Just in case you may have missed it, Notre Dame announced today that they will be installing FieldTurf. Jack Swarbrick was interviewed by the FIDM crew on the decision which has caused more than a little stir in the Notre Dame online community already. Here is the full video of the interview along with some notes on what Swarbrick had to say.
Swarbrick mentioned a few specific benefits to both the program and the University that come with the switch from grass to FieldTurf.
- Allows the players to have a field that is reliable that they know what the conditions will be.
- Allows the players to practice on the same surface that they will play the majority of their games on.
- Allows the players to be in Notre Dame Stadium on Fridays.
- Allows the Stadium to be used more throughout the year for non-football events. When asked about having concerts in Notre Dame Stadium, Swarbrick didn’t sound too optimistic, but did mention the possibility of outdoor hockey.
Some other key points from Swarbrick’s interview:
- Brian Kelly was not very involved in the decision to make the switch.
- Notre Dame hasn’t made any definitive plans for the design of the field (ie logos on the field) but Swarbrick does not expect to see anything significantly different than what is on the field now.
- Construction will begin the day after commencement and scheduled completion is August 15.
I think it’s a wise move. Esp. after reading that they had to replace the grass 4 times this past year and it looks atrocious.
I know some traditionalists will be in a tailspin over this. But the field looks terrible. Is that how you want to present the best football program in the world? Dirt and mud.
I do think for tradition’s sake, however, the current look of the field should look the same as it does know. I know even some non-Irish fans who like the throwback look of the field and that should be maintained.
How can you win a national championship if you can’t grow grass?
-Bruce Johnson
Make the turf field a gold color and call it the Gold Mine (or Gold Rush, hahaha). All kidding aside, I don’t think it’s a bad idea to go turf and I don’t think it will make chicken little run around and worry about the damn sky falling either.
Go Irish
Good. Notre Dame is following Francis’ led and updating. (Frank is the Pope, btw)
And continuing on that line…BK is exactly the right coach to update the program with. His (overused and now annoying) concept of “being dynamic” is exactly the way to go-about this process. ND has gone full-in with BK and that is evident with this whole monumental movement of realigning the layout of NotaDame. The decision has been made. For God’s sake, (apt cliché) either support dynamism or stay-off the boards.
I noticed you spelled it NotaDame, does that mean you are from Boston?
(sorry for the delayed response)
Absolutely, from Boston. Home of champions. (all four pro-sports own a championship this century) And by spelling (saying, too) notAdame, I’m being true to my heritage. Boston dialect ROCKS! (;
checking on the “notify me if response” box