Cincinnati sues Ex-QB Brendan Sorsby seeking buy-out payment for transfer to Texas Tech

LUBBOCK, Texas — The University of Cincinnati is reportedly suing former quarterback Brendan Sorsby for breach of contract after allegedly failing to pay a $1 million NIL contract buy-out to transfer from Cincinnati to Texas Tech, according to The Athletic’s Justin Williams.

Williams reported on the initial agreement between Cincinnati and Sorsby to buy out his 18-month NIL contract when Sorsby transferred to Texas Tech in January, now breaking the news of a breach of contract lawsuit filed by Cincinnati Wednesday.

Sorsby, who spent two seasons as the Bearcats' signal caller, threw for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns, while rushing for 580 yards and an additional 9 scores with his legs last season. The Denton, Texas native finished inside the top 5 in total passing yards in the Big 12, leading Cincinnati to a 7-5 regular season, grabbing the Bearcats' first program bowl bid since 2022. Court documents obtained by Williams and The Athletic break down the alleged breach.

“A lawsuit complaint was filed Wednesday by the University of Cincinnati in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Western Division. It states that in July 2025, Sorsby, while represented by a professional agent, signed an 18-month, two-season name, image, and likeness (NIL) agreement with the University of Cincinnati, and that Cincinnati agreed to pay Sorsby a substantial amount for the 2025 season,’ wrote Williams. ‘With the express expectation that it would realize the majority of the benefits during the following season, 2026, after Sorsby’s play developed and his brand grew.’ The lawsuit also states that Sorsby ‘promised to pay to the university $1 million in liquidated damages if he transferred to another university before completion of the agreement’s full term.’ The agreement ran through Dec. 15, 2026.”

Sorsby signed with Texas Tech on Jan.15th with a year left of eligibility remaining. Williams reports that the lawsuit states in court documents that the signal caller was given 30 days to pay back the buyout if he were to transfer to another university before the end of the deal, but would be nullified if Sorsby left Cincinnati and entered the NFL Draft.

According to the report by Williams, the dual-threat signal caller was “advised by representation to refuse to pay the university anything.” Sorsby’s representation agency, LIFT Sports Management, provided Williams and The Athletic with the following statement in response to the alleged claims.

“Pursuing legal action against Brendan Sorsby is misguided. University of Cincinnati, through its revenue-share structure, paid him $875,800 for a season he fully completed, and in that time, he generated millions in value for the program,” said the statement by Sorsby’s representatives given to The Athletic. “Attempting to recover those funds now sends the wrong message to current and future student-athletes and risks damaging the long-term credibility of Cincinnati football. This is further disappointing given that Brendan parted ways with UC in what was a mutually agreeable manner.”

“The money the university seeks to recover from him is nothing more than an unlawful penalty under Ohio law. Because UC has chosen to pursue this course of action, Brendan will aggressively defend the lawsuit and pursue any and all damages he incurs as a result of it.”

Texas Tech has not released a statement, nor could a representative of the university be reached for a comment in The Athletics report.

The Red Raiders will face Cincinnati on Oct. 24th at Nippert Stadium this upcoming season. There is no telling how long or how quickly this will be resolved; nonetheless, an already highly anticipated conference match-up gets another added subplot with this news today.

The full report by Williams and The Athletic is available here.

The Red Raiders will face Cincinnati on Oct 24th at Nippert Stadium this upcoming season. There is no telling how long or how quickly this will be resolved; nonetheless, an already highly anticipated conference match-up gets another added subplot.

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