The South Carolina Gamecocks are just under a week away from opening up their football season against The Citadel. They have to deal with a critical problem because of a Jay-Z and Beyonce concert that took place at Williams-Brice Stadium.
They have to replace the field’s grass. Yes, all of it.
From the Associated Press:
South Carolina staff will spend Monday installing more than 90,000 square feet of Bermuda grass, said Clark Cox, the school’s assistant athletic director in charge of turf and landscaping services.
The field is expected to be ready when South Carolina opens its season by hosting Coastal Carolina on Sept. 1. The Gamecocks also have home games against national runner-up Georgia on Sept. 8 and Marshall on Sept. 15.
“We would not have done this if we believed there was a safety issue,” Cox said. “My job and our entire ground staff’s job, our No. 1 priority in everything we do, is safety and welfare of our student-athletes.”
The set up for the concert took a week’s time, and with it, a lot of preventative measures were put in place. Despite the protective elements put on the field, the wear and tear were plentiful. The cost for replacing the field is $150-200k and will be paid for by the concert promoters.
As someone who personally attended the Jay-Z and Beyonce concert when it was in Ohio, this is a must-see event. It is unfortunate that the field was a casualty because of it.
