re: Unlike LSU, most schools don't have natural grass fields. Do players care?

When I played, the only artificial turf was AstroTurf in the Dome in Houston. We all played on grass in HS. My opinion is that natural turf is more forgiving when you cut or have you're foot planted...the grass would give before the knee or ankle. I can't remember very many serious knee injuries on grass. Just my opinion.

Artificial turf can be beneficial in some cases, but my feelings ring true with many others on here that sports should be played on real grass and in real dirt. Texas Tech University baseball has abandoned the idea of both....

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Cheaper is a relative term. Field Turf costs over a $1Mil on a field.

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Right, but that is a "one time" cost. Grass fields are often re-sodded and require maintenance staff to mow, water, fertilize, and paint( weekly during the season).

However, I do believe those artificial turfs do have a certain lifetime, so $1 million ever 5 or so years would be costly, if that's how long they last. And I think they have to add rubber pellets occasionally?

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Don't try to change anything with this group. They don't like change.

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Don't like change? Like a change at the quarterback position or change of head coach? Nah I don't think any of us have ever asked for that.

I did my Masters degree final project (2012) on the benefits of athletics programs installed artificial turf vs. maintaining natural grass fields.

For HS & MS athletic programs with multi-use fields, the data proved that it is overwhelmingly beneficial to install artificial turf. The costs to the public school systems to maintain high use fields all year long combined with the lawsuit damages being awarded to injured players due to poorly/improperly maintained facilities are far higher than the 5-10 year installment & replacement of an artificial surface.
Districts in better areas find themselves installing artificial turf on the game field as well as the practice field (often times also with lighting) to increase field space scheduling availability & use.
What ends up happening is the high schools get the good fields & middle schools as well as city organizations end up holding their games on the better fields. Revenues from facility rentals by the city organizations & summer camps/clinics/marching band events/etc help offset the costs of the artificial turf. But again, the SAVINGS on NOT having injury lawsuits against the districts saves countless dollars. Neglect is all but impossible now. Lastly, grass space previously used as partial practice field space is now no longer needed & older schools can build new buildings/facilities in its place. Thereby, shifting the cost/savings of the intials artificial surface installation into even better favor for the school district/tax payers.

To combat the heat in most areas, a retention pond or water well system is also part of the field turf installation. Most newly constructed schools since 2010 come standard with a retention pond. The sprinkler system is run thru the water option to keep the artificial grass cool but more importantly CLEAN. Staph grows fairly easily on the field surface, primarily after football games/practices.

The artificial surfaces come with warranties for small tears & the like to be repaired/replaced. The only real maintaining of the surface comes with adding the rubber pellets every few months & "combing" the surface with a drag behind a 4wheeler every so often.

For Ag centric colleges, such as LSU, the continuation of use of grass fields is multi-faceted. The next best reason, behind tradition, to keep grass is the fact that facilities are not neary as multi-use as HS fields & Ag schools execute all manner of education on the fields. Semester after semester quality testing is executed on every field on campus. The on-campus access to so many pristine grass fields is worth its weight in gold to keep them. The savings of traveling students & faculty as well as their testing & maintenance materials/tools/machinery is incalculable.

Turf is also rough on the players feet and legs. Their feet and legs hurt worse when they play on turf and they hurt less when playing on grass

This point is getting improved upon by the artificial turf field manufacturers. The stuff coming out since late 2015 is testing near equivalent to natural grass. It'll be better before 2020.

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Unlike LSU

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Wrong. No school that matters has turf.

Why do you want it exactly?

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Wrong. No school that matters has turf.

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Plenty of big time programs have turf...

Ohio State
Michigan
Notre Dame
Texas
Arkansas
Louisville
Iowa
Nebraska
WIsconsin
Kansas State
Oklahoma State

Just to name a few. I think something like 90 programs across the nation use field turf.

For Arkansas, it is more a matter of not being able to get grass to root properly in the stadium. Prior to the installation of the new turf in 2009, Arkansas had a natural grass field. Because the field did not get enough sunlight in the stadium, coupled with the soil in the Ozarks, the field would be dug up by halftime and chunks would be all over the field.

Im sure there are a mixture of things that go into getting turf. Some schools though, do it more for the "shock" factor IMO. Those with colored fields are just ugly.

Nobody has mentioned that its hot as balls on turf during August and September. SO playing on turf sucks during those months.