The NCAA has faced a setback in another eligibility case after a court provided temporary relief to a quarterback the governing body had barred from the 2026 season. Texas Tech QB Brendan Sorsby will now be available to play for Joey McGuire’s team.

As per On3, Sorsby has obtained a preliminary injunction from a Lubbock court in the NCAA’s earlier decision to deem him ineligible over his betting-related offenses. The first hearing in the case was held on June 1, when Sorsby’s lawyers asked for an immediate verdict.

However, the QB will serve a self-imposed two-game suspension. Additionally, Sorsby must continue individual counseling and attend Gamblers Anonymous meetings.

“Brendan Sorsby cannot play in Texas Tech’s first two games, which was the penalty his legal team suggested to the NCAA. Tech opens with Abilene Christian and then travels to Oregon State,” as per On3.

The Texas Tech quarterback had to wait a long time after the NCAA rejected his plea for eligibility on the grounds of gambling on his team, Indiana. According to the governing body, a student-athlete may be subject to permanent loss of eligibility in such a situation. The NCAA investigation concluded that Sorsby placed over thousands of bets, 40 of which were on his team, Indiana. He allegedly used to ask his family to place bets on his behalf on the games he played in.

Sorsby sought treatment for his addiction and even completed a 35-day residential rehabilitation program, which became the main prong for the Red Raiders QB to attain eligibility. Sorsby’s last option was to turn to the court to play in this year’s season. Jeffrey Kessler led the trial as Sorsby’s legal counsel and fought hard to protect the quarterback’s future from being derailed by his mental health issues.

“This case, I think it has been badly misunderstood by a lot of people,” Sorsby’s attorney, Jeffrey Kessler, said. “What this case is about is when you have no threat to competitive integrity, but you have a mental illness of gambling addiction, which is plaguing student-athletes across the country. The NCAA said in its policies that it would consider supporting the athletes, but they want to punish them. That’s wrong. We think it’s illegal.”

While the injunction has been granted to him, his future in the NFL would require a lot of convincing from Sorsby and a performance that is hard to ignore.

Brendan Sorsby’s future in the NFL

Even before his eligibility was granted, Sorsby received his first rejection from Todd Monken, the new Browns head coach. Given the uncertainty in Monken’s QB room, it was a possibility for him to draft a QB, but he blatantly rejected him because of the bad publicity that comes with it.

“I don’t think we’re in a position to want to go down that road,” Monken told the media on June 1. “That’s my opinion. I like the quarterback that we have. I think that’s a slippery slope to go down, irrespective of talent, in terms of the situation he’s put himself in. We all know that he put himself in that situation, and we’ve seen other sports with players who have been banned for life from playing professional sports.”

“From my end of it, kind of tough angle to go down that road and think that’s going to be your franchise quarterback if he’s ever eligible to play in the NFL,” Monken added.

However, that NFL entry would have been through the Supplemental Draft. Now that he is eligible, he doesn’t have to enter the pros through the route. But Monken’s statement suggests that NFL teams will take note of his gambling if he declares for the draft next year.