Welcome back, college sports fans, as we explore the rule changes for the 2026-27 college football season. This date and subject were both decided back in May, but the Texas Tech situation makes it timely.
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For those who have football on the back burner this time of year, the Red Raider quarterback, Brendan Sorsby, was dismissed from the team for gambling on college football, including over 40 bets on Indiana games when he was a freshman there – in an admission by Sorsby of having a gambling problem acknowledging gambling over $90,000 on pro and college sports. He sued and a judge ordered his return to eligibility because he would suffer “irreparable injury” if a temporary injunction was not granted. The NCAA has filed an appeal, but it is unlikely to be heard before the season is over. Nebraska and Georgia have announced they will not include Texas Tech as opponents in any sport until this is fully resolved. The SEC and Big Ten are working to find a standard approach. The Big 12 has discussed cancelling games against Tech but will more than likely avoid such drastic action. This is Sorsby’s 5th season after playing 11 games in 2 seasons at Indiana (2022-23), and 24 games at Cincinnati (2024-25). He has thrown for over 7200 yards with 60 TDs and 18 interceptions. He has not yet played a game at Texas Tech, however, he signed an NIL deal valued between $5-6 million.
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Pete Rose is baseball’s all-time hits leader and is not in the hall of fame because he gambled on games. Shoeless Joe Jackson, among others, was caught up in the Black Sox gambling scandal (throwing the World Series), which resulted in all 8 players being kicked out of baseball. In the NFL, Art Folz, Frank Filchock, Merle Hapes, Alex Karras, Paul Hornung, and others received suspensions for gambling. Gambling, by active players, coaches, or officials, not only is against the rules, but it also negatively impacts the integrity of the game. Everyone knows pro wrestling is fixed. If you are a fan, you don’t watch because of the unknown outcome, but rather because of the known outcome. It’s ok that it is fixed, because the hero and villain match is the draw. Not the standings. The theatre of pro wrestling is great for those who like it. For those who don’t, it borders on being ridiculous. If gambling suddenly becomes ok for our competitive sports, the integrity of the sport comes into question. The 1969 Mets or Joe Namath calling Super Bowl III become suspect – a farce designed simply to make the underdog story complete. The major pro sports have gone out of their way to address issues (hockey now requires everyone to wear a helmet, football added domestic violence as a reason for suspension or expulsion from the league, baseball added personnel to make sure the Houston sign-stealing incident could not recur).
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The “easiest” solution is for Texas Tech, which had the integrity to remove Sorsby from the team, to allow him to attend classes and even practice, but to place him so far down the depth chart that he will never play a down. We do know that he faces a 2-game mandatory suspension by the NCAA. Sports is not “fair” in the sense that any player is guaranteed to play, even if they are on the team. I do understand that when they dismissed Sorsby for cause, they probably were going to be relieved of at least some of the money due him. Of course, some of that money could come from advertising which could (and probably should) be dropped, for the scandal alone, but even more so if he doesn’t play. We haven’t had a chance to dig too much into Tech’s QB depth, but the backup QB is junior Kirk Francis, a transfer from Tulsa where he played 18 games in 3 seasons passing for just over 3,000 yards, 18 TDs, and 13 INTs.
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We wish we could give a GCR prediction. Texas Tech did the correct thing, then were handed a ticking time bomb by the courts. Based on the numbers, he is the better option at QB, but Francis has another year of eligibility and could be a star next season if he gets a season at QB1. If the NCAA wins their appeal AND Tech plays Sorsby in every game other than the first 2, they could be forced to vacate any wins. Of course, the season would be over by then and the vacated games would not matter in any real way, except reputation for the school itself, the Big 12, and the integrity of college football during a time when the turmoil caused by NIL in general, endless and consequence free transfers (players and coaches), and playoff controversies is already putting pressure on the NCAA to reform the sport. We guess time will tell. Maybe Francis earns the spot with 2 perfect games to start the season, and all of this reduces in importance.
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But this post was not originally about the Sorsby controversy, but rather the on-the-field rules changes impacting the 2026 season.
| Rule | Change |
| Targeting (Trial) | First offense: removed from current game Second offense: removed from current game and first half of next game Third offense: removed from current game and 1-game suspension |
| Fair Catch | Adopted from the NFL, the receiving team on any free kick or punt can call a fair catch. The team can then immediately call for a field goal attempt (tee or drop kick). The defense must play 10 yards off of the line of scrimmage for the kick. |
| Offensive Pass Interfence | Penalty changed from 15 yards to 10 yards |
| Unsportsmanlike Conduct | Guidelines added to curb taunting, interfering with game administration, and demeaning celebrations |
| Punting | 1) regardless of alignment (even if the snapper is uncovered on one side), the snapper and two players on either side are ineligible receives if the punt is faked 2) No player can line up between the snapper and the punter 3) if the snapper is on the end of the line, a defender can line up directly over him 4) players with ineligible numbers (i.e., linemen) must report to officials prior to the play if they are to be eligible receivers. |
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That’s it for today. Tune in on June 26 for the next episode which will be focused on the scheduling rules for each FBS conference – one thing we would think would be consistent. Spoiler alert – not so. Thank you for reading and sharing with others. Try to stay cool out there with this heat wave, JoJo and G.
