Ben Cutter has been in several different iterations of the West Virginia football locker room, and has seen the program at some of it's highest and lowest peaks of the past decade. He was a major factor in the 2023 team's 9-4 finish and Duke's Mayo Bowl win. Then, he saw his head coach fired after a 6-6 finish the next season
He made the decision to stick around with Rich Rodriguez, and rode out the dismal 4-8 finish last season that was the worst year in over a decade for the West Virginia Mountaineers. Now, he's back for his penultimate season (thanks to the new eligibility rules), and is expected to step up as a leader for the defensive unit. So he knows a thing or two about what it takes to win games – and what causes losses – inside this program.
And recently, Cutter made an appearance on the 3 Guys Before The Game podcast, where he shared his thoughts on the current roster in place for the Mountaineers entering the upcoming season. And if his analysis ends up being correct, it could be great news for West Virginia fans hoping for a massive turnaround in 2026.
Ben Cutter praises WVU football's improved defense, offensive line in recent interview
Cutter did not pull punches when talking about his thoughts on what brought West Virginia down on the defensive side of the ball last year, calling out the group's inability to push through adversity. And during his time so far with the rebuilt roster entering this season, he senses a major difference that should fix that issue.
“I think that we are in a very good spot defensively, for this season," Cutter said. "A lot better than last year. A lot better players and a lot better character from the defense. 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."
That's a stinging indictment of some of the players who were on the field alongside Cutter last season, but it does explain some of the more head-turning performances from a defense led by rising star like Zac Alley at defensive coordinator. And Cutter thinks that the shift in mentality of the defensive side of the ball will help get things back on track this season.
"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," Cutter said. "This year, we have so many guys that are leaders, high character, can really step up and lead whenever things start getting tough."
And one other area where the Mountaineers struggled significantly last season was along the offensive line, where they turned out one of the worst offensive performances in the trenches in recent memory for the program. And while Cutter doesn't handle the blocking, he does face-off against that group every day in practice.
After going heavy on recruiting talent at the position in both the 2026 high school class and the transfer portal, as well as bringing in long-time Rodriguez assistant and former national championship winning coach Rick Trickett to lead the group, Cutter also sees a huge difference on the offensive line.
"They are way more disciplined this year," Cutter said. "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."
If this analysis holds up to be true, it should result in the Mountaineers looking much different this season than they did last yea
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