Former Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby has been informed by the NFL that the league will not hold a supplemental draft prior to the 2026 season.
The news came days after Sorsby dropped a lawsuit against the NCAA which had resulted in an injunction that would have allowed him to play for the Red Raiders this season despite a permanent ban for wagering on college sports.
With that injunction being challenged in court, Sorsby determined he would give up the remainder of his college eligibility and enter the NFL supplemental draft by its June 22 deadline.
Article 6 of the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement appears to allow the league to determine each year whether to hold a supplemental draft for players who become eligible to play after the regular NFL draft.
Larry Ferazani, general counsel of the NFL Management Council, told Sorsby in a letter on Tuesday that the league had already determined not to hold a supplemental draft this year before receiving his application.
“The League has not conducted such a draft for several years and, prior to your submission, the League had no plans to do so this year, as no other player has sought entry,” Ferazani wrote. “Your Petition — filed three business days before the deadline, without any supporting information or documentation, and only after abandoning your recent litigation efforts to avoid NCAA sanctions — does not provide a basis for the League to alter those plans. The issues presented by your Petition are too significant, and too closely tied to the League’s core integrity interests, to permit meaningful review within the timeline presented.”
Sorsby’s attorney, Jeffrey Kessler, told ESPN that the decision “is a violation of the CBA and the law. We will pursue this immediately with the NFLPA.”
The NFLPA did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment.
Sorsby played two years each at Indiana and Cincinnati before transferring to Texas Tech this offseason for a reported multimillion-dollar deal. Court records show Sorsby has admitted to betting on Hoosiers football games he was not participating in during the 2022 season.
According to NCAA guidelines, student-athletes who bet on their own games or on other sports at their school could “potentially face permanent loss of collegiate eligibility.”
Texas Tech was informed of an NCAA investigation into Sorsby’s gambling activity in March. He was later declared ineligible according to the association’s bylaws. In May, Sorsby filed a lawsuit in Lubbock County District Court to have his eligibility restored, leading to the injunction earlier this month that would have allowed him to play for the Red Raiders in 2026. He would have had to miss the first two games of the season as one of the conditions of the ruling.
Lawsuits were filed by the NCAA and the Big 12 Conference that could have taken away Sorsby’s eligibility again. That ultimately led to Sorsby foregoing his final college season with the intention of entering the NFL’s supplemental draft this summer.
“This decision was made with Brendan and his family and is purely an output of practical analysis of the situation,” Cody Campbell, chairman of the Texas Tech board of regents, wrote in an open letter announcing the decision June 16. “Brendan and Texas Tech stand on very solid and legitimate legal ground, but he faces a June 22nd deadline to be eligible to enter the NFL’s supplemental draft, and there is no practical way to resolve all the various pending legal disputes and ensure his eligibility prior to this date.”
That plan hit another snag on Tuesday. Ferazani’s letter indicates numerous issues with Sorsby’s petition for inclusion in a supplemental draft, including no complete record of the NCAA’s investigation that led to his ban.
In addition, Ferazani writes, Sorsby’s petition does not “demonstrate accountability for your conduct or indicate whether, or how, you would adhere to the League’s rules and policies governing the integrity of competition.”
“Instead, even after receiving notice of the NCAA’s decision rescinding your college eligibility in May, you sought to avoid the consequences of that determination through litigation rather than accepting responsibility for your actions, and you pursued entry into the NFL only after abandoning those efforts,” Ferazani wrote.
“As Commissioner Goodell has emphasized, participation in the NFL is a privilege that carries with it significant responsibilities, including accountability. By all accounts, you are a talented player with the potential for future success. We encourage you to focus on preparing for possible entry into the NFL through the 2027 NFL Annual Draft.”
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