Former NFL QB Ryan Fitzpatrick talks Brendan Sorsby, Harvard football, and more
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Former NFL QB Ryan Fitzpatrick talks Brendan Sorsby, Harvard football, and more originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
I got the chance to speak with former NFL quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick about a number of topics across the college football landscape ahead of NBC’s 2026 American Century Championship. Fitzpatrick will be one of over 85 celebrities participating in the annual charity golf tournament at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Stateline, Nevada. Tickets are still available for the event, which takes place this Friday through Sunday (July 10-12).
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I asked Fitzpatrick about his chances in the tournament, the Performance Golf PG1 app, and plenty more:
On his pick to win the 2026 American Century Championship…
“The American Century Championship is incredible. I will not be one of the guys taking this thing, but to me, I think Steph Curry goes in as the favorite. He won in 2023, and that's a guy that I'm pulling for. I’m super interested to see if he could do it again. John Smoltz, I would love to see him win. Romo had the chipping yips last year, so he didn't really compete, but I would love to see him get back on track and healthy. Then Annika Sorenstam's another one. She seems to always be in the top five. So, super interested to see if she could come home with the title as well.”
On how has the PG1 app prepared him for the tournament this year…
“This was interesting with Performance Golf. They reached out to me and said, ‘Hey, we've got a way we think we'll be able to help you heading into the tournament,’ and I said, ‘Okay, I'm all ears. What is it?’ It genuinely has improved my game. And so essentially what they did was scan my swing, and then they identified a root flaw that was causing a lot of my bad shots and inconsistencies. And I would then work with Martin Chuck, and all of a sudden, bam, I started hitting much better shots…
“So I'm going into this tournament, hitting the ball much better than I ever have. The cool thing for me was essentially, it was one thing when they analyzed it, and they said, you need to focus and fix this, and it seems to have fixed about nine other things in my game. And so, I'm really excited heading into the tournament this year, because of my work with performance golf and feeling as comfortable as I ever have been heading into the tournament…
“It's kind of always been my game. I think the cool thing about this is that after it scans your swing, it gives you one thing to focus on. And for me, like, when I'm throwing a football, if I'm struggling, then I'm always able to go back to some sort of fundamental, and with golf, I never really had that. I think everybody who has played golf before has had that feeling when you're standing over a golf ball of like, ‘Oh my gosh, where's this thing going to go?’ I feel so uncomfortable. And so the best thing that it's done for me is it's allowed me one thought process. So when I get over the golf ball, there’s one thing I can focus my attention on. So it's been fun working on my game and actually having a fundamental that I can now go back to when I'm struggling.”
On if it’s justice that Brendan Sorsby can’t play in the CFL or be drafted by the NFL this July…
“I don't really know the exact details. I've obviously, just on the surface, kind of heard about it. So I guess more so than commenting on him specifically, in general, whatever professional league it is, integrity is the most important part. Knowing that players aren't participating in gambling, it just becomes more of a thing because of how each league has let DraftKings, FanDuel, and all these gambling sites into their leagues. And so it's something certainly to keep an eye on. And I think the NFL will always do a great job in terms of getting out in front of it and making sure they're policing it and making sure that the integrity of the game is the most important thing.”
On what he’d like to see from Harvard football in the NIL era…
“I would like to continue to see Harvard football play some of these non-conference teams that they're playing, and expand. A great example, now in 2028, they will be playing Montana State. And so pushing the limits and boundaries that way and getting out of the comfort zone of continuing to play the same teams over and over again. I think that is really cool…
“So there are things that are continuing to get better and better with that, but, you know, for an athlete that's going to play in the Ivy League, I think the education is so valuable to that type of athlete… A really nice addition is guys being able to be at Harvard or whatever Ivy League institution it is for four years who are not really playing their freshman year, able to graduate, and then go and play somewhere else for that fifth year. I think it's been a really nice thing to get your Ivy League education, then go get a graduate degree somewhere else, and be able to just try out, like Jaden Craig is this year. He'll be the starter at TCU as their quarterback. It’s a nice thing in the Ivy League now.”