ORLANDO, Fla. — There were huge divots, clumps of dirt and little traction on the Florida Citrus Bowl field.
Conditions were so bad for the Miami-Wisconsin game Tuesday night, players were replacing sod before snaps. Hurricanes running back Graig Cooper injured his right knee without being touched.
Cooper could miss all of next season because of the injury.
After hosting high school state championship games and the Champs Sports Bowl, the field might be even sloppier for the Capital One Bowl between No. 11 Penn State and 13th-ranked LSU on Friday — unless there are some major changes.
“Bad turf always slows down fast players,” LSU offensive coordinator Gary Crowton said. “They have speed, we have speed; we’re both going to be slower, which is not a good thing for anybody.”
Workers were already scurrying to retouch the field early Wednesday morning.
About 400 gallons of paint will have been used after the state championship games and the two bowls to change corporate and team logos.
The field can’t be replaced before the Capital One Bowl because the grass won’t grow quickly in the cooler weather, said Allen Johnson, the director of the Orlando Venues Department, which oversees the field.
New turf was put in Dec. 24, and temperatures have dipped into the low 30s at times since Christmas. It was about 50 degrees at the opening kickoff Tuesday night.
Luck might be on Stanford’s side
EL PASO — Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck has had pins removed after surgery to repair his broken right index finger, and Cardinal coach Jim Harbaugh says the star freshman might play in today’s Sun Bowl.
Harbaugh said he planned to wait “another 24 hours” before making a decision on Luck’s availability.
