Josh Brooks put out a Masterclass on performative culture on Monday when he came out and stated that Georgia will not and should not schedule Texas Tech in any athletic competitions. Before we dig into the statement and the Texas Tech villain origin story, let’s start with a definition of performative culture.
Performative culture is a social phenomenon in which actions, behaviors, and identities are curated for an external audience rather than driven by genuine internal desire. Fueled by the visibility of social media and modern corporate environments, it transforms everyday living, aesthetics, and activism into optimized, measurable statements. To put it simply, Josh Brooks is acting like the little boy who cried wolf we all read about as children.
Georgia’s Josh Brooks Cries Wolf Against Texas Tech
What did Texas Tech Do?
The wolf in this story is Texas Tech University, and its quarterback, Brendan Sorsby. A Texas district court judge granted Sorsby a temporary injunction, clearing him to play despite his admitted history of placing over 9,000 sports bets—including wagers on his own former team at Indiana. In addition, Sorsby allegedly not only placed wagers. At the same time, he was underage, but also violated interstate banking laws by allegedly sending money to others so that they could place wagers on his behalf. (Peter Rose thinks Sorsby might need to call 1-800-Gambler). These are serious allegations, and the NCAA seemingly has a solid case and couldn’t possibly fumble this case. They already ruled earlier this Spring that Sorsby was ineligible for his alleged gambling shenanigans.
But it is 2026, and when you are about to be punished as a college athlete, you do what anyone does. You find a local and friendly judge to get you a “get out of jail free card.” Sorsby found that in Judge Ken Curry. Judge Curry sided with Sorsby’s legal team, which argued that banning the quarterback would cause “irreparable harm” to his mental health and gambling recovery. The court underscored that football is a vital component of his clinical treatment. Under the court-ordered deal, Sorsby must sit out the first two games of the 2026 season against Abilene Christian and Oregon State while maintaining a strict regimen of professional counseling for his gambling and anxiety disorders. Cue the outrage.
B1G Official Statement
We are not here to defend Judge Curry or to talk about how assinine his ruling is. Sorsby broke the golden rule of sports and needs to be punished. But the response from Brooks and the Big Ten is ridiculous and again a masterclass in performative culture. Pete Thamel tweeted that the B1G is expected to discuss a league-wide mandate in the coming days not to play Texas Tech in any sport. This performative act is expected from the B1G, a league that holds itself in “high esteem” and “above the fray.” Hearing it from a member of the SEC is where we draw the line.
Josh Brooks Official Statement
Josh Brooks put out his official statement on Monday afternoon, looking out for the best of the Georgia Bulldog Athletic program <insert eye roll here.>
“Coaches and staff,
Based on recent developments. Georgia Athletics will not schedule future contests against Texas Tech until further notice. If you have any contests currently scheduled against Texas Tech or are actively engaged in scheduling discussions with Texas Tech, please notify your sport administrator as soon as possible so we can evaluate the situation and determine next steps.
Effective immediately, no new contests should be scheduled against Texas Tech without prior approval from the Athletics Department.
If you have any questions, please let me know.
Thank you”
Not to spoil the fun, but Georgia is not scheduled to play Texas Tech in anything, not in football, pickleball, or Pinochle. According to our research, the last recorded athletic matchup between the University of Georgia and Texas Tech was a women’s basketball game on December 2, 2021, in which Georgia defeated Texas Tech 66–56. We have to go back to September 21, 1996, when Georgia defeated Texas Tech 15–12 in Athens, Between the Hedges. As we said, Brooks’ statement was a Masterclass in performative culture. While we have come to expect these statements from the B1G, we want and expect more from our SEC schools.
Main Photo: Syndication Online Athens
