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TURF

Discussion in 'Miami Dolphins Forum' started by Galant, Nov 10, 2017.

  1. Galant

    Galant Love - Unity - Sacrifice - Eternity

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    http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nfl/miami-dolphins/article183750236.html

    "BY ADAM H. BEASLEY
    NOVEMBER 09, 2017 5:03 PM

    Everything you think you know about the Dolphins’ chewed up playing surface is wrong.

    No, it has not been in bad shape because the University of Miami played on it the day before.

    And, no, it is not because the shade canopy makes grass hard to grow.

    Rather, it is because of defective sod provided to Hard Rock Stadium by a company that the team has since fired.

    “The field this year has been a challenge and we’re addressing it,” Dolphins CEO Tom Garfinkel said. “We believe we’ve identified the issue. We installed a new field — from a different vendor — this week and I have a lot more confidence that we will not have issues for the UM game this weekend or for next weekend’s games.”



    Along with changing field providers, the Dolphins have also changed the strand of grass used from paspalum back to Bermuda.

    These corrections have the team convinced that the problem, which has drawn criticism both locally and nationally, will be fixed going forward. There is no plan at this time to switch to field turf because it is simply too hot for use in South Florida and over player safety concerns.

    Rather, the field will remain natural grass, even if that means the Dolphins need to change it out more often than in years past. Dolphins groundskeepers are saying privately that the field is now the best it has been in a long time, the Herald has learned.

    Dolphins coach Adam Gase, asked about the turf in his Thursday news conference, echoed Garfinkel’s optimism, saying he expects the field issues to be gone by the Dolphins’ Nov. 19 home game against the Buccaneers.

    “Those guys are working hard to make sure that we kind of get this thing squared away,” Gase said. “There are a couple of things that just kind of occurred that it just didn’t work out the way we wanted it to. Hopefully, we’ll have this thing fixed by the next time we play at home. We feel good about the direction we’re heading and what we have lined up. I think Tom has really been on this thing. I know it bothers him because he wants everything perfect to give us the best chance to win.”

    The Dolphins have also been victims of some bad luck. A heavy rainstorm opened up just minutes before kickoff last Sunday, making for a sloppy surface.

    Both Dolphins and Raiders players slipped repeatedly — it appeared to trip up Michael Thomas on the Marshawn Lynch touchdown that was ultimately the difference in the game — prompting CBS analyst Phil Simms to rip the surface on Inside the NFL.

    “Did you watch the Sunday night game down in Miami?” Simms said. “You know, those are professional football players on the field. Did you see the field and conditions? It really bothered me. There are guys — Ndamukong Suh — there are players out there that really could have been hurt because of the condition of that field.... It really did bother me. In this day and age that you can’t have a great surface for all these guys? I thought that they were lucky somebody didn’t get hurt.”

    The NFL and the Dolphins disagree with this take. The field has passed every safety test, and as Simms suggests, there have been no field-based injuries diagnosed by team doctors.

    Also, poor footing might have been better prevented if every player actually listened to their equipment manager. Dolphins players were urged to wear seven-stud cleats Sunday due to the rain; some chose not to.

    As for the arguments that the canopy or overuse is to blame, a rejoinder: The Dolphins had no problems with the field in 2016, aside from the season finale.

    But that was a result of hundreds, if not thousands, of people trampling on the turf during the Orange Bowl’s halftime show and post-game celebrations."
     
    danmarino likes this.
  2. dirtylandry

    dirtylandry Well-Known Member

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    was it from china?
     
    Rickysabeast likes this.
  3. The_Dark_Knight

    The_Dark_Knight Defender of the Truth

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    The tone of that article seemed a bit harsh towards critics of the field at Hard Rock Stadium. I don't understand that bitterness. We've all noticed something has been wrong this season. While I'm no one important, I wasn't one of those blaming this, that or the other...merely pointing out that something was wrong and was merely speculating.

    Prior to posting, I did some reading on paspalum grass and it would appear to me it was used as an environmentally friendly alternative to the traditional Bermuda grass, requiring less what and less use of fertilizer.

    I just hope this new Bermuda sod will take a solid rooting before our next game. If it does, I truly believe we're going to see players making plays we've not regularly seen this season...I truly believe that.
     
  4. Unlucky 13

    Unlucky 13 Team Raheem Club Member

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    Thank you for the link. I wonder how much of this is just a PR move by the team. Its it truly too hot in Miami to use any kind of artificial field surface? I'm going to explore other warm weather areas and see how teams handle it.
     
  5. Brasfin

    Brasfin Well-Known Member

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    The artificial field probably won't be ever be an option due to the international soccer games that Ross wants to host at the stadium. The heat probably is a factor but it likely isn't the main one.
     
  6. KeyFin

    KeyFin Well-Known Member

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    The thing is, there are hundreds of miles of sod farms on the West Coast of Florida....that used to be all you'd see driving up I-75. There definitely shouldn't be a problem getting quality sod.
     
  7. Unlucky 13

    Unlucky 13 Team Raheem Club Member

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    If forgotten about that. Screw soccer. I'm so tired of our team bending over backwards and having lesser facilities because of the other tenants.
     
  8. jdallen1222

    jdallen1222 Well-Known Member

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    Soccer was supposed to be the next big sport in the U.S. Here we are, 30 years later, still not giving a ****.
     
  9. Unlucky 13

    Unlucky 13 Team Raheem Club Member

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    I don't want to bash someone else for liking it, but I can't grasp why people do. But beyond that, I want whats best for the Miami Dolphins. I love baseball, but I wanted them to kick the Marlins out for a long time. Now that they have, we have other team's and sports that are messing up the field. It sucks.
     
  10. cbrad

    cbrad .

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    Failing to even qualify for the 2018 WC from arguably the easiest group and by losing to an absolute minnow in Trinidad & Tobago certainly isn't going to help either, at least in the short term.

    However, what's interesting is that MLS seems to be on relatively sound footing, not in terms of profits today, but in terms of attendance systematically rising (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Soccer_attendance) and ever larger fees cities across the US and Canada are willing to pay for the right to have an expansion team (it's now at $150 million for teams to join in 2020).

    Quality of play is still not that great though.. something comparable to maybe the lower tier teams in other top leagues (which are very top heavy), so it's like the best MLS team is more like the Cleveland Browns or so. The reason for that is simple: MLS deliberately doesn't want to go bankrupt by allowing owners to spend as much as they want. That was the model before and didn't work.

    Anyway, for those complaining about Dolphins mediocrity, the US Men's National Soccer Team arguably beats them at it, barely improving (if at all) since the mid 1990's. Failing to qualify for the WC might end up leading to the necessary changes at the top to prioritize winning over funding.. we'll see.
     
  11. muskrat21

    muskrat21 Well-Known Member

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    turf is pretty awful TBH. I coach soccer at Oxbridge, we use the turf field once football is over, and sometimes before depending what fields are open. even in the "fall" it's at least 10-20 degrees hotter because of the rubber pellets. Which now research shows that turf and the rubber pellets can increase players cancer chances so there is that lovely fact too.
     
  12. Rickysabeast

    Rickysabeast Royale With Cheese

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    It is absurdly pathetic that in Miami Florida we are having turf problems. I mean awful. There are millions of single family homes with lawns and 1250 golf courses in Florida. We cant resolve it at the NFL stadium owned by the leagues 2nd richest owner who owns the home to a $2.5 BILLION dollar team? The owner who is a FREAKING REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER IN THE MOST TROPICAL AND LANDSCAPING ABUNDANT AREA IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE?

    No wonder we can't fix the O line. We cant even get grass figured out!!!!!
     
  13. dirtylandry

    dirtylandry Well-Known Member

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    it does tell you a lot about the turf and the state of the team. Ross needs to surround himself with better football people. He is a generous owner, but is not being led well at all
     
  14. Rickysabeast

    Rickysabeast Royale With Cheese

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    Aren't there like 1,000 landscapers living within 2 miles of the stadium?
     
  15. jdallen1222

    jdallen1222 Well-Known Member

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    He's been learning on the job(I know it's been almost 10 years), but one thing I can really appreciate about him as an owner is what appears to be his loyalty. He may stick with something a little longer than others, but he seems loyal to the people he hires. Not a bad quality when seeking new talent.
     
  16. Rickysabeast

    Rickysabeast Royale With Cheese

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    Robert Kraft owned the Patriots for 2 years before the Patriots went to a superbowl. Jerry Jones owned Cowboys for 4 years before they went to a superbowl. So maybe he needs to learn better or hire faster. I do agree that loyalty is a hugely important attribute but c'mon...
     

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