Sun Devil Stadium: University Gridiron Grows Up

arved between two mountain buttes in the desert Southwest is an impor- Ctant training facility for aspiring pro- fessional football players. Ironically profes- sional football plays no part in its construction or maintenance. Sun Devil Stadium in Phoe- nix, AZ., is the sole responsibility of Arizo- na State University (ASU) in Tempe. The fact that this stadium has become one of the most recognized in college football and may one day serve a professional football team is purely the result of the foresight of individuals in the athletic and physical plant departments at the university. There is no minor league in football. Those athletes whose desire in life is to be profes- sional football players have just one way to get there, by going to school and demon- strating their prowess on the gridirons at colleges and universities in small towns and cities across the U.S. These fields are the stage where football careers begin for some and end for others. They are the proving grounds and training facilities for a multi- billion dollar industry. But they are also a tremendous source of national recognition for American colleges and universities, a factor that attracts students and endowments to campuses. When Sun Devil Stadium was built in 1959, television was still in its infancy and national recognition for college teams was hard to gain. ASU trustees at the time wer- en't thinking about television revenues or professional football. Their primary concern was providing a football facility in which stu- dent athletes could compete successfully with other colleges in the Western Athletic Conference. The football stadium would also be an important part of fall student activi- ties and the only large football stadium in Phoenix for local sports fans. Sun Devil Stadium at Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ. An old landfill situated between two buttes next to the campus was chosen as the site shape." A serious nutsedge problem deve- mittee reached an agreement with ASU in for the stadium since it formed a natural loped in the alkaline soil. The soil got worse 1971 and the first game was held that winter. bowl. To widen the bowl, construction crews as the salts from the irrigation water and Dickerman, a 1962 graduate of the turf- had to blast away tons of rock. When they fertilizers built up. Leaching the salts out grass management program at the Univer- finished blasting, the floor of the stadium of the soil was just about impossible since sity of New Mexico, Las Cruces, went to was still bowl-shaped with the center over the drainage system was so poor. Despite the directors of both the athletic and phys- the landfill. By the time thousands of yards these challenges, Dickerman managed to ical plant departments in 1972 about the of local caliche (high in lime content) soil produce a quality field for the Sun Devils condition of the field. He wanted to replace were graded to an 18-inch crown, the soil every year. the caliche soil with three inches of sand in the center was mote than three feet deep In 1970, a group of independent business- on top of the best clay loam he could find, while that on the sidelines was only six men in the state approached ASU about fumigate the new soil to kill any nutsedge inches deep. Common bermudagrass was using Sun Devil Stadium for a new, post- tubers and install a new hybrid ber- installed and irrigated with quick coupler season college bowl game they had named mudagrass called Santa Ana. The ber- sprinklers located on the sidelines. the Fiesta Bowl. The ASU Sun Devils had mudagrass had been developed in the late For more than 15 years the grounds crew established an impressive record in the con- '60s by Dr. Vic Youngner of the California had to contend with settling in the center ference. The Fiesta Bowl committee wanted Extension Service. lthas better wear toler- of the field and dry spots along the side- to stage a holiday season contest between ance than common bermudagrass, toler- lines, explains Don Dickerman, assistant the champion of the Western Athletic Con- ates salty soils and smog, and retains its director of physical plant and former grounds ference, which ASU had been for several dark green color long into the cool football manager. "We had to do a lot of hand water- years, and a football powerhouse from . season. ingand topdressing to keep the field in another conference. The Fiesta Bowl com- Dickerman was able to take advantage 20 sporfsTURF sity approved a new Toro irrigation system to give Dickerman better control over soil moisture in the shallow portions of the field. Dickerman also wanted to combat soil alkalinity. He added a small pump that could inject fertilizers and wetting agents into the irrigation system and installed a network of french drains. "I wanted to flush the salts out of the soil periodically by using irriga- tion water containing wetting agents," he explains. "The Santa Ana could tolerate the alkaline soil better than the common ber- muda, but we also overseed with perenni- al ryegrass for the Fiesta Bowl. I didn't want alkaline soil hurting the germination or es- tablishment of the ryegrass since we never have more than two to three weeks between home games in the fall to overseed." Gyp- IRROMEIER sum is also spread on the field to amend FINEST TENSIOMETER the soil. Tired of out of control Dickerman would prefer not to overseed. "The Santa Ana rarely goes dormant here," Water Costs? he explains. "We found that spraying the IRROMETERS, for over 35 years the turf with charcoal suspended in water keeps leader in moisture sensing, can pay the soil warm during the fall and winter." for themselves in a few months in water savings alone! The black granules absorb sunlight to build From simple time clocks to the new up a reserve of heat in the soil during the computer controls, these accurate night. He experimented with pregerminat- instruments have been time proven ing the ryegrass before overseeding, but in actual service. Adjustable for any decided that he got a denser stand of soil type or plant material with an ryegrass just as fast by applying charcoal. easy to read gauge. Call us today! "To apply the pregerminated seed you have o Send me free literature. to mix it with sand. The sand granules are IRROMETER CO. abrasive to the soft, wet seed and can BOX 2424 RIVERSIDE, CALIF. 92516 damage it." Telephone: (714) 689·1101 When night temperatures fall below 60 ~ __ Circle 114 on Postage Free Card --- degrees F. in the fall the field is covered at the end of a day with a tarp that is dark on one side and light on the other. "The dark TERRA side absorbs the late afternoon sunshine COMPACTION and keeps soil temperatures up overnight," explains Dickerman. "This helps the over- SCALE seeded ryegrass germinate quickly." Con- versely, the light side of the tarp reflects heat when the field needs to be covered during the day. The field is overseeded in October with a blend of Derby, Regal and Allstar peren- nial ryegrasses. "We wait until the team has two away games in a row," states Dicker- man. "First we scalp and verticut the field of a new spirit of cooperation between the with a Toro triplex. We pick up the thatch athletic department and the physical plant and stems with a Turf Vac and go over the department brought about largely by the field with an Olathe sweeper to pull out any Fiesta Bowl. Both the university and the Fies- remaining debris. This opens up the San- ta Bowl were receiving national attention ta Ana so we can broadcast the ryegrass as teams from football conferences across evenly over the field. We continue to broad- the nation came to Phoenix to play the Sun cast seed before games during the rest of Devils. Columbia Broadcasting System the season to let the players work the seed (CBS) was interested in televising the game, into the soil." usually held a day or two before Christmas. The agressive hybrid bermudagrass ASU created a public events department produces thatch, so Dickerman implemented Easy Way to Determine to help handle the details of the Fiesta Bowl a regular program of aerifying, verticutting Soil Hardness and to attract other events to the stadium. and topdressing. This is done every four By working together, the three depart- weeks between May and October. The field $139.00 ments were able to generate the support is heavily aerified, verticut and topdressed Terracare Products Co., Inc. needed to finance the field improvements. before overseeding and a second time af- When CBS finalized its agreement in 1973 ter the Fiesta Bowl. "Since the field is used P.O. Box 506 with the Fiesta Bowl to start broadcasting for mud bogs, motocross and other events Pardeeville, WI 53954 in 1974, ASU quickly decided to rebuild the (the Pope held a mass in the stadium this (608) 429·3402 field as Dickerman had suggested. In ad- past September), we also aerate after those," dition to the new soil and sod, the univer- continued on page 22 Circle 115 on Postage Free Card 21 The sevell·story expansion on the south end of Sun Devil Stadium to constructed this winter will consolidate athletic department offices now spread across campus and Include a sports medicine clinic, conference center, weight training center, classrooms and 1,700 more seats.

Sun Devil Stadium a game fou r days later. It was hot and the the Orange Bowl, Rose Bowl and other continued from page 21 bermudagrass was almost yellow when we major bowl games for the best college con- Dickerman adds. uncovered the field. We had to paint." ference champions. Dickerman is not embarrassed to admit In 1978, the success of the Sun Devils While Sun Devil Stadium became the host he uses green paint to prepare the field for and the Fiesta Bowl led to a series of for the football powers of the Pac-1 0, the a televised game. Ken Rosenbaum, who changes. Athletic Director Dr. Fred Miller Fiesta Bowl succeeded in attracting high- does all the field marking and painting for believed the Sun Devils had outgrown the ly ranked teams from other conferences. the athletic department and is also in charge Western Athletic Conference. Instead of Within a short period of time, Sun Devil of ASU's Packard Baseball Stadium, takes playing the U.S. Air Force Academy, Stadium was launched into national promi- care of painting Sun Devil Stadium. "Three Brigham Young University, Colorado State nence. Producers of other events wanted days before the Fiesta Bowl, Ken sprays University and San Diego State, Miller felt to book the stadium. ASU's events depart- the field with a mixture of water and green the Sun Devils should put their strength on ment grew steadily to meet the demand. paint that contains chlorophyll," describes the line against the football powers of the "Motocross, mud bogs and concerts were Dickerman. "The paint colors the thatch and Pacific-8 Conference. He was willing to put a big change from football," remarks Dick- any damaged or dieing turf. We mow the ASU's football program up against the erman. "We had to cover the field with ge- field before the game to give it a striped ap- University of California-Los Angeles, Stan- otextile and plywood. We dumped hundreds pearance. Ken touches up the lines and ford University, Washington State Univer- of yards of dirt on top of that for motocross paints the emblems the day before the sity, Oregon State University and the Univer- and mud bogs. Afterwards, we'd have to game." sity of Southern California. To him it was fix depressions made in the field, patch areas The week after the game, Bob Schwiet- the next step for the Sun Devils. with sod and aerate heavily to get the field zer, lead groundsman at the stadium, ver- Changing conferences meant changing back in shape. It wasn't the kind of thing ticuts deeply to break up the paint in the the Fiesta Bowl. If the Sun Devils became university stadium groundskeepers normally endzones and emblems. "Painting the field the champions of the Pac-10, the new name do." is a major decision," states Schweitzer. "It of the conference after the University of Ar- Arizona State High School football semi- takes the cooperation of all three depart- izona and ASU switched, they would play finals and finals have been held at Sun Devil ments involved at the stadium. You don't in the Rose Bowl, not the Fiesta Bowl. The Stadium for years, as have the state high paint unless it makes sense. Last year, when Fiesta Bowl staff had anticipated such a school band championships, but now its Miami played Michigan, everything had to move by ASU. Its contract included a release scope of events was changing. The city of be perfect, so we painted. This September clause which allowed it to invite a second Phoenix wanted a professional football team we covered the field with geotextiie and ply- "at-large" team to replace the Sun Devils. and Sun Devil Stadium was the only facili- wood for the Papal visit. The Sun Devils had Now the Fiesta Bowl had to compete with ty capable of handling one. When the United States Football League (USFL) was launched, Sun Devil Stadium entered profes- sional sports as the home field for the PARTAC® Wranglers. GOLF COURSE BOTH The short life of the USFL Wranglers may TOP-DRESSING AVAILABLE IN BULK OR BAGS have been just a glimpse of the future. '~The university places some important restrictions CALL TOLL FREE: on the use of Sun Devil Stadium," explains 1-800-247-BEAM Tom Sadler, event coordinator. "One of them IN N.J. is no alcoholic beverages." Restrictions like 201-637-4191 these can complicate matters for a profes- THE PROFESSIONAL'S CHOICE PARTAC PEAT ... SINCE 1922 sional football teamthat relies on conces- .\~~,~~AWW~I ('I/IA\W!~~Y1f<#/ CORPORATION sion revenues for operations, especially a KElSEY PARK BEAM CLAY IS THE RED AMERICA'S PREMIUM GREAT MEADOWS, N.j. BASEBALL MIX USED BY young expansion franchise. --rOP-DRESSING 07838 PROFESSIONAL TEAMS ACROSS Although the National Football League HEAT TREATED THE u.s.A. AND CANADA. SPECIAL MIXES FOR PITCHER'S has yet to form a committee to consider ex- CONTROL THATCH, MOUNDS, HOMEPLATE AREAS pansion teams, Bart Star, former quarter- PROMOTE HEALTHY TURF & WARNING TRACKS. back for the Green Bay Packers, who lives & SMOOTH PLAYING SURFACES in Scottsdale, is leading a campaign to get 22 sportsTURF Circle 105 on Postage Free Card a NFL franchise for Phoenix, and visits Sun sod and rebuild the crown." New Santa Ana students," explains Webb. "We maintain two Devil Stadium as many as three times a sod has been ordered and will be installed baseball stadiums, two football practice week. Star has not publicly stated whether by May. fields, two band practice fields and acres he would prefer a future team to play at Sun Dickerman believes that a total overhaul of intramural fields." Much of the campus Devil Stadium or a dome stadium proposed of the field will be necessary if the stadi- is designed with desert tandscaping, but the for downtown Phoenix. um is chosen by a new NFL franchise. "It's athletic facilities are irrigated (both automatic Meanwhile, the university is going to break possible that a stadium commission will take and flood), overseeded, aerated and top- ground this winter on a multi-million dollar over Sun Devil Stadium and lease it back dressed regularly. "An 18-hole golf course expansion for the south end of Sun Devil to ASU and a professional football fran- and driving range are on the drawing Stadium. The seven-story structure will con- chise." If that happens, Dickerman thinks boards," Webb adds. tain the ASU athletic department offices, the commission should install a PAT Sys- It may be impossible to attribute the a large weight training center, a sports medi- tem so the field can withstand a busier event phenomenal growth of the university to a cine clinic, classrooms, locker rooms, schedule. "That would solve the problems stadium that was built almost 30 years ago, coaches offices, a conference center, an with alkalinity, poor drainage and irrigation." a very successful football program, three ASU Hall of Fame, and outdoor loges fac- A stadium authority would also remove some university departments working closely ing into the stadium. The expansion will add of the restrictions on the facility and make together and the Fiesta Bowl. But last year, 1,700 seats to the 72,000 at present. Two it more attractive to event producers. it all paid off. The Sun Devils captured the new scoreboards will also be installed, one Although Dickerman, as assistant director Pac-10 championship and defeated the with an instant replay video screen. The ex- of physical plant, has much more on his University of Michigan in the Rose Bowl. pansion will provide the university with one mind than the stadium field, he stays in- The Fiesta Bowl was able to arrange a "col- of the most complete stadium sports facil- volved. Standards he implemented for the lege superbowl" between the number one ities in the nation. field are still followed closely by David Webb, ranked University of Miami and number two A center of this quality could serve as a campus grounds manager and Schweitzer. ranked Pennsylvania State University. The lure for a future professional football team. The soil is tested every six weeks for nutrient game was telecast in prime time on Janu- "The expansion on Sun Devil Stadium was levels. "The fertilizer is adjusted to the soil ary 2 giving ASU and Sun Devil Stadium not designed with a professional football test results. We increase potassium levels exposure the trustees could never have im- team in mind," says Jason Eslamieh, de- in the fall to boost winter hardiness and phos- agined possible. sign project manager. "However, there is phorus levels in the spring to help the ber- "If those two buttes were just a little fur- plenty of room for offices if a franchise did mudagrass root system," Dickerman says. ther apart, Sun Devil Stadium could have want to use the facility." "We supplement the granular slow-release been wide enough for baseball," said ex- "We are going to partially rebuild the field fertilizer with some nitrogen, iron, soil pansion project manager Eslamieh. It would at the same time," states Dickerman. "Years penetrant and micronutrients injected into appear that ASU has every intention of keep- of use have worn down the crown. After the the irrigation system." ing its sports program a driving force for Fiesta Bowl, we are going to remove the . "ASU covers 850 acres and has 43,000 both the university and the city of Phoenix.

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Circle 116 on Postage Free Card November, 1987 23