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Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt broke his silence Wednesday, issuing a statement defending the school’s decision to keep quarterback Brendan Sorsby in the program following a court ruling that restored his eligibility for the 2026 season. The ruling has drawn sharp criticism from athletic directors, media, and fans across college football.
“To my colleagues: I understand the frustration. This situation is hard, it is new, and there is no perfect answer. The system we’re operating within is binary, but the situation is not. We are open to ongoing conversations about how to best handle these issues as an industry going forward. We will continue to be transparent in our decision-making. Most importantly, we will keep doing what we have always done, put our students first.”
How It Got Here
On Monday, a Lubbock judge granted Sorsby an injunction against the NCAA, allowing him to play in 2026 despite admitting to gambling, including placing bets on his own team while at Indiana. The NCAA had ruled him permanently ineligible after he admitted to placing thousands of bets over four years, with several of those bets placed on Indiana while he was redshirting there. Under NCAA rules, any player who gambles on their own team, or another program within their athletic department, loses eligibility to compete in college athletics.
The judge ruled that Sorsby would suffer “probable, imminent and irreparable injury” if kept out of competition while his case moves through the legal system, specifically citing his limited access to high-level training and the impact that would have on his shot at the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft.
He won’t be on the field right away, though. Sorsby sits out the first two games against Abilene Christian and Oregon State before returning for the Big 12 opener on Sept. 18 against Houston.
The Fallout Across College Football
The reaction from other programs has been swift. Georgia and Nebraska’s athletic directors have already vowed not to schedule Texas Tech going forward, and the Big Ten is reportedly pushing for a conference-wide moratorium on playing the Red Raiders in any sport. The Big 12 held a call with athletic directors Tuesday to address the situation, during which several measures were reportedly floated.
CBS Sports‘ Brandon Marcello painted a stark picture of the mood around the sport.
“Leaders are preparing for war if Tech plays Sorsby this season. The ideas pitched to me over the last two days have left my jaw on the floor. Blue-sky thinking? These feel more like nuclear winter.”
Hocutt’s Defense
Hocutt was direct in distancing Texas Tech from the lawsuit itself. His position is that the school supported Sorsby through his treatment and that it had no hand in the legal action that restored his eligibility.
“Texas Tech is not a party to Brendan’s lawsuit. We did not file it. We did not fund it. A young man in treatment for a clinically diagnosed addiction exercised his legal right to seek a remedy in court, and a judge agreed with him. Our role has been to support his recovery, not to engineer his eligibility.”
The word “integrity” has come up repeatedly from critics questioning why Texas Tech didn’t cut Sorsby once the scope of his gambling became clear. Hocutt pushed back on that framing directly.
That’s the core tension here.
“I’ve heard the word ‘integrity’ used a great deal in the last 48 hours. As someone who has dedicated his career to college sports, I, too, believe integrity is central to our industry’s success. I also think integrity applies on more than one front. The integrity of sport matters. So does the integrity of how we treat a 22-year-old who sought help, entered residential treatment, and is working every day toward recovery. Those two things don’t have to be in conflict.”
What Comes Next
Hocutt stopped short of committing to any specific next steps, saying the school is “taking it one day at a time” when it comes to Sorsby’s status going forward.
“We’ll evaluate his recovery, compliance and readiness as we go. We are watching closely, we are deeply committed to his progress and well-being, and we are not operating on blind faith. We are operating on a comprehensive clinical and compliance structure that we committed to before the court ruled in Brendan’s lawsuit against the NCAA and that Brendan committed to as a condition of his return to our football program.”
Texas Tech isn’t just playing defense, either. According to Marcello, the school is considering legal action if other programs or conferences try to exclude the Red Raiders from competition or interfere with their scheduling.
Hocutt’s statement, paired with the school’s reported willingness to go to court over scheduling disputes, makes it clear Texas Tech isn’t backing down. It’s the rest of college football’s move now.
