Day in the Life of Titans Ground Crew

FOX 17 News – By: John Dunn

It’s one of the nicest lawns in Tennessee and caring for it is a full time job.

We all know what happens on Sundays at LP Field, but getting that 100 yards of turf ready for gameday is a week long effort.

As the final seconds of a TSU home game tick away, inside LP Field work is just getting started.

The Titans ground crew has 17 hours to make this beat-up football field look brand new.

As soon as the game ends the clean-up begins.

First are the large tarps on the sideline. It takes five people to pull, fold, and roll…and a forklift to carry away.

Back inside head groundskeeper Terry Porch uses a special compound to sharpen the mower blades.

The field of Bermuda 419 grass is mowed everyday, sometimes twice.

Tonight they’re taking off just a fraction of an inch – enough to give the Titans an edge tomorrow.

"We take a lot of pride in the field, you want everything to be perfect," says ground crew member Ben White.

Just like football, taking care of the field is a team effort.

Every cleat mark and tear from the TSU game must be repaired.

"Anytime there's something out here we'll come out here and do divots," says ground crew member Jay Goehring.

With buckets in hand the ground crew fixes hundreds of divots large and small.

"Grass seed is in there, a little organic matter to help with the growing process," says Goehring.

Meanwhile, Terry Porch uses a giant sweeper to clean the field.

"It's a job that you have to love because there is so much that you have to do and so much you have got to contend with, that if you didn't love it, you wouldn't do it," says Porch.

Terry has been a professional groundskeeper for 26 years. It’s his 10th year with the Titans.

As Terry sweeps…Bobby Fogarty rolls.

"Keeps it hard, keeps it down, pats it down," says Fogarty.

While the game is about hits and helmets, the field gets tender loving care. The ground is something sacred.

"We want it to look good, but most important you want it to play good, you know, you don't want injuries and things like that, that's the most important thing. Aesthetics are great, but most importantly, the first thing you want, is you want it to be a safe playing surface," says Ben White.

Next comes the paint.

All the lines numbers and hash marks must be touched up with white.

It’s a two person job. One man pulls a guide, the other sprays the paint.

The delicate process is slow and steady…accuracy is a must.

The crew uses string to ensure straight lines, and a pre-formed stencil measures each yard precisely.

Terry Porch says an ideal field is one never talked about.

"The only time anybody is ever going to get to know who you are is when it's bad," says Porch.

It’s not until midnight when the crew gets around to its final job, painting the flame in the center of the field.

They use a giant stencil and a lot of paint.

"We need navy, red, silver, and Titan light blue," says Terry Porch.

The first step is to dot out the lines.

Once complete, the stencil is peeled back and the flame is filled in.

The crew is careful to not step where it’s wet.

Each color is applied in a specific order, until finally, the once bare mid-field now flares with Titan pride.

"Get to live the dream and get to be around the stuff that everybody would love to do," says Terry Porch.

Terry Porch and his crew have the field game ready. The team is done 12 hours before kickoff.

Terry Porch says he takes the field very personally.

In fact, on the night we visited he brought his sleeping bag to the stadium, so he could sleep in his office right next to the field.