In what one assistant coach called “Apple Cup weather,” the WSU football team took to the Martin Stadium turf in its first full scrimmage of the spring.

Senior quarterback Gary Rogers led the first-team offense against the first-team defense on a chilly Friday afternoon, but the offense could only muster two rushing touchdowns on a day in which the defense took control.

Junior running back Chris Ivory scored on runs of one and 15 yards, finishing with 38 yards on six carries on the afternoon.

Redshirt freshman Logwone Mitz led the team with 44 yards rushing on only two carries, thanks to a 46-yard scamper early in the scrimmage. Junior Jace Perry, a walk-on from Camas, impressed coaches with 43 yards rushing on nine carriers.

The longest pass reception belonged to sophomore Randy Johnson, as he reeled in a 35-yard pass from freshman Marshall Lobbestael. Lobbestael finished the day 3-of-5 passing for 53 yards. Rogers, the presumed starting quarterback, completed 9 of 21 passes for 98 yards and no touchdowns.

“We’re gonna make mistakes, and we know that,” head coach Paul Wulff said. “We also can’t continue to make mistakes. The offense struggled at times … I was pleased, though, because I think the defense was better this scrimmage than the first scrimmage.”

Freshman linebacker Marshal Pirtz intercepted a Cole Morgan pass that tipped off the fingers of wide receiver Michael Willis, while the other interception of the day belonged to sophomore Romeo Pellum, who brought down a Kevin Lopina pass.

WSU is coming into the spring practices dealing with some depth issues, leading to some changes, mostly on the defensive side of the ball.

Already, Wulff has moved sophomore Chima Nwachukwu from his cornerback position he played last season to safety alongside junior Xavier Hicks. Senior Alfonso Jackson moved from the safety position to cornerback.

Senior Andy Roof, after sitting out last season due to a school-related suspension, is now on the defensive line. Roof is a defensive tackle playing with the first team alongside fellow defensive tackle, A’i Ahmu.

“It’s a blast, I love it,” said Roof, who swatted down a Rogers pass early in the scrimmage. “There’s a big technical switch, but it’s a lot more fun, you know, it’s more of an effort.”

Roof said he played on the defensive line in high school, and was excited after Wulff asked him to make the switch. Roof will switch places with freshman B.J. Guerra, who came to WSU last year as a defensive tackle.

“We’re just trying to get some maturity in our defensive line,” Wulff said. “Just felt that Andy could help us more immediately than B.J. could on the defensive line.”

Roof was obviously excited about the transition, and Wulff is pleased with what he sees.

“I think he’s doing a good job,” Wulff said. “He’s not where he’s gonna be, but he’s come a long ways.”

Although the offense struggled, Wulff knows the team needs time to get on the same page.

“We still have a lot of players that have got a lot of learning to do,” he said. “We've just got to keep working hard. It’s not going to happen overnight, it’s gonna take a while. We've just got to keep working.”