Brendan Sorsby’s Near-$6M Texas Tech NIL Deal Resets The Portal Market

Brendan Sorsby didn’t just win the transfer portal. He reset the market.

Texas Tech landed the former Cincinnati quarterback on an NIL contract worth close to $6 million for his final year of eligibility, according to his agent, Ron Slavin of Lift Sports Management. Boardroom called it the largest NIL deal in college football, a number that underscores how aggressively programs are now shopping for quarterbacks.

The money is the headline. The process is the tell.

Why Sorsby Chose Another Year

After Cincinnati finished its regular season after Thanksgiving, Slavin said Sorsby told his representatives he wanted a change of scenery, either through the transfer portal or the NFL. He asked the NFL’s College Advisory Committee to evaluate his draft outlook and received a projection ranging from the first to the third round of the 2026 draft.

That grade didn’t push him out the door. Slavin said Sorsby wanted one more year in college football with a clear aim.

“He wants to become a better quarterback, and he wants to be the first pick in the ’27 draft,” Slavin told Boardroom.

Slavin framed it as a response to the way teams rush young passers onto the field. The Aaron Rodgers sit-and-wait path is rare now. More often, the league rewards quarterbacks who arrive with a thick stack of starts.

More reps. Less risk.

Three Finalists, Similar Offers

LSU, Miami, and Texas Tech became the finalists, and Sorsby visited each over the weekend. Slavin said the offers were “pretty equal across the board,” pushing back on the idea that one program simply bought the decision.

“I know people like to say ‘oh, Texas Tech outspends,’ but there wasn’t any difference in the money between Miami, LSU, or Texas Tech,” Slavin said.

If the money was comparable, then Texas Tech won on fit.

How Texas Tech Closed

Slavin said Sorsby was impressed by Miami head coach Mario Cristobal and executive director Dennis Smith. He also said Lane Kiffin was “all in” on bringing Sorsby to LSU, and that LSU’s staff did the best job in preparation and time invested in its pitch.

Texas Tech still edged both.

Slavin said head coach Joey McGuire sold Sorsby on facilities that “blew him away,” plus a strong offensive line, skill-position talent, and a developmental plan at quarterback. The home-state factor mattered, too: Sorsby is a Dallas native, and playing his final college season in Texas carried weight.

“We did pros and cons with all of them, and it was pretty much a coin flip,” Slavin said. “In the end, Brennan just went with his gut.”

The Contract Terms Were The Point

The size of the deal turned heads. The structure may be the bigger shift.

Boardroom reported that Sorsby’s camp required all NIL compensation to be fully guaranteed and paid by next Jan. 1, a safeguard amid concerns about collectives delaying or withholding funds.

No waiting. No wiggle room. Just certainty.

Boardroom also noted the deal comes alongside a separate NIL agreement for quarterback Josh Hoover, who is transferring from TCU to Indiana, marking a milestone for Lift Sports Management. Lift has built an NBA client list that includes Paolo Banchero, Jabari Smith Jr., and PJ Washington, and expanded into football last summer by hiring Slavin and Jared Fox.

Lift CEO Donnie McGrath told Boardroom the Sorsby agreement is “a huge step” for the agency and “helps put Lift Football on the map.”

What It Signals For NIL

Sorsby’s near-$6 million number won’t stay lonely for long. It’s a benchmark for how the top of the portal is being priced, and how deals are being written.

Quarterbacks will continue to drive the biggest agreements because they dictate a program’s ceiling. The next evolution is likely less about the headline figure and more about the language around it: guarantees, deadlines, and enforcement.

Texas Tech got its quarterback. Sorsby got a record contract and a home-state landing spot. The market got a new baseline.