National Hype Intensifies as Cam Cook Earns Major Preseason Honor

Further enhancing the offseason hype surrounding Cam Cook, WVU’s new star running back has been named a preseason All-America team.

As of Tuesday, June 30, Cook was placed on the second team on the Walter Camp.

This latest national high honor adds to an offseason full of recognition as one of the top running backs in college football. But his success at Jacksonville State – Cook was the nation’s leader rusher in 2025, there are questions lingering over the veteran back.

Can he dominate to the same level in the Big 12? Can he handle a big workload without much experience behind him? Will Cook be enough if West Virginia does not find stable backups to share the touches in a run-first offense? These are all valid questions people are asking and wondering about when it comes to Cook as a Mountaineer.

Fully aware of the pressure and expectations, Cook is confident in himself, too. He knows he can take the WVU offense to new heights in 2026.

Cook explained his mentality and why he holds himself to a very high standard after spring practice on Monday, March 30. On the heels of being the nation’s leading rusher in 2025, Cook feels ready to be a featured back in the Big 12 again.

“I’m going to do whatever it takes to help the team,” Cook said about his role as a Mountaineer. “I’m going to do whatever it takes to help us get to where we need to go. Last year, they asked me to do a lot, and I did whatever the team needed.”

Cam Cook Is Confident He Can Carry WVU Offense: ‘I’m Going to Do Whatever It Takes’

And following up a season in which he stepped down a level with Jacksonville State, as Cook put it, the senior star running back appears poised to show he belongs in the Big 12 as a focal point of an offense.

“I have changed a lot since then,” responded Cook when asked how he’s changed since starting his college career at TCU.

“I’m a bigger back, I’m faster and smarter. I know what’s going on on all sides of the field. Not just what the running back is doing, but how the offensive line is blocking and where they’re trying to get to.”

Find more coverage of Cam Cook and WVU football at WV Sports now.

For a related story, Greg McElroy makes his case for why Cam Cook will dominate as a Mountaineer.