Cabral's love of the game shines through in coaching style
Victor Cabral owes the game of football a lot.
The newly minted West Virginia outside linebacker coach became the first member of his family to attend college after accepting a football scholarship from Georgia Southern. The game also afforded him the opportunity for a profession once he found himself on the other side of the coin in coaching.
“The greatest profession in the world is coaching at any level,” he said.
The trademark enthusiasm and energy that Cabral is known for when he coaches bleeds through when he simply discusses his craft. That’s not by accident as he treats it as an ode to the game.
That dates back to his playing days when he often used energy to overcome obstacles so naturally when it came time to coach he’d take the same approach.
“This game has given me so much and that’s why I come out with as much energy as I can,” he said.
Cabral has had success in terms of production at every stop on the coaching ladder which made him a strong candidate when the Mountaineers needed help with passing rushing off the edge.
There were some previous ties with defensive coordinator Jordan Lesley as the two would often cross paths in recruiting which eventually built into a friendship based out of respect.
“Everybody I had to fight for, because we coached the same position, I had to fight against him in recruiting,” Lesley said.
And once the two were able to sit down and discuss football they found out that they had a lot more in common than they initially realized. That made Cabral a perfect fit when the job came open and he didn’t have to think twice about the opportunity when it was offered.
“It’s an unbelievable blessing to be a part of Coach (Neal) Brown’s staff and the vision that he has been able to establish,” he said.
The first thing that Cabral did when he took the job was let his position room know what he was all about and share some of what makes him a relatable coach.
“I want them to be great. That’s all I want for them,” he said.
There has been a little bit of a learning curve for Cabral given the fact he comes from a true 3-4 scheme and now will be playing a hybrid type of scheme. But he compares it to learning a new dialect instead of attempting to master a new language.
The focus for the room is simple in that pass rushing is patience and Cabral is responsible for attacking the edges with the spur defenders.
“The great thing about this defense is really a hybrid of a lot of different concepts,” Cabral said.
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