Click to set custom HTML
|
Click to set custom HTML
Outside of Lubbock, Texas, it doesn’t sound as if many in the college sports ecosystem are pleased with a Monday ruling. In case you missed it, Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby was granted a temporary injunction against the NCAA to regain eligibility for the 2026 season after initially being deemed ineligible by the NCAA following a gambling investigation. Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger has been in contact with some higher-ups around the college athletics space, including in the Big 12, where there have apparently been serious talks as to not play the Red Raiders in 2026. OSU is set to host the reigning Big 12 champs on Nov. 14. “It’s f****** bulls***,” Kansas State AD Gene Taylor told Yahoo. “I know the kid has a problem. Well, get well and focus on your problem. It is absolutely devastating for him to be able to play when every other sport, no matter the level, deems an athlete ineligible or they are punished severely for betting on their team.” Another anonymous Big 12 AD told Dellenger it was the “lowest point in my time in college sports” and that Tech “should be ashamed of itself.” You could see why others in the space would push against Monday’s ruling, given the precedent it sets that gambling on your own team (Sorsby reportedly made bets on Indiana while he was with the Hoosiers) could come down to a two-game suspension. Before Monday, gambling had been a hardline issue as it pertains to athletes’ ability to play, going back to Pete Rose and even more recently when former Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers got in some trouble for a similar case and had to close his college career at the junior college level. But in this era where everyone has found out the NCAA has no power to enforce just about anything, challenging such a ruling in court — a court in the Lubbock area, no less — you can get by just about anything, it seems. “There is no better example of why targeted intervention from Congress is necessary,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a statement. “When you have schools and deep-pocketed supporters willing to look the other way on the glaring integrity threat of betting on your own team — and judges whose rulings effectively strip away our ability to stop them — only Congress can equip the NCAA to apply this common sense rule to everyone fairly and consistently. The Protect College Sports Act would empower the NCAA to enforce rules including the gambling restrictions – it’s needed now more than ever.” As of writing, the Big 12 has not released a statement on the matter. 
Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
The college sport ecosystem has always been a little broken, but it perhaps has never felt as broken as it does right now. Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby was granted a temporary injunction against the NCAA on Monday that helps clear a path for him to play in 2026. That ruling comes after Sorsby was declared ineligible for betting on college sports, including 40 bets on Indiana while he was a freshman with the Hoosiers. The injunction would still see Sorsby miss two games of the 2026 season. The Red Raiders open the year with games against Abilene Christian and Oregon State. Conveniently, that suspension ends just before the Red Raiders are set to host what is expected to be a solid Houston squad in the teams’ Big 12 opener. Major League Baseball’s all-time hit leader was blackballed from the game after a gambling scandal. But in college football, it’s a quick two-game slap on the wrist. Here was the court’s attempt to put lipstick on this pig: “This Court finds that Applicant has demonstrated that he will suffer a probable, imminent, and irreparable injury if this Court does not issue this temporary injunction because he will be unable to participate as a member of Texas Tech University’s 2026 football team, including Texas Tech’s 2026 Football season and: “1. Benefit from the elite coaching, training resources, camaraderie, and regimen that only being a member of a Division I college football team can provide, “2. Build the skills necessary to maximize his own success during the college football season, as well as that of Texas Tech’s football team and each of its players, and “3. Make an informed decision regarding whether to enter the 2026 NFL Supplemental Draft.” Hyperbolic comparison incoming — If a guy got in trouble for robbing a bank, a judge would not rule that because he is now behind bars, he doesn’t have the opportunity to make more bank robbery money and thus must be set free. That’d be insane, right? And all this isn’t to say that Sorsby’s life should be ruined forever. If he needs help, I hope he continues to get it. But actions have consequences, and what precedent does this set moving forward? Is betting on your own team a two-game suspension now? That’s 25% of a second-half targeting penalty. Cover 3’s Tom Fornelli put it like this, and it’s something I certainly agree with.
To even be so bold as to challenge this shows that the NCAA has no power anymore. That might sound like I’m dunking on the NCAA (which lends itself plenty of reasons to get dunked on), but it isn’t. What is the NCAA supposed to do when it makes a ruling and then a court comes over the top and says, “Nahhh.” So, is everyone eligible all the time now? Former Iowa State quarterback Hunter Dekkers was suspended for a similar ordeal back in 2023 and never played Division-I college football again. Closer to home, OSU grabbed Iowa transfer receiver Arland Bruce IV out of the transfer portal in 2023, but he was also caught up in that Iowa investigation and never played a down for the Cowboys. Turns out, all they needed was a better lawyer/judge. It feels like anyone who goes to court seeking some sort of eligibility would get it based on this Sorsby ruling and the wording in it. There still hasn’t been official word on Iman Oates’ eligibility for the 2026 season. If the NCAA rules against him, OSU should find a way to clone him and put four Iman Oateses on the field Game 1. I’ve seen a lot comparing gambling problems to drinking problems. I don’t have either, so perhaps this is just generally something I should step away from. But, I will note that the rapid development in the online gambling space makes gambling much more accessible. Upon unlocking your phone, you’re a few taps away from being able to gamble on a sporting event. Unless you have a creative phone case, your phone (something you almost always have on you) isn’t going to turn into a drink of some sort. So, this’ll be something that the NCAA or whatever entity is in charge of college sports needs to get ahold of as it pertains to protecting young athletes from themselves. Lastly, in some ways this story has the ridiculous charm to it that only college athletics could provide. This feels like Eric Dickerson rolling up to school in that Gold Trans Am — where everyone knows exactly what’s going on, but the sport is so Wild West that no one can do anything about it. For better or worse, this is the type of story that only college athletics can provide, but the more stories like this pop up, the more it feels like the whole system is nearing some boiling point.
Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
Thanks for stopping by – here’s your daily dose of Oklahoma State sports news. OSU Bullets• The Cowboys picked up not one, but two offensive line commits yesterday. First came 6-foot-7, 285-pound Houston flip Sonny Mullen. A little bit later came 6-foot-4, 290-pound Chase Clark. [PFB] • Long-tenured coaches were already rare, but they might be getting more rare. Good stuff here from Kyle. [PFB]
• Lee Roy Smith is heading to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame. [okstate.com] Non-OSU Bullets• NBA Finals Game 3 is tonight. Interesting piece from Danny Chau on the Knicks starting to feel inevitable. [The Ringer] • The World Cup starts Thursday! Here’s an informative team-by-team guide. [The Athletic]
Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
College football ain’t what it used to be, and there’s nothing we can do about it. By the end of the 2025 season, the Big 12 had said goodbye to two of the top 3 longest tenured head coaches in the country, leaving a big hole when it comes to experience. But in a league, and in a sport, that’s been defined by transition over the last few years, maybe some fresh blood is necessary. Mike Gundy was fired mid-year after 21 years at the helm of Oklahoma State’s program. Then Kyle Whittingham stepped down a couple months later after 21 years at Utah (though just two in the Big 12). Only Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz (27 years) was longer in his post in the FBS. Whether or not it was time for each to go, the league lost a lot of experience and stability in a sport that has become even more in-flux of late. With the exit of two such established program heads, I thought I would look around the league, dig into the numbers and see what kind of takeaways I could cobble together. First off, those two coaching changes made for a lot more parity when it comes to coaching experience. If you take the 16 coaches set to lead the league this fall, they combine for just 43 seasons at their current job. That’s one more than Gundy’s and Whittingham’s tenures together when they left. Those exits alone cut the median tenure of coaches in the league in half (5.3 years on average to 2.7). Breaking up is rarely pretty, but sometimes it’s necessary. Although Gundy’s firing was not a complete shock given how the previous couple of years of his tenure had gone, Whittingham’s departure wasn’t exactly expected from an outsider’s view. The 66-year-old head coach reportedly wanted to stay on but negotiations broke down apparently stemming from Utah’s desire to keep an extension short and for him to cede control to head coach-in-waiting Morgan Scalley. Whittingham stepped down Dec. 12 but two weeks later he signed a five-year deal to lead Michigan’s program. Whether or not that decision backfires on Utah remains to be seen. But that’s the same at any school. Even at OSU which was able to land one of the hottest up-and-comers in the nation in Eric Morris, who brought large portions of his staff and roster and boasts a highly ranked transfer portal class from North Texas and elsewhere.
College football has been a win-now culture for a couple of decades so seasoned longstays like Gundy and Whittingham were the exception even before the seismic shift of the last few years. We’ve seen NIL and transfer portal changes shift the sport closer to a free agency model than the amateur flag it had been trying to run under for as long as we can remember. What they lose in consistency and tradition, programs gain in the ability to pivot quickly now that you can retool 80 percent of your roster in an offseason. There are five new head coaches that ran their first practices at their respective schools this spring, essentially one-third of the league. In addition to Morris, those include Jimmy Rodgers (Iowa State), Colin Klein (Kansas State), Scott Frost (UCF) and Morgan Scalley (Utah). To be fair, Frost spent two years at UCF prior, but it was before the school joined the Big 12. And Scalley has been with his school since playing his college ball there and has served in some form on Utah’s staff since 2007. But the average amount of years coaching in the Big 12 is just 2.1 years. That’s a stark contrast from the Big 12 many of us grew up under with figures like Bill Snyder, Bob Stoops, Mac Brown and Gundy running programs for decades instead of seasons. BYU’s Kalani Sitake is the elder statesman of the hodge-podge Big 12, entering his 11th year in Provo. Next up is Dave Aranda entering Year 7 at Baylor and Lance Leipold going into his sixth at KU. The remaining 13 head coaches have five years’ experience or less in the league. Only three of those 16 current coaches have a Big 12 trophy on their mantel and all three won the title within their first three years in the league. Aranda got one in his second year in 2021, Dillingham got his in 2024 in his second year at Arizona State but his first in the Big 12. Joey McGuire took a whole three years to take the crown home last season. This may say more about the parity in the conference as each of those were their school’s first Big 12 titles. With that turnover comes its own limitations and insecurities. What if Morris kicks butt and wins 10 games this season? What if he follows the McGuire’s and Dillingham’s of the world and brings some hardware home? His name will be atop all coaching search lists and a school like OSU will always run the risk of “stepping-stone” status. But like it or not, that’s a good problem to have. Gundy built a winning and preternaturally consistent program (even with the last two years included) and boasts the title of best to do it in Stillwater until someone proves otherwise, which may or may not be possible giving the new model. Back to Iowa, Ferentz has been nothing but consistent in his time in Iowa City. Just four losing seasons in 27 years. But the Hawkeyes also haven’t owned a share in the Big Ten title since 2004 and have not won an outright title since 1985. I guess it comes down to shifting your opinion of what a college football program is. Or maybe, to being more honest about what it is. It’s entertainment commodified, in a huge way. Results matter and fresh blood can be a boon, if the formula is right — and there are a lot of variables. It might be over-simplifying to call it a sign of the times, but those long-timers figure to be more and more rare. Maybe they’ll go extinct. The sport has changed a lot, and to their credit, OSU brass took steps to change with it.
Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
It’s been a good day for Oklahoma State offensive line coach Cody Crill. Not long after the Cowboys flipped three-star offensive tackle Sonny Mullen from Houston, OSU landed fellow three-star lineman Chase Clark.
Out of Mount Carmel in Chicago, Clark is listed at 6-foot-4, 290 pounds. He’s the No. 1,364 player in the 247Sports Composite ranking for the class, which lists him as a Top 100 interior lineman in the cycle and a Top 50 player from Illinois. Clark chose Oklahoma State over an offer list that also includes Purdue, UConn, Oregon State, James Madison, Liberty and others. He announced his OSU offer on May 13, with the OSU staff working quickly to get him on campus this weekend for an official visit and now a commitment. “I’m loving it so far,” Clark said of his visit in a video he posted. “I’ve enjoyed the people. I’ve enjoyed the atmosphere, and I’ve enjoyed pretty much the whole environment around me.” Mount Carmel went a perfect 14-0 in Clark’s junior season, with Clark primarily playing right tackle. He’s the Cowboys’ second commitment of the day and their sixth overall for the 2027 class. After a slow start to the class (which was somewhat expected considering Eric Morris spent much of his first few weeks on the job hitting the transfer portal), the Cowboys’ class is up to No. 12 in the Big 12 and 65th nationally. OSU’s 2027 Class
Read this original article at Pistols Firing Blog.
Click to set custom HTML
Daily Bullets (June 7): Drew Mestemaker Tabbed a Top 10 QB OSU Hosting Recruits This Weekend6/7/2026
Click to set custom HTML
Click to set custom HTML
|
   
Gundy's OSU Keeping up with Head Coach Mike Gundy and the OSU football team. 
Archives
May 2026
Categories
|
RSS Feed
