Baylor And the Big 12 Only Have One Option Following Brendan Sorsby Ruling
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What seemed impossible became possible on Monday.
Former Indiana and Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby was initially suspended for the entire 2026 season after it was revealed he had placed roughly $90,000 in bets on college football over his four-year career. He also admitted to placing over 40 bets on Indiana while he was playing for the Hoosiers.
Sorsby was expected to sit the entire 2026 season and open the floodgates for Baylor and the Big 12. However, a judge, in Lubbock, granted Sorsby a preliminary injunction. Which means the NCAA cannot punish him for breaking the rules.
The judge, in fact, deemed that Sorsby would face "probable, imminent and irreparable injury" if he wasn't able to play in 2026.
Sorsby's punishment? He has to sit out the first two weeks of the season. Who does Texas Tech play? Abilene Christian and Oregon State. Two schools the Red Raiders should crush with or without Sorsby.
Only one thing left to do
Usually it's the NCAA that makes things a laughing stock in collegiate athletics, but for once, the NCAA is right about something.
"The NCAA strongly disagrees with the court's ruling in Sorsby's case and is deeply concerned about the damaging, far-reaching and broadly destabilizing ramifications of this outcome -- which undermines and corrupts the integrity of sports," the NCAA said in a statement. "The NCAA is committed to supporting student-athlete mental health but must continue to aggressively defend against actions that defraud college athletics and threaten competitive integrity, such as betting on one's own sport."
The NCAA is going to appeal the ruling, but that likely won't change the 2026 season. As slow as things move, we likely won't have an answer until after the season. If a local judge is going to make the rules, over the NCAA, then it comes down to the coaches and players to have the final say.
Don't play them.
Will that happen? Probably not. If you don't play the Red Raiders, you by rule — what are those? — forfeit the game. Which would, in return, give Texas Tech a free pass. But Baylor and the rest of the Big 12 should stand up for what's right. And this isn't right.
An unforgettable precedent
This has never happened in the sport of college football. Let's remember, the legendary Pete Rose was given a lifetime ban for betting on baseball and he would've been in the Hall of Fame. But we are giving Sorsby a pass for breaking one of the cardinal rules? Players get paid, they are compensated, and some are paid as professionals.
In a statement from the Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark, he noted that today's news could have significant ramifications.
"The ramifications of today's ruling are significant and could have broad impacts across college athletics, creating great concern amongst our membership. I've been consulting with our key stakeholders and have scheduled a meeting with our Conference ADs and our Executive Board this week. We are also in touch with Charlie Baker and anticipate the NCAA to appeal the order in the next 24-48 hours. We will continue to monitor and evaluate the situation."
The Sorsby news basically tells athletes, parents, and coaches, that if you break the rules and have a good lawyer, you can get out of punishments. And that's what happened today. It's a travesty and a bad look. Something has to be done. Let's see if the coaches and conference does something about it.
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Trent is the Publisher of Baylor Bears on SI and also serves as the Managing Editor for Michigan Wolverines on SI. His work has additionally been featured on Maryland on SI, Wisconsin on SI, and across the USA TODAY Sports network. Trent’s love of sports and being able to tell stories to fans is what made him get into writing.
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