GREENVILLE — East Carolina’s annual Purple-Gold game always makes for an interesting Saturday afternoon. Fans gather in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium to get a sneak peek at what next year’s football product will be. There was an extra buzz in the air this year as it provided the first glimpse of how the brand-new coaching staff, led by first-year coach Scottie Montgomery, has overhauled the Pirate offense.

The afternoon started off in explosive and familiar fashion. The Pirates, known for years for their potent aerial attack, kicked off the afternoon with a 75-yard touchdown connection between Kurt Benkert and Trevon Brown on the first play of the game.

The passing game was one of the offensive highlights of the afternoon. Brown led the way with three catches for 95 yards and that touchdown. Brandon Bishop hauled in four balls for 92 yards. Davon Grayson and Terrell Green both had four catches for over 80 yards, too.

“It’s becoming easier,” Brown said of adjusting to the new offense. “We worked so hard in the spring, the quarterbacks and receivers. It’s getting good. These new offenses and new routes are becoming second nature.”

Benkert and Phillip Nelson performed about as evenly as can be. Nelson finished 13-of-24 for 231 yards and Benkert completed 12-of-25 throws for 216 yards. The competition for the starting role should remain interesting heading into the summer.

The receiver corps was without standout senior Isaiah Jones, who is recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. Benkert, who is making a comeback from a knee injury last summer, has made sure to show support of his teammate.

“He’s a great player and somebody with really reliable hands,” Benkert said. “He doesn’t drop many balls. He’s where he needs to be, exactly when he needs to be. You know what to expect from him when he comes out on the field.

“When I first got hurt, after my surgery, he came over to my house and just kind of hung out and checked in on me. When he had his surgery, I checked on him. If you get injured, you realize how tough it is. You care a little bit more about the other people that get injured. … It definitely opened my eyes to being there for everyone else if they get hurt.”

Even with the success moving the ball through the air, this wasn’t exactly the “Air Raid” offense of past Pirate teams. The ECU offenses took to the ground 37 times, picking up 126 yards and a touchdown. Five different running backs got touches, including a recently moved James Summers.

“When you have the running backs that we have, it makes it a lot easier. They can do a lot of different things like catch out of the backfield, run power plays and run sweeps,” Benkert said. “It’s nice knowing you have weapons around you like that.”

Summers, who had been recruited as a wide receiver, was part of last year’s dual-quarterback system. Montgomery and company elected to try him at running back during the spring, which should add versatility and open up possibilities for different trick plays out of the backfield.

Anthony Scott led all rushers with 10 carries for 47 yards and a score. Benkert ran in the other touchdown on a short quarterback keeper.

Defensively, both units struggled with the deep ball, but managed to hold the ground attack to a modest 3.4 yards per carry. Dedrick Hawkins led the defense with eight tackles. Seven others had at least four stops. DaShaun Amos had the lone interception of the game when he picked off Benkert and returned it for 38 yards.