The Significance of the New Indoor Field Turf for UCF's Nicholson Fieldhouse
For anyone that’s ever played or even just walked across bad field turf, it’s quite obvious. Choppy, cut up, uneven, whatever one wants to deem that particular turf, it’s not good. That much can likely be agreed upon.
The turf that came up from the Nicholson Fieldhouse did not possess any serious dangers to anyone, but removing it and installing brand new field turf displays a commitment to the UCF Football program overall.
Daidren Zipperer, Wide Receiver Recruit from Lakeland (Fla.) High School, inside the Nicholson Fieldhouse
Current Players First
To begin, there’s no better place than the actual Knights that will first utilize this facility. Hey, most people enjoy new things. That goes for college football players, too. Whether it’s starting quarterback and Heisman hopeful Dillon Gabriel or a true freshman that’s never played a down of college football, being on brand new field turf will be great for all the UCF Football players.
Trust in the point that it’s not just the aesthetics either. New turf will hold up to all the players cutting and moving as fast as they can when the Knights practice. Football is a game of violent chess, and the “board” needs to be in top-notch condition to allow for the game to play out as it should. The new turf also speaks to financial commitment.
Spending the Money to Win
Right before Jimbo Fisher left Florida State and broke the bank to the tune of a 75 million dollar contract to take over the Texas A&M program, there were squables about the Florida State administration not providing Fisher enough money for his assistants or for upgrades with facilities. Those squabbles allegedly impacted Coach Fisher’s decision to head to College Station, Texas.
Fisher’s so-called beef with top brass in Tallahassee, Fla. stemmed from the knowledge that college football is an arms race and the ‘Noles were no longer a frontrunner within that race. It’s been rehashed over and over. It’s still true today and there’s no reason to believe funding will go down on the pecking order of importance for a college football team to win big. That’s why spending money for the field turf sets up as an omen for future endeavors that will directly impact the UCF Football program.
If UCF did not fundraise properly, keep alumni happy, as well as the UCF Football coaching staff being happy, that field turf may have been installed at some other facility. That’s just the truth. That turf also sets an example for future Knights.
Facilities Help Recruiting
The tales of how recruits are impressed with mega-weight rooms, shiny lockers, and state-of-the-art electronics in practically every room of a college football facility are too many to count. Recruits love those shiny items, if one will, and it shall not be lost on the UCF Football program or the UCF administration.
The top UCF brass knows that a field turf upgrade is one of the parts of the recruiting equation that helps to win games on Saturdays in the Bounce House. As the Knights keep building the Football program, other items will continue to be added. For now, it’s the field turf that will help with recruiting.
Adding new field turf is certainly just a small step towards competing with Alabama, Ohio State and Notre Dame with football facilities and recruits, but a very important one. If UCF did not want to replace field turf, imagine if there were major stadium upgrades that needed to be addressed considering the massive financial commitment that renovations can bring.
With that stated, the field turf represents the first step in a long and expensive commitment to be competitive with national college football brands and how each of them recruits top athletes to their respective institutions. UCF Football is building its brand one step at a time.
You will find me on Twitter @fbscout_florida and @UCF_FanNation
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