by Alissa Cassidy | lawnstarter.com

When the two NFL finalist teams take to the field at SoFi Stadium Feb. 13 for the Super Bowl, they will be playing on some super grass.

Which makes sense, really – the super grass used for the Super Bowl will be viewed by roughly 100 million people in over 180 countries and territories. Every detail in the Super Bowl is painstakingly crafted, grass included.

How the tough turf is grown, how it gets to the Super Bowl stadium, and how “the Sodfather” and other groundskeepers ensure it looks perfect makes for a super story.

But your soil deserves respect. It serves a vital purpose. It gives plants, trees and grass a place to put their roots and there are many different types of soil. As a homeowner, understanding the soil you have in your yard can really help you with your gardening, landscaping and lawn care.

If you know your soil type and how it acts under different conditions, you can amend or manage it so your grass and other plants have enough air, water and nutrient movement through the root zone. Probably as clear as mud, but keep on reading to get a better understanding!

Growing Super Bowl Grass

To have the best grass for Super Bowl Sunday, the process of growing it begins 18-24 months in advance. (Not-so-super sod typically takes  12-14 months to go from seed to harvest.) 

Depending on where the championship game is being played, the grass is typically grown in Alabama, Georgia, or California. 

Creating the perfect turf is an intricate and detailed process. The grass, usually a bermuda hybrid, is grown on a plastic base with very little soil and sand, allowing the roots to intertwine and strengthen the base. This makes it easier to transport and transplant.

When we’re talking about 100,000 square feet of sod (give or take 10,000), moving it from farm to field is no easy task. It’s rolled, wrapped, and loaded into 30 or so refrigerated trucks that move it to its new location. 

Keeping Grass Green Before Game Time 

So, how does the grass always look immaculate for Super Bowl Sunday? About a week before the big game, the previous grass is torn out, the foundation is leveled with a laser, and the new grass arrives and is laid out. 

The new turf needs time to adjust and acclimate to its new environment, and the groundskeepers need time to make sure it’s impeccable.

George Toma, aka “The Sodfather,” longtime groundskeeper who has worked every Super Bowl since 1967, told   TODAY.com: “The most important part of the sod is the soil it’s grown on and the root system of it.” 

Growing Super Bowl grass is obviously a challenge because people expect both aesthetics and performance, which is supremely difficult to perfect. 

Doug Lipscomb, co-owner of Bent Oak Farms in Foley, Alabama, which has supplied the turf for several Super Bowl games, told  Al.com: “A lot of fields look good and play bad. A lot look bad and play well. It’s kind of hard to put everything in one package.”

Bent Oak, which most recently supplied the Super Bowl grass in 2021, is, of course, keeping its proprietary formula a secret.

Caring for Super Bowl Grass 

West Coast Turf, meanwhile, has provided the grass for eight Super Bowl games. This year West Coast is supplying the grass for two practice fields. The grass, Tifway II, is a drought-tolerant hybrid bermudagrass that is the same variety typically used for the main field.

The grass gets super care. It has its own blankets, rain tarps, special diet … whatever it takes to keep it perfect, that’s what West Coast provides.

When John Marman, West Coast Turf vice president of sales and marketing, watches a game on TV that’s being played on the company’s grass, it doesn’t matter who’s ahead or behind. “I root for the grass,” Marman told  ESPN.

West Coast Turf supplies grass for six MLB fields, six NFL fields, 14 professional training facilities, five professional soccer fields, and countless golf courses, high school, elementary, and college fields. 

Why is West Coast supplying the grass for the practice fields but not the game day turf? SoFi Stadium has Matrix Turf.

Artificial turf, especially the new and improved types, like Hellas Construction’s synthetic Matrix Turf system, which is what Super Bowl LVI will be played on, will last for at least 10 years before needing to be replaced. 

What Happens to the Grass After the Game?

It would be a shame to think that over 2 acres of glorious grass would be torn out and trashed after being run around on for just a few hours. 

Sure, that grass gets a good pounding from the 22 250-pound men pummeling it for four hours (not to mention the half-time show stages and props), but tough turf was made for that, right? 

So, what happens to that grass after the Super Bowl champions are crowned? Super Bowl fields are taken out, strip by strip, and repurposed. In 2020, for example, the super sod was repurposed for use on a track at a horse farm and as a filler in a plant nursery.

Turf Battle: Natural Grass or Artificial Turf

Artificial turf is becoming more popular with the NFL, with 14 of 30 stadiums currently using synthetic turf. Artificial turf certainly has its benefits: It’s environmentally friendly because it doesn’t need to be watered, and it doesn’t require pesticides or fertilizers. 

It’s also safer for players in many ways. If it’s raining, artificial turf is less slippery than grass, and there’s no mud. It’s stronger and more durable, so divots and holes are almost nonexistent, which means players’ ankles and knees are less likely to be injured. It also has shock absorption and anti-reflective qualities.

But what do NFL players think of faux grass? 

When the  National Football League Players Association surveyed its members on the  turf battle between artificial and natural grass, 70% of NFL players said they preferred to play on grass.