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Texas AG Paxton's office intervened for Texas Tech in the Sorsby case a day after donor Cody Campbell gave $274,300

On June 11, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office sent a letter warning the Big 12 Conference that sanctioning Texas Tech over quarterback Brendan Sorsby's eligibility would be unlawful and expose the conference to more than $200 million in liability. The intervention came one day after Texas Tech Board of Regents Chair Cody Campbell — one of Sorsby's most public defenders — donated $274,300 to a joint fundraising committee supporting Paxton's U.S. Senate bid. The donation was not publicly known until the Texas Tribune reported newly filed federal campaign-finance records on July 15, 2026.

Jurisdiction
Texas
Location
Austin, Texas

Abuses documented

Actors

On June 11, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office sent a letter, and an accompanying press release, warning the Big 12 Conference that any move to sanction Texas Tech for fielding quarterback Brendan Sorsby — who had admitted placing thousands of dollars in improper sports bets, including on his own team's games — would be "unlawful" and could expose the conference and its members to "substantially more than $200 million" in antitrust liability.

The intervention came one day after Texas Tech Board of Regents Chair Cody Campbell donated $274,300 to Paxton Victory, a joint fundraising committee supporting Paxton's U.S. Senate campaign. Campbell, a former Texas Tech lineman who has given at least $25 million to the school's athletics program and is a major Republican donor, had been one of Sorsby's most vocal public defenders, casting the player as a student in recovery from addiction and his situation the "outcome of a broken system." The June 10 contribution ranked among Campbell's largest.

The donation was not publicly known at the time of Paxton's intervention. It surfaced more than a month later, on July 15, 2026, when the Texas Tribune reported that newly filed federal campaign-finance records disclosed the June 10 gift and its timing. Campbell declined to comment, and Paxton's campaign did not respond to questions about whether Paxton had signaled to Campbell that his office would send the letter if the donation was made.

Updates

2026-06-15 — Big 12 Conference sued Paxton and Texas Tech over the intervention [3]

The Big 12 Conference filed a federal complaint against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Texas Tech over Paxton's intervention in the Sorsby eligibility dispute.

2026-07-15 — Texas Tribune disclosed the June 10 donation via campaign-finance filings [2]

The Texas Tribune reported that newly filed federal campaign-finance records showed Campbell's $274,300 donation to Paxton's Senate campaign committee came one day before Paxton's office intervened on Texas Tech's behalf.

Why we recorded this

Public service requires that official acts serve the public, not private benefactors. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's office intervened to shield Texas Tech in a matter championed by Texas Tech Board of Regents Chair Cody Campbell one day after Campbell gave $274,300 to Paxton's Senate campaign — a contribution that became public only when campaign-finance records were filed weeks later. Recording when a favorable official action closely follows a large political contribution documents the pay-to-play dynamics that erode confidence that public power is exercised impartially.

Sources

  1. Attorney General Paxton Warns Big 12 Conference That Sanctioning Texas Tech Would Violate the Law and Expose the Conference and Members to Over $200 Million in Liability — Office of the Texas Attorney General primary accessed July 16, 2026
  2. Texas Tech chair donated $275K to Paxton before he intervened for Sorsby — The Texas Tribune investigative accessed July 16, 2026
  3. Big 12 Conference files federal complaint against Texas Tech, Attorney General Ken Paxton — KCBD NewsChannel 11 investigative accessed July 18, 2026

See also