OGDEN — One of the goals for Weber State's defense during spring football was to find an identity.
If the performance of the defensive players in the annual Purple/White game was any indication on Saturday afternoon, they've found one. The Wildcats' defense looks undersized, but the unit has speed, can get to the ball, force turnovers and create havoc.
"We just try to come out here and fly around," said Weber State safety Blake Keller, who intercepted quarterback Cameron Higgins on the game's opening possession. "That's one of the things that our coaches have stressed to us — to hustle, hustle to the ball and good things will happen, and get turnovers and establish an identity."
The Wildcats weren't split into two sides like a traditional game. The White team was the offense, and the defense was Purple, which pretty much dominated the contest.
Weber State's defense allowed just two touchdowns in 11 series run by the offense. The Purple team collected two turnovers, forced what would have been five punts in a regular game, and made two fourth-down stops to end possessions.
Freshman middle linebacker Anthony Morales led the defensive effort with eight total tackles. Trevor Pletcher had seven tackles with a sack. Nick Webb had six total tackles and Sam Fenn had a sack.
"They didn't give up anything big and made plays they had to make," said coach Ron McBride. "And they created doubt in the offense's mind with how they hit."
Of course, there's a flip side to how well the defense played in the annual spring game. Weber State's offense struggled, looked sloppy at times and rarely impressed. The offense was, however, without starting receivers Mike Phillips and Joe Collins. The unit, as has been the case all spring, only had five linemen available because of injuries and academic issues.
"Offensively, I wasn't too excited about it," McBride said. "The nice thing about it, though, is we'll have all of our utensils in the fall on offense. It'll be a whole different look."
Well, the look won't change at quarterback, as Higgins, who completed 9-of-16 passes for 102 yards, will be back for his senior year. Something else that might not be different from the spring game is Josh Booker's presence at running back. Booker was one of a few bright spots for the offense Saturday, as he rushed for 103 yards on 11 carries and had 45-yard TD run.
"A lot of these young guys got to step up," Higgins said. "It was good to see them trying to play and working hard and learning from their mistakes. We need to crispen things up a bit, and I need to play better, too."
Higgins credited the team's five offensive linemen — Bijon Mostoufi, Spencer Rangasan, Ged Carrington, Tytan Timoteo and Kevin Halfhill, a converted tight end — for making it through every snap in Saturday's game.
"Those guys battled every play," Higgins said. "That's good for them. They're all young guys. They all need those reps to get used to the feel of the game and different looks and different fronts. I thought they did good overall. Those guys are probably gassed out by now."
The play of Joel Hancock made the offense proud. The former Fremont quarterback has changed positions and will now play receiver for the Wildcats. He caught three passes for 43 yards.
"I thought Joel Hancock really stepped up to the plate," McBride said. "He's a gamer. He's a good player at any position you put him in. He made plays in tough situations."
The Wildcats wrapped up spring drills with Saturday's game, and won't officially start preparing for their opener at Boston College until August. Weber State, which will be an inexperienced team in the fall, was limited by injuries in the spring, leaving McBride unsatisfied with the work the team put in.
"Well, I wish we had another week, just because this team needs the reps," McBride said.
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