Reason to favor OSU over Iowa State? The green, green (fake) grass of home
Published: 10/18/2012 10:42 AM
Last Modified: 10/18/2012 10:42 AM
Mike Gundy, rehashing Oklahoma State’s only loss last season, was running down the reasons why it is difficult to play a football game in Ames, Iowa.
Here’s an excerpt:
“What happens is you go up there and you fly in and you stay a long way away and then you get in a bus and you drive over there and you go out on that field and the grass is about that tall and it’s unlike what we play on down here.”
Really? The grass is an issue?
Hey, don’t laugh. Grass has been OSU’s kryptonite.
Last week, Gundy tied Pat Jones as the winningest head football coach in OSU history. Gundy has taken the Cowboys to places -- Big 12 championship, BCS bowl -- they have never been.
In Gundy’s eight seasons, he has a winning record in home games, road games, neutral-site games, day games and night games,
But his Cowboys are only 7-13 when playing on grass.
An OSU fan at the Cowboy Caravan booster function in Tulsa used to annually ask Gundy when he was finally going to beat Texas and Oklahoma. Gundy didn't get that question this year because he swept the Sooners and Longhorns in 2011. If the Cowboy Caravan dude wants to continue to be a thorn, he can bring up the record on grass, but certainly not the record on artificial tuf.
Gundy’s teams are a stellar 55-19 on artificial turf. Can playing surface really make that much of a difference?
Keep in mind that Boone Pickens Stadium has fake grass, so the only time the Cowboys see real grass is when they go on the road. And who you play on grass surely has more to do with the outcome of games than whether the blades are real or artificial. Oklahoma has a grass field. So does Arizona, where OSU lost by 21 points in a turnover- and penalty-marred game this season. And so does Iowa State, which spoiled the Cowboys’ national championship dreams last season.
“We play on grass fields, but it is (usually) manicured to perfection,” Gundy said.
Iowa State’s grass?
“That’s a northern grass and it feels different,” he said.
To be absolutely clear and to put things in the proper context, Gundy did not blame agronomy or lawn care for what happened in Ames last season. He talked about how color-coordinated Iowa State fans pack the stadium and create an atmosphere that is nurturing for the home team and tough on road teams. And -- bottom line -- the Cyclones play good, solid football.
But, as of now, it’s fair to say this: Willie Nelson (his heroes have always been Cowboys) perhaps believes he plays better on grass. The Cowboys cannot make the same assumption.
Written by
Jimmie Tramel
Sports Writer
