PULLMAN, Wash. (AP) - Washington State coach Paul Wulff, his coaches and players got to know each other, and the Cougars' new no-huddle spread offense, as spring drills started Monday.

Wulff, a former Cougars player (1986-89) who was hired in December to replace Bill Doba, was anxious to get onto the field to see what he'll have to work with next season.

The Cougars return 36 lettermen from last year's 5-7 squad. Wulff hired seven new coaches, keeping only Steve Broussard and Mike Levenseller, both former Washington State players, from Doba's staff.

"Expect a lot of different possibilities," Wulff told reporters.

Wulff said he will bring the no-huddle spread offense to Pullman that helped Eastern Washington make the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs three of the last four years.

The Cougars will have to get used to a quicker tempo and longer practices, Wulff said.

"Communication and being aware of your surroundings," he said. "It really keeps the attention of all the players."

The Cougars' first-year coach, who spent the past 15 seasons at Eastern Washington, including eight as head coach, said he expects players to make mistakes while learning new schemes but hopes they will move on and get better.

"Football is still football," he said. "If they come ready to work and have a good day's practice, they'll do fine."

Little-used backup Gary Rogers, a fifth-year senior, replaces four-year starter Alex Brink at quarterback, but juniors Cole Morgan and Kevin Lopina wait in the wings.

Junior Dwight Tardy, who had 10 starts last season at running back, is sitting out spring drills to recover from knee surgery. Chris Ivory, a junior rusher with three starts last year, won't fully participate this spring while he works to improve his grades.

First-team All Pac-10 wide receiver Brandon Gibson is back for his senior season to headline a squad that lacks experience.

Wulff, a former center, has said the offensive line lacks depth, although seniors Vaughn Lesuma and Dan Rowlands, junior Kenny Alfred and sophomore Micah Hannam are back.

Defensively, seven starters return, including tackle A'i Ahmu and senior linebackers Kendrick Dunn, Cory Evans and Greg Trent. Junior Andy Mattingly has moved from linebacker to end to take advantage of his speed rush.

"The great Cougars teams of the past have started on the defensive front. That's something we've lacked for the past four years, and we need to get back to that," Wulff said. "We've got some work to do to develop that unit."

Senior safety Alfonso Jackson and sophomore cornerback Chima Nwachukwu, who started all 12 games as a freshman, return to the defensive backfield.

Monday's practice kicked off 14 days of drills over three weeks, culminating in the annual spring game April 12.

"I am very excited to get going," Wulff said. "In fact, the best all of us coaches have felt is when we are with the current players working out. It's exciting just to get on the field finally and get to work."