Can't Wait For Saturday The 'sky is falling' moments seem to be coming at a quicker pace
· Yahoo Sports
Jun. 9—***
I've got what I figure will be an unpopular take on the Brendan Sorsby case.
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On Monday, a Texas court ruled the Texas Tech quarterback will be eligible in 2026. The decision comes after Sorsby admitted to gambling on sports.
Critics jumped the ruling, pointing out it flies in the face of history. Athletes have never been permitted to gamble on sports.
But it seems to me in recent years that many past standards in college sports have been wiped out.
I don't remember players earning $5 million a year back in the 1970s. At least, not that we ever heard about.
I don't recall athletes being able to change schools every year in the 1980s.
I must have forgotten about schools giving away $20 million a year to athletes in the 1990s.
What we have always thought were bottom line standards in college sports have been removed. That red line you dared never cross has been erased.
In the Sorsby case, the NCAA is looking for relief from the courts. Hopefully, the organization isn't holding its collective breath. With everyone watching, it is a bit of a stretch to imagine a court in Texas ruling against the Red Raiders.
This is where we are today. No matter how unhappy it makes you or how unreasonable it seems. Apparently, rules were made to be broken.
Important to realize there is a real-life person attached to this story. And a real-life team. Sorsby obviously has major issues he needs to deal with now and deep into the future. Every move he makes going forward will be watched closely. If he jumps back into old patterns, the news will likely get out.
Critics have pointed out that Texas Tech is putting its own interests ahead of the overall health of sports. And why does this surprise us? In a time when 'win at all costs' seems to be the mantra, Tech is trying to do what it thinks is best for its program.
Is possible a compromise can be worked out between the school and the NCAA? Maybe, but I'm not sure what that looks like. The organization doesn't want Sorsby on the field and the team wants him to play. Don't see a middle ground there.
Probably needs to be a deeper conversation about the long-term relationships between college sports, its media partners and the gambling industry. As I have written in this space before, it seems hypocritical to punish an athlete for gambling while basically taking money from gambling. The networks need to make a buck. I get that. But the connection at best sends the wrong message.
This story will be a big party of the summer and into the fall.