WVU Football Defensive Coordinator Zac Alley enters his second season with the Mountaineers feeling much more comfortable with what his defense can be.
Questions still remain, despite more confidence.
The Mountaineers still have plenty of players who have not started many games, and the defense will have to deal with a Coastal Carolina offense that could have some uncertainty at quarterback. Read more: Zac Alley: West Virginia defense enters 2026 opener with more confidence, depth.
After another offseason together, Alley believes his group is in a much better place heading into Saturday’s season opener.
“I’m more comfortability in who we are, where we are, kind of the process of how we do things,” Alley said Tuesday.
That starts with the amount of continuity the defense has compared to a year ago.
Last season, West Virginia went through significant turnover, with Alley noting that only three players who were starters during spring practice eventually started the season opener.
This year, the Mountaineers have had much more time to develop within the system.
“I think that the consistency of having them the whole year certainly helps with my confidence and what we can do, what we can execute,” Alley said.
Still, Alley knows the defense has to prove it once the season begins.
“We got to go perform and show it.”
Competition remains a major part of the defense
One of the biggest strengths Alley sees with this year’s group is the depth throughout the defense.
That depth has also created competition for playing time, with several positions still being decided heading into the opener.
“I think there’s probably a fire under some guys’ butts this week that know that they’re competing to be the starter,” Alley said.
Some of those competitions remain essentially 50-50.
Related: West Virginia releases initial depth chart: five takeaways from the first look
For Alley, the players who perform best during the final week of preparation will earn the opportunity to be on the field first.
“I think that, obviously, the competition breeds performance,” Alley said. “And so, whoever performs well in practice will probably start the game.”
The amount of rotation could also vary depending on the position.
Alley explained that one player could potentially handle 80% of the snaps while another gets 20%. At another position, the split could be much closer.
“It matters who those guys are and what they’ve earned the right to play,” Alley said.
That gives the defense plenty of options as the season gets underway.
Coastal presents plenty of questions
Preparing for Coastal Carolina has not been the easiest task for the Mountaineers.
The Chanticleers have gone through plenty of roster turnover themselves, including players coming over from Missouri State.
Alley said West Virginia has had to prepare for a number of different possibilities rather than focusing on one set lineup.
“I’m always honest with the guys. Like, I don’t know who’s going to roll out there,” Alley said. “We’ll find out when we get to game day, I guess.”
That especially applies to the quarterback position.
West Virginia has studied both Deuce Bailey, who played at Missouri State, and Coastal’s other quarterback option, Tyler Keane.
Bailey brings a different element to the offense because of his ability to run.
“You see more quarterback design runs,” Alley said. “He’s got scramble ability to get out of the pocket and hurt you with his legs.”
Alley also expects Coastal to use plenty of different formations, personnel groupings, motions and shifts.
Turnovers are a priority
If there is one thing Alley wants his defense to consistently create, it is takeaways.
That emphasis has been present throughout preseason camp and continues during the final week before the opener.
“We’re trying to get the ball out,” Alley said. “We’re trying to create interceptions, forced fumbles, and those type of things.”
The Mountaineers work on those situations during scout-team periods, with Alley saying some of those practices are essentially live.
The goal is to make creating turnovers part of the defense’s identity rather than something that simply happens on Saturdays.
Torbor could take another step
Cam Torbor is another player Alley expects to develop throughout the season.
Alley praised Torbor’s ability and work ethic, while pointing out that he is still relatively new to playing off the ball.
“Has amazing ability,” Alley said. “I think that he’s really a great kid. I mean, he cares. It matters to him. He studies. He’s here.”
The biggest thing for Torbor now is getting live reps.
Related: Cam Torbor’s path to WVU Football started on the basketball court
Alley believes that experience will allow him to become a much better player as the season progresses.
“He’ll be a lot better in like six games when he’s had reps and been out there and, you know, seen it in live fire,” Alley said.
That could make Torbor an important piece for the Mountaineers as the season moves along.
The defense has bought in
Perhaps the biggest difference Alley sees from last season is not necessarily something that can be measured on a depth chart.
It is the buy-in.
Alley pointed to Monday as an example.
The defense had the day off, but roughly 75% of the group still showed up to watch film.
“They did that on their own,” Alley said. “And so that’s encouraging.”
That kind of commitment is something Alley did not see as much during his first season in Morgantown.
“We had one of my coaches come in and said, ‘I can’t use my office. I’ve been in my office all day,’” Alley said. “So that wasn’t a problem last year.”
Now the Mountaineers have another opportunity to show how far they have come.
There will be first-game nerves. There will be players seeing a large college crowd for the first time. And there will be plenty of questions that will not be answered until Saturday.
But Alley believes his defense is more prepared for those moments than it was a year ago.
