5 West Virginia Players Oklahoma State Fans Need to Know for 2026 Season
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The West Virginia Mountaineers are entering year two under head coach Rich Rodriguez for the second time in program history.
The first time the Grant Town, W.V., native took over the Mountaineers in 2001 they went 3-8 in the Big East Conference. He followed that up with a 9-4 season in 2022. The turnaround was fast — and RichRod didn’t have the transfer portal back then.
Last year he returned, fresh off success at Jacksonville State, where he turned that program into a winner at the FBS level right away. With the Mountaineers last year, he went 4-8. If he holds to form, it could be a big year in Morgantown.
With that in mind, here are five players for Oklahoma State Cowboys fans to watch on Sept. 26.
RB Cam Cook
Cowboys fans already know him to a degree. He spent the first two years of his college career at TCU. But after the 2024 season he transferred to Jacksonville State. He didn’t play for current Mountaineers head coach Rich Rodriguez, as he had already taken the WVU job. But Cook was tremendous for the Gamecocks last season.
He rushed for 1,659 yards and 16 touchdowns last season. He earned all-America honors and was the Conference USA Most Valuable Player as Jax State won the regular-season championship but lost the conference title game to Kennesaw State. WVU did not have a good running game last season. That combined with an unsettled quarterback situation means the Mountaineers are going to lean hard into Cook this season.
OL Nick Krahe
One of the few holdovers from last year’s offensive line who is also a returning starter. The 6-6, 316-pound junior from Erie, Penn., started all 12 games at tackle last season and logged 873 offensive snaps, the most of anyone on the team. He played at least 60 plays in 11 games and played 97 snaps against Pitt. In WVU’s fast-paced offense, that’s an asset. So is his two years of game experience for an offensive line filled with transfers and backups hoping to step into a starting role.
QB Michael Hawkins Jr.
The Mountaineers have returning starter Scotty Fox Jr., but he threw for 1,276 yards, seven touchdowns and six interceptions as a freshman. He was pressed into service and while he has the talent, Rodriguez and his staff went out and got a shiny new toy in Hawkins. He and Fox will battle it out for the starting job.
Hawkins played two seasons at Oklahoma but never stuck in the job full-time. But like Fox, he was thrown into the fire as a freshman and produced, throwing for 783 yards and rushing for 204 more. That could be his calling card, his ability to run the ball. He was a four-star player coming out of high school. Playing for Rodriguez might allow him to tap his potential.
DL Harper Holloman
The Mountaineers don’t have a single returning starter on defense and the unit, like Oklahoma State last year, wasn’t good overall. Holloman could help change that. The 6-2, 253-pound edge rusher was at Western Kentucky last year and he was a Conference USA honorable mention selection by the coaches.
He helped the Hilltoppers win nine games as he was their fifth-leading tackler with 39 stops, including 19 unassisted tackles, two sacks, 5.5 tackles for loss, an interception, six hurries, four pass breakups and a blocked kick. He could be in for bigger things with WVU.
LB Ben Cutter
While Cutter isn’t considered a returning starter — he only made one start last season — he is one of WVU’s most experienced returning defenders. He’s played his entire college career with the Mountaineers, and he enters 2026 as the expected starter at one of the two linebacker spots.
As a rotational player last year he finished with 38 tackles, (16 solo), with one sack, 2.5 tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. He also had two interceptions, which tied for the team lead. In a 4-2-5 system like WVU’s, pass coverage skills are essential. He’s never been leaned on as heavily as he’s expected to be this season.
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Matthew Postins is the publisher of Oklahoma State on SI. He is an award-winning sports journalist who was formerly the editor of the College Football America Yearbook and covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.
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