Brendan Sorsby will not be starting his professional football career in the CFL.
The league confirmed on Friday that its teams are not permitted to offer a contract to the former Texas Tech and Cincinnati quarterback.
“Upholding the integrity of the league and ensuring fair competition are paramount to the CFL,” the league said in a statement. “The allegations involving Brendan Sorsby are serious and concerning. At this time, the CFL will not register a contract for him, and no team will be permitted to add him to its negotiation list.”
Sorsby, 22, spent the past two seasons with the Bearcats after two with Indiana. He was set to play the 2026 season with the Red Raiders after transferring in January. In late April, it was announced that the Denton, TX native had checked into rehab for gambling addiction after placing thousands of bets, including wagering nearly $100,000 in bets on his own team. Sorsby denies placing bets on games in which he played himself.
After being ruled ineligible by the NCAA in May, a Texas judge granted Sorsby an injuction against the NCAA earlier this month, allowing him to play this season. The decision was met with widespread condemnation and the NCAA announced it would appeal the decision. Amid threats from Big 12 schools to refuse to play Texas Tech, Sorsby announced he would not play for the Red Raiders this season on June 15 and would instead apply to the NFL’s supplemental draft.
On June 23, the NFL announced there would be no supplemental draft this year and released an unusually scathing letter to Sorsby informing him of the decision. Hours later, Sorsby’s attorney, Jeffrey Kessler announced plans to legally fight the decision, but nothing has been filed as of Friday.
