Kirby Smart talks about football players slipping on turf

Kirby Smart doesn’t care if Georgia is on turf or grass, he simply wants to play ball. On Wednesday, the UGA head coach revealed his opinion on the controversial debate between the two field options.

“I don’t get into that much,” Smart said. “I haven’t read that or seen that anywhere. We had guys slip, sure, we have guys slip every time we play on turf. A game Kentucky played, I can’t remember who we were playing but they had about 15 guys slip, and that was Kentucky at home. Traditionally, a lot of our college teams don’t practice or play much on turf, so when they do, they slip more.”

Kentucky’s Kroger Field is synthetic turf. Vanderbilt’s FirstBank Stadium is also one of the few SEC venues that uses turf. The programs’ common slipping issues don’t seem to be a coincidence. Despite the extra challenge, Georgia didn’t allow the unusual surface slow it down in its 37-20 win over Vanderbilt.

In the win, Georgia rushed for 291 yards and three touchdowns. The Bulldogs averaged 7.5 yards per carry. Evidently, Smart doesn’t mind Vanderbilt’s surface. The 47-year-old head coach revealed Georgia is following the Commodores’ lead for its indoor facility.

“We did a big surface study last year to get our indoor better and up to date,” Smart said. “Ours is in on Year 8 or 9 or 10, and we’re looking at the modern fill that more NFL teams are going to. That’s actually what Vanderbilt has I think, so it’s very standard.”

More than Kirby Smart

The turf-grass debate has been heated in the NFL this season. Aaron Rodgers’ Week 1 injury only catalyzed this conversation. Less than a week after the New York Jets’ quarterback tore his Achilles tendon, NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell released a statement, pushing for the replacement of turf fields.

“Moving all stadium fields to high quality natural grass surfaces is the easiest decision the NFL can make,” Howell’s statement read, via NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo. “The players overwhelmingly prefer it and the data is clear that grass is simply safer than artificial turf. It is an issue that has been near the top of the players’ list during my team visits and one I have raised with the NFL.

“While we know there is an investment to making this change, there is a bigger cost to everyone in our business if we keep losing our best players to unnecessary injuries. It makes no sense that stadiums can flip over to superior grass surfaces when the World Cup comes, or soccer clubs come to visit for exhibition games in the summer, but inferior artificial surfaces are acceptable for our own players.”

Only time will tell if the NCAA follows suit. Smart seemingly isn’t caught up in the issue. Georgia will have a bye week before taking on Georgia on Oct. 28.