What was once described as a shocking gambling scandal surrounding Brendan Sorsby now appears to be far deeper than anyone initially realized. His own words paint a disturbing picture of an addiction that went far beyond occasional bets.
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For Sorsby, the very act of gambling didn’t start with sports wagers. The addiction began to take roots during his high school years, when he started visiting the Winstar World Casino to gamble with his friends.
“I’m sure, for a little kid, as you get into high school, you turn 18, right up the road,'” Sorsby revealed in the new Texas Tech documentary. “There’s Winstar, and you’re able to go play a little blackjack with the fellas at 18 years old; all you do is talk about it, and then you finally get to do it, so.”
The four-part series, “The Program,” captures the high-stakes fallout of Sorsby’s sports betting scandal, which resulted in the NCAA ruling him permanently ineligible. The former Red Raider candidly admitted that he liked gambling, and it even affected how he consumed sports.
“I couldn’t watch sporting activities without wanting to have something at stake,” he said.
In the final episode of the documentary, Sorsby also admitted that the problem followed him from Cincinnati to Lubbock. The gambling continued even though he was making more NIL money than ever before. He described himself as simply “chasing a dopamine hit,” confirming that nobody around the Texas Tech program knew how severe the problem had remained.
The documentary features highly emotional behind-the-scenes footage of Sorsby breaking down over the phone with his parents. It also features a tearful meeting with head coach Joey McGuire.
“Just for my coaches and teammates and those guys, and then all the backlash that we faced,” Sorsby said. “They’re having to face all the scrutiny and backlash as well.”
“In my head, I’m thinking I just threw everything I’ve worked for my entire life out the window, like it’s over,” Sorsby stated in the series. Sorsby is currently training in Dallas in preparation for the 2027 NFL Draft.
In the documentary, Texas Tech donor Cody Campbell reiterated his earlier stance that the Red Raiders handled the Sorsby scandal with “integrity.” However, he pointed out that the whole matter should have been dealt with more privately.
“We’re not going to forget about that, and I don’t think they’ll forget about it either when we’re up by 40 and still throwing the ball in the fourth quarter. That’s where the retribution will come,” Campbell warned Texas Tech’s future opponents.
The aftermath of Brendan Sorsby’s gambling revealation
At the start of 2026, Brendan Sorsby was a star college quarterback who transferred to Texas Tech. He was projected as a potential NFL first-round draft pick. It came as a shock to the sports world when he took a leave of absence for a severe sports wagering addiction.
The NCAA uncovered that Sorsby had placed thousands of impermissible bets. It totalled at least $90,000 over four years while playing for Indiana, Cincinnati, and Texas Tech. Crucially, this included 40 bets placed on his own team Indiana while he was on the roster. It violated the most fundamental integrity rules of the NCAA. Sorsby was subsequently ruled permanently ineligible.
Sorsby’s legal team filed a lawsuit against the NCAA, arguing his gambling addiction was a mental health crisis. A Texas judge granted a temporary injunction that briefly forced the NCAA to restore his eligibility. This sparked intense backlash from the Big 12 Conference, which threatened massive sanctions against Texas Tech if they played him.
Due to the escalating legal pressure and conference pushback, Sorsby and Texas Tech mutually parted ways. After he was denied the ability to play college football, Sorsby attempted to declare for the NFL Supplemental Draft. However, the NFL officially declined to host a supplemental draft. They cited that his application carried too many significant issues. Sorsby cannot enter the NFL until 2027.
Experts and coaches have pointed to Sorsby as the tip of the iceberg. The accessibility of online sports betting apps is fuelling compulsive gambling addictions among thousands of young, high-profile athletes.