Outrage over Brendan Sorsby’s gambling scandal ignores a legacy of collegiate corruption. Rivals demand bans, but in a landscape built on compromise, few programs hold the moral high ground.
The critics are, in one perfect-world sense, correct.
The court ruling that figures to allow Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby to take the field this year despite his extensive violations of the NCAA anti-gambling bylaws has exposed a seedy underbelly.
So ... what else is new?
The most uproarious part of the controversy isn't just that the admitted gambling addict Sorsby's participation in NCAA games could open a problematic can of worms.
No, alongside that legitimate concern is the hilariously holier-than-thou position of the ranting and raving hypocrites of college sports who are "demanding'' that "something'' be done about this.
The Red Raiders must bench their star QB! The Big 12 must kick them out of the conference! All opponents must boycott the scheduling of Texas Tech in all sports!
Nebraska and Georgia say they will not schedule any contests vs. Texas Tech in any sport. Kansas State's athletic director said what Tech is doing is "f------ b------'' and that there have been discussions inside the Big 12 of doing the same.
Texas attorney general Ken Paxton has entered the fray by threatening Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark if the conference takes action against Tech.
Yuck.
If you're new to the world of college athletics, you assume that what's happening in Lubbock is the most heinous sports crime of all time.
But you aren't new to the world of college athletics, are you?
Baylor covered up a murder.
Penn State knowingly employed a decades-long child molester.
Big-time coaches cheat, and just as the school is about to get caught, they leave for new jobs.
Rapes. Violence. Arrests. Illegal payments. Students who never go to class.
That "seedy underbelly''? It's always been there, and really, the only way to enjoy college football or college basketball is to ignore it while focusing on the pomp and the circumstance and the touchdowns and the dunks.
NCAA construction isn't just about stadiums and arenas and fields; It's also about glass houses, and while it might be commendable if Texas Tech chose "integrity'' and opted to separate itself from Sorsby ...
There isn't a major program in America that would do that.
Dear Nebraska and Georgia and Kansas State, tell the truth: If this was happening to your star QB, what would you do? Disagree with the court order and toss the kid in the trash?
No. You would not.
"We are following a court order by a judge in our state," Texas Tech super-booster Cody Campbell said. "What did we do wrong? Nothing. Thump your chest all you want, but the kid is eligible."
In the seedy world of college sports, the idea of one Division I school having earned the right to have moral authority over another is laughable.
And if you think otherwise?
If there is a Football God named "Integrity,'' he's surely bothered by what's happening in Lubbock ... but he's also laughing at your inability to look in the mirror.
