New
turf coming to Washington-Grizzly Stadium
The University of Montana Grizzly football team will maul opponents on a
new playing field this fall, thanks to a $1 million gift from an anonymous donor.Chuck
Maes, assistant athletic director of business affairs, said the donation will replace
Washington-Grizzly Stadium's natural grass field with SprinTurf, an artificial playing
surface that uses synthetic "grass" over a unique rubber in-fill. The new
surface is supposed to stay springy in cold Montana weather, drain well and not give
players rug burns like traditional Astroturf.
"This stuff is really amazing," Maes said. "You can't tell it's not real
grass."
The state Board of Regents gave UM approval April 6 to spend up to $1.3 million for a
synthetic football field and possibly add stadium lights. Maes said the new turf should be
completely installed by the end of July.
Maes said players and coaches wanted a new field surface to combat the frigid and wet
playing conditions that hit Montana in the fall. Players often face cold conditions in
which their shoe cleats can't penetrate frozen natural turf. And in wet, snowy conditions,
natural turf often became muddy and slick.
"This really negates the speed and mobility of our guys," Maes said.
UM athletic officials investigated several types of turf before making a purchase. They
even had two team leaders from the 2000 season -- quarterback Drew Miller and halfback
Yohance Humphery -- test various types of playing surfaces. Both thought the turf provided
by SprinTurf Inc. of West Conshohocken, Penn., was the way to go -- especially since
SprinTurf uses a rubber in-fill instead of sand, which can get rock hard in cold weather.
Maes said the new turf will cost about $800,000. He said it's guaranteed for eight
years and should last 10 to 15 years with proper maintenance. He said Intercollegiate
Athletics chose a natural dark-green color for the artificial grass, which will be
imported from Holland. The numbers, markings and UM Grizzly logo on the new field will be
permanent, eliminating the need to paint, and they should always look crisp and sharp.
Athletics also would like to add a UM maroon strip around the fringe of the field.
Another advantage of the new surface is that players will be able to practice on the
field without worrying about tearing it up before a big game.
Maes said local contractors have donated much of the cost and labor for installing the
new surface. George Mungas of Philipsburg did the excavation work at a reduced rate, and
Northern Specialty Supply Inc. of Missoula provided the pipe drainage system. Northern
Specialty also made drinkable water available on the sidelines.
Maes said the drainage system is already working well. When Missoula was hit by nearly
2 inches of rain and snow early in June, the field was dry hours after the storm.
He said UM will be the first Big Sky Conference university to use SprinTurf. Workers
will arrive to begin installing the new surface at the beginning of July.
While the turf is going in, the lights will have to wait. Maes said UM will do a
feasibility study to investigate how to install lights that won't get in the way of
possible future stadium expansions.
The new field will be officially unveiled during the Great Griz Encounter from 3 to 5
p.m. Sunday, Aug. 19. Intercollegiate Athletics Director Wayne Hogan, Grizzly head coach
Joe Glenn and UM President George Dennison will be on hand for a 4:15 p.m. ribbon-cutting
ceremony on the field.
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