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No doubt, fierce competition and athletic aggression will be on wild display when the Oakland Raiders and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take to the turf Jan. 26, hoping for a win in Super Bowl XXXVII. But no matter what the outcome of Sunday’s game, a third team will cheer its rookie for a job well done.
That team – responsible for the upkeep and preparation of the San Diego field that will host the famous football matchup – has temporarily added a new player to its roster: Loyd Bowman.
Thanks to the collaborative efforts of The Toro Company and the NFL’s Super Bowl grounds team, Bowman is playing an active part in the game-day action. No, his position doesn’t call for tackles and touchdowns. Rather, he’s helping prepare the sports turf at Qualcomm Stadium for the football professionals who will play there Sunday.
Bowman, a turf student at Michigan State University, was selected as winner of the first annual Toro Super Bowl Sports Turf Training Program. In the weeks nearing the big kickoff, he has been traveling to San Diego to help the grounds crew maintain practice facilities, NFL Experience areas and the game field for Super Bowl XXXVII.
With the upstart of this program, Toro and the NFL’s Super Bowl grounds team are working to enhance the skills of aspiring sports turf professionals – beginning this year with Bowman. Their collaborative program will continue in coming years, with a new winner getting some industry-related coaching in preparation for each of the coming Super Bowl battles.
“In the past, we’ve addressed many aspects of the future of the game – participation, coaching, accessibility to fields,” recalled Jim Steeg, senior vice president of special events for the NFL. “The Toro Super Bowl Sports Turf Training Program reflects our interest in helping to provide trained turf professionals to maintain safe playing conditions at all levels of competitive football.”
Since the initial World Championship in 1967 – and for all of the 36 succeeding Super Bowls – Toro has added its expertise to the preparation of multiple practice facilities and fan recreational areas. The green-industry manufacturer has been on hand every year – supplying mowers, vehicles, equipment and any other necessities for Super Bowl maintenance crews.
“Getting ready for a Super Bowl is a complex process,” explained Ed Mangan, NFL grounds manager for the Super Bowl. “The turf has to respond to the players, keep them safe, help their game. It also has to survive pre-game festivities and half-time performances as challenging as running a herd of elephants through the field.”
And Toro, Mangan asserted, has helped the turf crew tackle the challenge with products and agronomic consultation.
“Toros’ expertise goes beyond having products to care for the turf to expertise that helps us predict how the turf will respond with the set of conditions at each host facility,” he shared.
The author is Assistant Editor – Internet for Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at aanderson@lawnandlandscape.com.