Photo by: WVU Athletic Communications
Torbor’s Move From Hardwood to the Gridiron Now Paying Dividends
August 24, 2026 12:47 PM | Football
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Sometimes, good football players are destined to be good from the beginning while others sort of feel their way through things.
You can put West Virginia University sophomore linebacker Cam Torbor in the latter category.
Despite being the son of eight-year NFL linebacker Reggie Torbor, Cam's decision to finally play the gridiron sport had little to do with his father and more to do with some of his buddies playing on the Hoover High team at the time.
Right before the start of his junior year, he just figured it would be cool to play with them. Until then, he had primarily been a basketball player.
During last Friday evening's visit with media, Torbor recalled taking a lot of charges on the basketball court, and he figured those charges could translate better on the football field.
And in football, he could dole out the punishment instead of absorbing it.
"I just wanted to try it out," he said of the sports switch. "My high school coaches had been coming up and telling me to try it out, and they just kept asking me. So, I just kind of went for it.
"It was just a random thought," he continued. "My best friend was on the football team in high school, and I just went for it. I figured if I put myself into football, I could be good at it the more I worked at it. The plan was to do as good as I could possibly do and see how far that would get me."
Cam wasn't sure where football would ultimately take him, but the more he played it and the more success he had, the more he became enamored with the possibilities it presented. Eventually, he got the attention of Austin Peay and some other schools, including Jacksonville State and its coach, Rich Rodriguez.
As he's done for the last 28 years coaching football, Rodriguez simply trusted his eyes and his instincts on this one.
"Cam Torbor was a great find for us because we knew about him from our time in Alabama - and I knew it then," the coach explained. "We were going to try and get him at Jax State and I'm like, 'I hope nobody else finds out about this guy.' When you come from the state of Alabama, people are going to know who you are."
Fortunately for West Virginia, Rodriguez steered him clear of Alabama and his dad's alma mater, Auburn, despite Torbor earning all-state honors as a senior. Soon after Rodriguez accepted the West Virginia job, among his first tasks was bringing Torbor with him to Morgantown, which was akin to getting him through Alabama customs.
For his part, Torbor was a willing participant because he had grown close to Rodriguez and his Jacksonville State coaches. His unfamiliarity of Mountaineer football or anything West Virginia was just a minor obstacle.
"I started talking to the Jacksonville State coaching staff and when they came up here we kind of kept in contact," Torbor explained. "I wasn't playing for that long and that's kind of how it turned out.
"I didn't know where I was going to end up. I was just out there having fun, for the most part, to try and see where I'd end up," he shrugged.
Where he's ended up is potentially starting at Will linebacker for a power conference school when West Virginia opens the season on Saturday, Sept. 5, against Coastal Carolina. Torbor played sparingly last year as a true freshman, a decision defensive coordinator Zac Alley now regrets after the NCAA adopted its new "five-for-five" rule this summer.
Had the ruling been in place last year, Alley said he would have gotten Torbor much more game experience leading into this season.
Alley could see the bright future ahead for Torbor, so much so that he didn't want to burn a year of eligibility in what turned out to be a lost season for the Mountaineers. Nevertheless, Torbor still has four more years of college eligibility remaining with a lot of football ahead of him.
Now, the 6-foot-3, 239-pounder is learning on the fly.
"It's definitely getting easier," he admitted. "The more you stay in the program the easier it gets, and I definitely feel like I'm making my way learning this defense."
Rodriguez believes Torbor can bring a lot to the table.
"He's one of the biggest guys we've got, and he might be one of the fastest backers we have," the coach observed. "He comes from good blood lines, and he's just a really good football player.
"I would take a bunch of Cam Torbors, I'll tell you that," he added.
Even before Torbor made the decision to devote himself fully to football, he said his father was always his biggest supporter. Now, the two will frequently watch tape together and Cam admits his dad can easily shift roles from father to coach whenever he needs to.
"He helped me become a better football player faster," he explained. "He's been more than I can ask for."
The best piece of football advice Cam said he's gotten so far from his dad?
"Run to the ball, and don't be soft," he said.
That's preaching to the choir in the Rich Rodriguez football congregation.
"He's done an outstanding job," Rodriguez said. "He's going to play on defense and on special teams. I'm really, really excited for Cam Torbor. He's a great young man with a bright future."
"I just come in, work as hard as I can and that's pretty much been my thing since I've been here," Torbor added. "Even if you don't know what you're doing, just run to the ball and that's kind of what I've been doing since I got here, and I think that's kind of gotten me to where I'm at."
As for this year's defense, the linebacker sees endless possibilities.
"We can do anything on this defense. We've got a lot of variety, especially this year. We've definitely got the guys to do a lot of different things with this defense," he predicted.
You can put West Virginia University sophomore linebacker Cam Torbor in the latter category.
Despite being the son of eight-year NFL linebacker Reggie Torbor, Cam's decision to finally play the gridiron sport had little to do with his father and more to do with some of his buddies playing on the Hoover High team at the time.
Right before the start of his junior year, he just figured it would be cool to play with them. Until then, he had primarily been a basketball player.
During last Friday evening's visit with media, Torbor recalled taking a lot of charges on the basketball court, and he figured those charges could translate better on the football field.
And in football, he could dole out the punishment instead of absorbing it.
"I just wanted to try it out," he said of the sports switch. "My high school coaches had been coming up and telling me to try it out, and they just kept asking me. So, I just kind of went for it.
"It was just a random thought," he continued. "My best friend was on the football team in high school, and I just went for it. I figured if I put myself into football, I could be good at it the more I worked at it. The plan was to do as good as I could possibly do and see how far that would get me."
Cam wasn't sure where football would ultimately take him, but the more he played it and the more success he had, the more he became enamored with the possibilities it presented. Eventually, he got the attention of Austin Peay and some other schools, including Jacksonville State and its coach, Rich Rodriguez.
As he's done for the last 28 years coaching football, Rodriguez simply trusted his eyes and his instincts on this one.
"Cam Torbor was a great find for us because we knew about him from our time in Alabama - and I knew it then," the coach explained. "We were going to try and get him at Jax State and I'm like, 'I hope nobody else finds out about this guy.' When you come from the state of Alabama, people are going to know who you are."
Fortunately for West Virginia, Rodriguez steered him clear of Alabama and his dad's alma mater, Auburn, despite Torbor earning all-state honors as a senior. Soon after Rodriguez accepted the West Virginia job, among his first tasks was bringing Torbor with him to Morgantown, which was akin to getting him through Alabama customs.
For his part, Torbor was a willing participant because he had grown close to Rodriguez and his Jacksonville State coaches. His unfamiliarity of Mountaineer football or anything West Virginia was just a minor obstacle.
"I started talking to the Jacksonville State coaching staff and when they came up here we kind of kept in contact," Torbor explained. "I wasn't playing for that long and that's kind of how it turned out.
"I didn't know where I was going to end up. I was just out there having fun, for the most part, to try and see where I'd end up," he shrugged.
Where he's ended up is potentially starting at Will linebacker for a power conference school when West Virginia opens the season on Saturday, Sept. 5, against Coastal Carolina. Torbor played sparingly last year as a true freshman, a decision defensive coordinator Zac Alley now regrets after the NCAA adopted its new "five-for-five" rule this summer.
Had the ruling been in place last year, Alley said he would have gotten Torbor much more game experience leading into this season.
Alley could see the bright future ahead for Torbor, so much so that he didn't want to burn a year of eligibility in what turned out to be a lost season for the Mountaineers. Nevertheless, Torbor still has four more years of college eligibility remaining with a lot of football ahead of him.
Now, the 6-foot-3, 239-pounder is learning on the fly.
"It's definitely getting easier," he admitted. "The more you stay in the program the easier it gets, and I definitely feel like I'm making my way learning this defense."
Rodriguez believes Torbor can bring a lot to the table.
"He's one of the biggest guys we've got, and he might be one of the fastest backers we have," the coach observed. "He comes from good blood lines, and he's just a really good football player.
"I would take a bunch of Cam Torbors, I'll tell you that," he added.
Even before Torbor made the decision to devote himself fully to football, he said his father was always his biggest supporter. Now, the two will frequently watch tape together and Cam admits his dad can easily shift roles from father to coach whenever he needs to.
"He helped me become a better football player faster," he explained. "He's been more than I can ask for."
The best piece of football advice Cam said he's gotten so far from his dad?
"Run to the ball, and don't be soft," he said.
That's preaching to the choir in the Rich Rodriguez football congregation.
"He's done an outstanding job," Rodriguez said. "He's going to play on defense and on special teams. I'm really, really excited for Cam Torbor. He's a great young man with a bright future."
"I just come in, work as hard as I can and that's pretty much been my thing since I've been here," Torbor added. "Even if you don't know what you're doing, just run to the ball and that's kind of what I've been doing since I got here, and I think that's kind of gotten me to where I'm at."
As for this year's defense, the linebacker sees endless possibilities.
"We can do anything on this defense. We've got a lot of variety, especially this year. We've definitely got the guys to do a lot of different things with this defense," he predicted.
Players Mentioned
LB
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