Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium will have a brand-new look for the 2005 season opener.
Stadium manager Terry Norman and John Gilman, CEO of FieldTurf, announced that installation on the artificial surface will begin next month to replace the natural grass field and artificial turf sidelines currently in place.
Tigers football coach Tommy West said the new surface has one major advantage over the natural grass field.
"The two wettest seasons in this region happen to be during the fall and the spring and our football team generally has to practice and prepare in wet conditions," West said in a statement released Monday. "Now, with the installation of FieldTurf at our stadium, even if the fields at our practice facility are wet, we will have perfect conditions in which to practice."
The turf will bring a much-needed facelift to the 40-year-old facility.
More than 25 other Division I schools have already made the switch to the new surface.
These include Michigan, Oregon, Nebraska, Missouri and Washington.Gilman said The U of M's decision to install FieldTurf will hopefully give the company a presence in the southeast.
"This is a tremendous coup for FieldTurf," Gilman said. "All football fans are very familiar with the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. It is one of the most venerable and well-known facilities in the South, which as we all know, is the hot bed of college football.
There is so much history and tradition in the 40 years since the Liberty Bowl has been built, and we at FieldTurf are very proud to be involved.
"... I am completely confident that the Memphis Tigers' players and coaches, along with the top college teams that will be competing in future Liberty Bowls, will love the playability and the safety of the new FieldTurf field."
Although FieldTurf is still breaking into college football, the National Football League is very farmiliar with the state-of-the-art turf.
Of the NFL's 32 franchises, 21 currently use field turf.
