Jed Drenning Believes This Freshman LB Could Be Among WVU's 'Most Meaningful' Pieces

A redshirt freshman linebacker West Virginia fans will want to keep a close eye on.

WVU Athletics Communications

Questions abound for West Virginia's defense in 2026. At nearly every spot in every level of the unit, there are a bunch of new faces, and with that comes uncertainty.

Defensive coordinator Zac Alley will have 11 new starters this season, although a few of them were contributors a year ago, such as linebacker Ben Cutter, defensive linemen Nate Gabriel and Corey McIntyre Jr., and cornerback Nick Taylor.

Those are names you are probably somewhat familiar with. There is one returner, though, who is pushing for a serious role that you may have never heard of unless you are a true diehard fan or following recruiting religiously. That guy is linebacker Cam Torbor.

In my most recent depth chart projection, I have him listed as the No. 2 at the WILL, slated right behind Illinois transfer Malachi Hood. And as I mentioned there, I believe he is a legit shot to win the starting job.

My co-host on the In The Gun Podcast, Jed Drenning, sees a bright future for him as well.

West Virginia University linebacker Cam Torbor | Christopher Hall - West Virginia on SI

“I think of all the pieces, the one that I think would be the most meaningful if he turns out and reaches his potential would be Cam Torbor at that WILL spot. This is a guy with the athletic pedigree. He was a high school basketball player; you like to see that. That demonstrates wiggle and burst. His dad was a linebacker at Auburn, played several years in the NFL. The pedigree’s there. The skill set is there. The athleticism is there. And the size. He’s 6’3”, pushing 240, so he can more than thud you. He stole some snaps in the past, but he was kind of swimming mentally in the past. I’d like to think things started to slow down for him this offseason a little bit — that’s going to be the question. If they continue to slow down for him mentally and he reaches his athletic potential and starts to see the big picture of what we’re trying to do, I think he can fill a heck of a role for us at that WILL spot.”

As Jed mentioned, his dad, Reggie, was a solid player at the next level, playing eight seasons in the NFL, winning a Super Bowl with the New York Giants. He also spent time with the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills before retiring in 2010. Reggie finished his career with 250 tackles, 23 TFLs, 6.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and a pair of interceptions.

But back to Cam... the belief in his game goes well beyond Jed's and my opinion. Zac Alley feels the same way, and even threw out there that he would have played all year in 2025 if the current eligibility rules were in place.

“I consider him a young player too because he didn’t play last year at all on defense. I wish the five-for-five would have been a thing last year because he would have played all year, in some capacity. But obviously at that point, you didn’t want to burn a kid’s year on 15 snaps or whatever it was. He’ll play WILL for us, and then he plays a lot of our sub package stuff — our SAM overhang, our blitzing kind of JACK backer. He cross-trains at the sub package stuff more than he does at MIKE and WILL.”