Key Takeaways
- The NCAA cleared Cincinnati of wrongdoing and ruled that Brendan Sorsby’s Level III violations belonged only to the player.
- Sorsby placed at least $90,000 in bets during his college career, including wagers through FanDuel and a shared account.
- Cincinnati has filed a federal lawsuit claiming Sorsby broke his NIL contract when he transferred to Texas Tech.
The NCAA has closed its investigation into the University of Cincinnati and cleared the school of wrongdoing in the gambling case involving former quarterback Brendan Sorsby.
NCAA staff found that Cincinnati fully cooperated with the investigation. Sorsby, who was ruled permanently ineligible in April, still faces a separate federal lawsuit from his former school.
Cincinnati Gets the All-Clear
NCAA enforcement staff investigated Sorsby’s banned betting activity while he played at Cincinnati. They found no wrongdoing by the university. Zach Stipe, Cincinnati’s senior associate athletic director for communications, said the school worked closely with the NCAA after reports of the betting first appeared.
The investigation began after Sorsby’s agent, Ron Slavin, said during a Dallas radio interview that Cincinnati knew about the quarterback’s gambling. The NCAA’s findings rejected that claim. The Cincinnati Enquirer first reported that the school had been cleared.
The Scope of Sorsby’s Betting Activity, and What a Level III Violation Means
The NCAA’s findings showed that Sorsby repeatedly broke college sports betting rules. As a freshman at Indiana in 2022, he placed at least 40 bets on Hoosiers games. None involved games in which he played. By 2024, he admitted to making at least 165 banned bets on college and professional sports.
Those wagers totaled at least $38,000. Three bets involved Cincinnati men’s basketball and were made through a FanDuel account he shared with a friend. From December 2023 to June 2025, Sorsby sent more than $60,000 to the shared account for his friend to deposit. The NCAA found that he wagered at least $90,000 during his college career.
The NCAA classified Sorsby’s actions as Level III violations, its least serious category. The violations apply to Sorsby, not Cincinnati or its coaches. In one case, the ProhiBet monitoring app flagged Sorsby when he tried to place a bet and blocked him from the platform. Cincinnati’s compliance department had already told him about the gambling rules for college athletes. Sorsby entered gambling addiction treatment when the story broke.
Those records helped show that the university followed the proper steps. The NCAA sent Cincinnati a formal letter of inquiry in early July, but the case is now closed.
A Career Cut Short and a Lawsuit Ahead
Although Cincinnati was cleared, Sorsby’s problems are not over. The NCAA ruled him permanently ineligible in April, ending a strong college career. In his final season with the Bearcats, he passed for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He also rushed for 580 yards and nine scores.
Cincinnati started 7-1 before losing its final five games. Sorsby later transferred to Texas Tech, but the NCAA ruling ended his college playing career.
What’s Next
The legal fight is still ongoing. Cincinnati has filed a federal lawsuit claiming Sorsby broke his name, image, and likeness contract by transferring to Texas Tech.
The case could test how NIL deals are enforced in college sports. Its outcome may also affect how schools handle athletes who leave programs during contract disputes.
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