West Virginia’s 2026 defense is going to look a whole lot different, but one of the familiar voices in the room believes the change goes deeper than the roster.
Linebacker Ben Cutter, a senior from North Carolina, has lived through just about everything in Morgantown. He’s seen a nine-win season, watched a defensive coordinator get fired in the middle of the year, dealt with a head coach getting fired, and then went through a brutally long 2025 season that ended without a bowl game.
That experience, he said on a recent appearance on 3 Guys Before the Game, exposed a major problem for last year’s defense: when things went sideways, the group didn’t always handle it well. Cutter thinks this year’s unit is built differently.
“I think that we are in a very good spot defensively, for this season. A lot better than last year.
A lot better players and a lot better character from the defense," he stated. "Last year, we didn’t have as many leaders stepping up.
We had a lot of guys that could play really good, but whenever things got tough, some of them weren’t the highest character. And when you have that many guys that can’t withstand a hard game of go through hardships and stay level-headed, it kind of brings some of the guys that are level-headed down with them.
This year, we have so many guys that are leaders, high character, can really step up and lead whenever things start getting tough. We’re going to have the guys that are kind of half in, half out, rise to that occasion, and we’re going to bring them up.”
When Tony Caridi asked him how many “dawgs” the defense has, Cutter didn’t hesitate to name names. Geimere Latimer and Andrew Powdrell were at the top of his list, with both helping anchor the secondary. He also pointed to Ashton Woods, Tyler Stolsky, Jason Hall, Corey McIntyre, and Nate Gabriel.
“I would say Geimere Latimer and Andrew Powdrell are two of those guys. They are completely leading that secondary.
He (Powdrell) is the strongest pound for pound, I’ve ever played with or seen. He’s elite.
He power cleaned 345. Ashton Woods is another one of those guys.
Tyler Stolsky, Jason Hall. On the d-line, Corey McIntyre is a dawg.
He has really stepped up this year. Nate Gabriel is a really good player.”
Cutter also liked what he’s seen from West Virginia’s revamped offensive line. His read: they’re more disciplined, they get off the ball quickly, and they bring an edge.
“They are way more disciplined this year. They line up fast, firing off the ball every snap.
Really well-coached and they’re mean too. We got a lot of mean guys.
They are going to be a hard group to play against. Four quarters of that…people are going to be hurting."
How much better this team ends up being is still an open question. But Cutter’s view is clear: this group is built to compete harder, and it looks a lot closer to the standard Rich Rodriguez wants in place.
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The intrigue does not stop there, either. The interior defensive line should be a crowded fight for snaps, and the cornerback room has its own blend of returners and transfers trying to carve out roles before the opener. Those battles will tell a lot about how quickly this roster can come together, and they may also reveal which additions were brought in to play immediately and which veterans can hold off the push. [Read more 🡒]