ORANGE, Calif., Oct. 16, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Chapman University has become the latest collegiate addition to the ever-growing list of FieldTurf football stadium installations. The selection of FieldTurf for Wilson Field at Ernie Chapman Stadium was made by Chapman Director of Athletics David Currey. The FieldTurf debuted recently when Chapman defeated Pacific Lutheran 42-25, but the new field will be officially dedicated on October 28 when Chapman hosts Pomona-Pitzer.
"The addition of FieldTurf to Chapman Stadium is the highlight of several major athletic facility upgrades that are currently in progress at the university," said Currey. "What does an athletic director do when he has an NCAA Division III football program and two college soccer programs that need a practice field and a stadium, and who is inundated with space needs for physical education classes, intramurals and club sports demands? He calls Tim Coury at FieldTurf and asks, 'How fast can you put a field down?' Chapman needed a field that could handle the traffic of all that use. We got it. We had no space for it, so we put it on top of our new 1,000-space underground parking structure. FieldTurf was our answer."
"We are certainly very pleased to be associated with Chapman University," said FieldTurf Regional Sales Manager Tim Coury. "Chapman's football program and their athletics department are growing rapidly on the Southern California scene, and we're thrilled that they have selected FieldTurf. Mr. Currey and Coach Owens thoroughly researched the turf products that are on the market, and we're happy that they came to the same conclusion that the overwhelming majority of all college and professional teams have come to ... FieldTurf is No. 1. It has been the field of choice for the majority of high schools and colleges throughout Southern California over the past seven years."
"FieldTurf provides us with an outstanding practice and game field," said Chapman Head Football Coach Bob Owens. "Adapting from grass to FieldTurf was easy since the surface is fast, provides sure footing, is undaunted by weather and easy to maintain. We expect it will continue to look impressive for many years. Chapman University's commitment to provide quality athletic facilities like this makes a significant statement to our prospective student-athletes in the recruiting process."
More than 30 colleges currently play their home games on FieldTurf, including Michigan, Wisconsin, Washington, Oregon, Kansas State, Boston College, Syracuse, Missouri, Louisville and Texas Tech. In addition to its growing popularity in the college ranks, FieldTurf has already established itself as the turf of choice in the National Football League. Twenty-two of the NFL's 32 teams currently use FieldTurf at their stadiums and/or their practice facilities. Also, three Major League Baseball teams use FieldTurf at their stadiums.
The NFL Players Association recently conducted a survey of all NFL players who were asked to rank the league's 32 stadium fields on a variety of factors, such as playability, safety, etc. The NFL players ranked FieldTurf fifth out of 32, and amazingly, NFL players rated FieldTurf ahead of 15 of the league's 19 natural grass fields.
FieldTurf is the result of years of research -- evident in the patented FieldTurf infill mix of silica sand and cryogenic rubber and patented layering process that deliver a system that emulates natural grass. Additional benefits are found in improved player safety, reduced maintenance costs and flexibility for conversion -- allowing stadium managers to quickly change the field from one sport to another or to easily host a variety of sporting events, concerts and other special events directly on top of the FieldTurf surface.
Over the past few years, the quality and performance of FieldTurf's patented system has resulted in over 1900 installations in more than 40 countries. For more information on FieldTurf, please visit www.fieldturf.com or call (800) 724-2969.