“If a cow can’t eat it, I don’t want to play on it” -Dick Allen, Chicago White Sox
Next summer Southwestern College plans to roll out the red carpet for a renovated stadium and roll out the green carpet for its field athletes.
Some, however, are calling the college and the athletic programs on the carpet for putting the health of student-athletes at risk. Artificial surfaces, they argue, are harder, hotter, expensive to maintain and cause an array of injuries not seen on grass.
Advocates of artificial turf, including SWC Dean of Athletics Terry Davis, claim that it is less expensive, more durable and could open up the field for commercial rentals.
Davis and other synthetic playing surface advocates point out that college athletic programs across the nation are installing artificial turf that can be used multiple times a day.
Today’s surfaces, they argue, are better than the original Astroturf artificial surfaces from the 1970s and ‘80s that were plastic rugs on concrete composed of layers of industrial backing, sand and rubber infill between fibrous grass-like strands.
Most professional teams, particularly baseball, have abandoned artificial surfaces and have returned to grass for aesthetic purposes and to protect their multi-million dollar players. Colleges, however, and even high schools, are moving toward artificial turf.
Governing Board Vice President Humberto Peraza said he questioned synthetic turf many times at board meetings and is “not a fan” of artificial fields, but compromised because of its revenue generating possibilities.
“By having synthetic turf you are able to use the field more often,” he said. “You can have a soccer final the same day as a football game.”
Peraza said SWC always cuts when faced with financial challenges, but virtually ignores the other way out of a bind, which is revenue generation.
“We can’t cut our way out of this (fiscal) predicament,” he said. “We’ve cut to the bone. We need to find ways to bring in revenue and we need to utilize our campus resources wherever possible.”
Peraza said he was disappointed that SWC lost a bid to be the home field of the San Diego Flash of the National Professional Soccer League. Del Norte High School is currently the home base of the team. Peraza said he thinks SWC could host games featuring the Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles of the Primera División of the Mexican Professional Soccer, as well as concerts and other large events, once the stadium is renovated.
Artificial surfaces are clearly more durable and can shoulder higher volumes of traffic, but opponents argue that they are dangerous for athletes and are actually more expensive to install and maintain than grass.
In a 10-year study of costs by Red Hen Turf Farm and Blue Grass Enterprises, synthetic surfaces averaged $640,000 compared to $550,000 for professional stadium sand-based natural grass surfaces.
University of San Diego teams play on a natural surface after the athletic department crunched the numbers.
“Our analysis of the situation is that it is basically a wash,” said Josh Lawrence, USD associate athletic director for facilities and operations. “We can replace our natural grass field once or twice in a 10-year span and for the same expense to replace a synthetic surface at the end of 10 years.”
Some opponents argue that schools should not put the safety, health and futures of athletes at risk for savings or convenience.
SWC linebacker Trevion Wilson said he is partial to grass because it plays better and is safer.
“Grass is easier to play on, it’s softer, you can plant your feet better and run faster,” said Wilson. “You don’t have to worry about turf burn either. With turf you have to worry about diseases you can get through rashes if the field is not clean.”
Artificial surfaces in Southern California can get very hot, and have been known to reach 150 degrees. Good trainers must monitor dehydration and additional turf-related risks.
“Synthetic turf does hold heat so there are those heat illness and heat stroke type of injuries that you have to keep an eye on,” said SWC trainer Dennis Petrucci. “A few years ago I remember traveling to a football game that had turf. It was so hot (at 1 p.m. kickoff) that we had 10 to 15 (pairs of) cleats fall apart because the glue in the shoe melted. We had to try and use tape to hold them together.”
Abrasions are another injury that players often get on artificial surfaces. When the Jags play on synthetic fields several players will suffer from large, deep skin abrasions, that look like the outside of a strawberry after the injury, said Petrucci.
Petrucci said serious knee injuries are more common on synthetic fields, primarily Anterior Cruciate Ligament tears.
“The problem with these, other than the pain, is that you run the risk of infection and with staph infections like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus out there now, it’s a very scary proposition,” he said. “Because of this, it’s important to maintain the synthetic turf by cleaning it regularly.”
Artificial turf does not play like grass, Petrucci said.
“The synthetic turfs tend to have good traction where the foot stays planted and the rest of the body continues in motion,” he said. “And the last concern is a hot topic right now, especially in the NFL. Underneath those carpets is a concrete surface. An athlete being thrown or falling to the ground hitting that hard surface has a higher risk for any injury, sprained joints and broken bones, including concussions.”
Events that may seem innocuous like graduations can actually be dangerous for football players. Metal pegs, chairs, stage leggings and canopies dig into the surface and damage fibers. Liquids and moisture seep into the material, increasing the risk of mold and disease.
Jaguar quarterback Brett Nelson said he understands the concerns but is not worried.
“We played on turf last week and I played on it my entire high school career and it wasn’t a big deal,” said Nelson. “The game of football has been more adjusted to turf. I love grass personally, but obviously the game is changing and it’s a lot easier to maintain turf. Hopefully it’s not that big of a deal because we’re playing on it, but there is always the concerns that it gets hotter and it’s easier to cramp up.”