the judicial authority of the NCAA.
The body’s president, Charlie Baker, has actively fought against sports betting pitfalls by trying to get player prop bets removed from state-licensed sportsbooks, campaigning against sports event contracts, and installing numerous preventive protocols.
The NCAA’s guidelines for sports betting equate gambling dollar value punishments. Here are the potential outcomes that await Sorsby, depending on the results of the investigation.
- $200 or less: Sports betting rules and prevention education.
- $201–$500: Loss of 10% of a season, plus education.
- $501–$800: Loss of 20%-30% of a season, plus education.
- Greater than $800: Loss of at least 30% of a season, with potential permanent ineligibility.
Texas Tech backs Sorsby
As uncertainty hangs, Texas Tech is standing behind its quarterback.
“We love Brendan and support his decision to seek professional help," head coach Joey McGuire said in a statement, per 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.”
The NCAA said it “takes sports betting very seriously” and is committed to protecting its student-athletes and competitions.
