Screamin_Eagle174
Active member
By Craig Haley, FCS Executive Director
Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - The highway billboard that I drove past all summer never failed to capture my attention. It was for a plastic surgeon's office and the big photo was zoomed in on a woman's low-cut dress. To the side were the words, "At least you're not texting right now."
The debut of red turf at Eastern Washington University on Saturday figures to be similar - bizarre, mesmerizing and surreal all wrapped together. It will be hard for me or anybody to take the eyes off it, but there will be no stopping the texting, tweeting and emailing about it.
The national spotlight that Eastern Washington sought after it installed red SprinTurf this summer at newly named Roos Field will reach its height when Big Sky Conference kingpin Montana rolls into Cheney for an incredible early season showdown. Considering the sixth-ranked Grizzlies have won at least a share of 12 straight conference titles, and reached the FCS championship in each of the past two seasons, the 18th-ranked Eagles would turn the race upside down with a victory in the conference opener for both teams.
By going red, Eastern Washington hopes to get the boost that Boise State has enjoyed with its one-of-a-kind blue turf. The former Big Sky member Broncos went 63-2 at home in the 2000s - the highest home winning percentage in the nation during the decade.
Opponents are especially distracted when Boise State players wear all-blue uniforms on the blue turf. Eastern Washington will wear all-red uniforms on Saturday.
"Once you're on it, you don't notice it," Eagles head coach Beau Baldwin said Wednesday in one of his old try-telling-that-to-the-Grizzlies lines. "Watching film the first couple times was pretty interesting. That's probably a lot tougher than when you're on it.
"Seeing it from the airplane when we flew to Nevada (for their season opener) was kind of interesting, flying in and out. It gives pilots a good idea that they're coming up on Cheney."
Montana first-year coach Robin Pflugrad is looking forward to seeing red. He's been on Boise State's turf before.
By going red, Eastern Washington hopes to get the boost that Boise State has enjoyed with its one-of-a-kind blue turf.
It's some of his Grizzlies players that might be more affected. Some of the newcomers on the team had never flown before last week's trip to Cal Poly, so the Grizzlies had to calm a few nerves beforehand. Then the No. 1-ranked team in the nation went out and lost.
"These young players aren't used to a lot of things," Pflugrad said. "So every week is actually fairly similar whether, again, we're getting on an airplane to go play Cal Poly or having a home game as an opener or going over to Cheney. So our message doesn't change that much. It's about ourselves getting prepared and doing the right things first and foremost.
"Playing Boise State on blue back in the old days was fun. Different color, we'll march on. Our end zones are maroon, so we've been practicing in the end zone all week. Hopefully, we can get in there every once in awhile."
The game could be a shootout, like last year's 41-34 Montana victory, its fourth straight in the series.
The Griz have won 15 straight conference games and haven't lost in back-to- back weeks since 2003. All-America running back Chase Reynolds, with only 72 rushing yards through two games, hasn't gotten on track in Pflugrad's wide- open offense. Andrew Selle is scheduled to start again at quarterback, but Justin Roper has played a lot as well.
Eastern Washington, which, like Montana, is 1-1, features electrifying tailback Taiwan Jones, who leads the FCS in all-purpose yards per game (278.5). SMU transfer Bo Levi Mitchell is settling in at quarterback and the Eagles have the biggest difference-maker on either defense, linebacker J.C. Sherritt.
Still, the red turf will share the spotlight (sunglasses, anyone?) as 11,000, and probably more, pack Roos Field for a memorable day of more than football.
"It's really sharp," Baldwin said. "And going into it I was excited about it from the get-go, but you still didn't know exactly how it would look or exactly turn out - you've never seen one before. But they did an incredible job with it. Obviously, we love the look of it and the surface itself. It gives us a better surface, especially throughout the year when weather starts getting bad."
"I love it, I think it's so awesome, the attention we're getting in the Big Sky Conference," Pflugrad said. "I think it's awesome, I think every school should have their own color."
He's also picking EWU to win.
