City of Jacksonville releases statement regarding turf conditions during Florida-Georgia game

Ahead of Saturday’s game between Florida and Georgia in Jacksonville, questions were raised about the turf at EverBank Stadium. Late in the game, the city of Jacksonville released a statement about the condition of the field.

According to ESPN Jacksonville’s Brent Martineau, new sod was put down for the game after last week’s Bethune Cookman vs. Southern game at EverBank. However, the new turf didn’t look good on the broadcast, and Florida linebacker Shemar James slipped during pregame and put a brace on his knee as a result. He appeared to be shaken up again during the third quarter.

The city of Jacksonville said the new turf should present “no safety issue for players” and credited the grounds crew for the resurfacing.

“Our top Florida-Georgia game priority is the safety of players and fans,” the statement read. “The field at EverBank Stadium was resodded after the BCU-Southern game last weekend for the second time this year and in accordance with NFL standards. While the sod faced a week of warm Florida weather and was dry upon arrival, the field was tested and passed prior to the game and there is no safety issue for players. We stand by our experienced team of turf professionals who have prepared fields for games at all levels from college to the Super Bowl.”

Florida started the game hot with a touchdown on its first drive when Graham Mertz connected with Tre Wilson to make it 7-0. After that, it was all Georgia, which went on to take a 36-7 lead into the third quarter. Florida later tacked on another touchdown, but failed to convert the two-point conversion.

With his team ahead 26-7 at halftime, Kirby Smart detailed what Georgia had to do in the second half to keep things going. It’s safe to say the Bulldogs heard what he had to say.

“Well we’ve got a whole half to play, so they’ve got a very potent offense, a lot of dangerous shots,” Smart said. “We’ve got to control the run game a little better and we’ve got to take the ball on offense and control the game, kind of the tempo there.”

He also had a message for Xavier Truss, who got hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty late n the half.

“We’ve got a mission, then we’ve got a team, then we’ve got me,” Smart said. “The mission over team over me, and he put himself before the mission and the team.”