NCAA clears University of Cincinnati of wrongdoing in Brendan Sorsby gambling investigation

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CINCINNATI (AP) — The NCAA has cleared the University of Cincinnati of any wrongdoing in its investigation of former quarterback Brendan Sorsby.

Sorsby played the 2024 and '25 seasons for the Bearcats before transferring to Texas Tech. He was ruled permanently ineligible by the NCAA in April after he placed thousands of impermissible sports bets over the past four years at Indiana and Cincinnati.

“Earlier this summer, NCAA enforcement staff completed an inquiry into a former Cincinnati student-athlete’s prohibited betting activity during his time at the university. The inquiry is now closed and the student-athlete was found to have committed a Level III violation,” Cincinnati senior associate athletic director for communications Zach Stipe said in a statement. “Cincinnati worked closely with the NCAA throughout the process, which began when the initial reports of impermissible sports wagering began.”

The Cincinnati Enquirer was the first to report on the university being cleared.

The NCAA sent an official letter of inquiry to the school regarding Sorsby in early July. That came after Sorsby’s agent, Ron Slavin, said during a radio interview in Dallas that Cincinnati was aware of Sorsby’s gambling.

NCAA Level III violations are attributed to Sorsby and not Cincinnati or its coaching staff. The violation was when the ProhiBet app on Sorsby's phone flagged him trying to make a bet, but he was denied access to the betting site.

UC's compliance department told Sorsby of gambling restrictions by student-athletes.

The NCAA declared Sorsby ineligible for making bets worth at least $90,000 during his college career.

Sorsby made at least 40 bets on Indiana while he was a freshman there in 2022, but none of those bets came on games in which he played. He acknowledged placing at least 165 impermissible bets on college and professional sports totaling at least $38,000 in 2024, including three wagers on Cincinnati men’s basketball made on a FanDuel account he shared with a friend. He provided more than $60,000 to the friend to deposit in the shared account between December 2023 and June 2025.

Sorsby passed for 2,800 yards with 27 touchdowns and five interceptions last season. He also ran for 580 yards and nine TDs. The Bearcats started 7-1 before losing their final five games.

Cincinnati still has a pending federal lawsuit against Sorsby, accusing him of breaching his name, image and likeness contract following his transfer to Texas Tech.

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