Playing regulators probe Texas Tech QB Sorsby’s alleged betting

State gaming regulators in a number of states have launched investigations into Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s alleged betting exercise, regulatory officers informed ESPN.

The Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC) and Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC) are investigating Sorsby, who performed at Indiana and Cincinnati earlier than transferring to Texas Tech this offseason. Officials for the IGC and a spokesperson for the OCCC confirmed the investigations to ESPN however declined to supply additional particulars.

Kentucky Horse Racing & Gaming informed ESPN it’s conscious of the case and is working with the NCAA, which has opened its personal investigation into Sorsby’s alleged betting, and is reviewing the state of affairs with its licensees.

On April 27, Texas Tech introduced that Sorsby was getting into a rehabilitation facility for a playing habit. He has employed outstanding lawyer Jeffrey Kessler to assist him attempt to retain his school eligibility, ESPN reported.

Kessler declined remark when reached by ESPN.

Sorsby had accounts with sportsbooks and each day fantasy operators in a number of states, in keeping with a number of sources with direct data of the matter, who described him as a high-volume, low-stakes bettor, which means he positioned many wagers for small quantities. Some of his bets have been positioned utilizing an account underneath a special identify, a number of sources mentioned.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that Sorsby wager on an Indiana recreation throughout his redshirt freshman season as a Hoosiers quarterback.

The NCAA prohibits student-athletes from betting on any NCAA-sanctioned sport, skilled or collegiate. Penalties can embrace everlasting ineligibility, particularly in instances the place athletes wagered on their very own workforce or manipulated their efficiency.

The NCAA doesn’t have subpoena energy and can’t compel student-athletes to take part in investigations, however works with a community of contacts, together with sportsbooks, regulators and integrity displays. Failure to cooperate with an investigation may end up in penalties.

In 2023, former Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers was dominated ineligible by the NCAA after a prison investigation revealed he had wagered on a minimum of one recreation involving the Cyclones.

State gaming regulators, which oversee licensed sportsbooks, can ban bettors, superb operators for violations and refer investigations to regulation enforcement. In 2023, Ohio gaming regulators banned former University of Alabama baseball coach Brad Bohannon and bettor Bert Neff from utilizing the state’s casinos and sportsbooks after the 2 have been concerned in an alleged inside info scheme on a Crimson Tide recreation towards LSU from earlier that yr. Indiana gaming regulators additionally banned Neff from utilizing the state’s sportsbooks and casinos.