Rack up another NCAA Division 1-A installation for FieldTurf. The latest feather in the cap of the world leader in artificial surfacing is at Western Kentucky’s Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium. WKU Athletics Director Dr. Camden “Wood” Selig and FieldTurf CEO Joe Fields jointly made the announcement that FieldTurf will be the turf of choice for the Hilltoppers beginning with the 2009 football campaign.
The new FieldTurf at Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium has just been installed and the football team practiced on it for the first time this week as the Hilltoppers opened spring practice. The FieldTurf will “officially” debut on September 12 when WKU hosts South Florida. The Hilltoppers, one of only 120 Football Bowl Subdivision (I-A) teams, are eligible for a bowl berth and the Sun Belt Conference championship for the first time in 2009.
"As we continue the evolution of our football program to bigger and better heights as one of only 120 Football Bowl Subdivision members, we are very pleased to have recently installed a new first-class field at Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium,” said Selig. “Our new FieldTurf surface is identical to the one used by more than 50 top NCAA universities, and 21 of the NFL's 32 teams presently utilize FieldTurf in their stadiums and/or practice facilities. Following the recent significant renovations to our football stadium, it is only fitting that we also add a state-of-the-art playing surface. It is truly an exciting time for WKU football."
"Our new FieldTurf surface is everything I had hoped it would be," said WKU Head Coach David Elson. "It is state-of-the-art in every respect, and our players love it. Some say you are known by the company you keep, and when you look at the professional organizations and top college programs that have FieldTurf, it is a pretty impressive group to be associated with."
“We are obviously very pleased that Western Kentucky has selected FieldTurf for Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium,” said Fields. “With Western Kentucky’s elevation to Division 1-A, the university is working hard to elevate the football program in a variety of ways. We are thrilled that WKU considers FieldTurf to be an important piece of the puzzle as they strive to make Hilltoppers football even better. FieldTurf will do everything within its power to give Hilltoppers fans and Coach (David) Elson an athletic surface that will bring out the best in their team.”
The installation of FieldTurf at Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium is one of the improvements that have been made to the facility in the past two years. Those improvements have included a significant renovation to the stadium’s east side that brings the capacity to 25,000. A new club level has been added, along with new football offices, a new weight room, new locker room, new weight room and new training room. Additionally, a new scoreboard which includes a video screen has been added.
More than 50 top NCAA universities currently play their home games on FieldTurf including Nebraska, Ohio State, Michigan, Texas, West Virginia, Washington, Oregon, Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State, Boston College, Indiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Texas Tech, Rutgers, Syracuse, Cincinnati and Louisville. Twenty-one of the NFL's 32 teams presently utilize FieldTurf in their stadiums and/or practice facilities. In addition, MLB's Tampa Bay Rays, Minnesota Twins and Toronto Blue Jays have FieldTurf at their respective stadiums.
The NFL Players Association released their bi-annual ranking of NFL stadium fields during a January 29 press conference in Tampa prior to the Super Bowl. Once again, the results tabbed FieldTurf as the runaway leader among all artificial turf brands. In data gathered from polling/voting of over 1500 NFL players, 40% of the league's Top Ten surfaces were FieldTurf fields. In addition, four of the top five and eight of the top ten artificial turf fields in the league are FieldTurf, according to that NFLPA data.
FieldTurf Tarkett, a Division of the Tarkett Group, is the largest entity in the sports surfacing industry and offers unparalleled leasing capabilities, engineering, manufacturing resources, and environmental standards. In addition to its world-renowned FieldTurf and Prestige brands of artificial turf, FieldTurf Tarkett provides an equally impressive range of sports flooring products that includes synthetic and hardwood basketball, volleyball and gymnasium flooring, squash and racquetball courts, floor protection and covering systems, and weight room flooring. Also in the range of FieldTurf Tarkett products are high performance indoor and outdoor running tracks including the Beynon track surfaces, playground surfacing, commercial and residential landscaping, and a complete range of tennis and golf surfaces. All of FieldTurf Tarkett's surfaces are developed, produced and installed with a concentration on sustainability and a commitment to protecting the environment. The company calls it 'Environmental Intelligence' and lives by this principle in every way. For more information on FieldTurf, please visit www.fieldturf.com
