Muskegon vs. Lowell - Time for turf

The last time these two squared off it was a classic.

Hard to say if it will happen again, but there's little doubt this Saturday's Muskegon vs Lowell game is big in the eyes of fans, players, and coaches alike.

Thanks to Mother Nature - the game is headed to Grand Haven.

After hosting a season of football, plus two post-season contests, historic Hackley Field has had enough.

The field took a beating in last week's Hudsonville war. Worse, Muskegon's practice field, adjacent to the stadium did not fair well. Wilson field serves as parking for Muskegon's home games during the season. The ruts are deep, thanks to the wintery mix of rain and tire tracks.

So the decision was made to make the move, and host the contest on field turf at one-year old Gene Rothi Memorial Field at Buccaneer Stadium.

Muskegon Chronicle sports editor Tom Kendra notes that it's time that the school make the move to field turf.

What it takes to make the field playable on game day - namely keeping everybody off of it all week long -- is exactly the reason why Muskegon needs field turf more than any other school in the area.

Many MLive chat room folks are making an issue of the fact that Hackley does not have enough seating for Saturday's 1 p.m. regional championship showdown, which is true, but the stadium is plenty big for 99 percent of the events that it hosts. For those one or two mega-games every year, fans are just going to have to pack in and stand around the perimeter.

One thing that Muskegon can realistically do is ensure perfect field conditions and double the practice space for its football teams (not to mention allow unlimited band practices, soccer games and youth games) by putting field turf in Hackley Stadium.

You can take this for what it's worth, but last fall the crew from NFL Films laughed when we pulled up to Muskegon's practice field.

"This is where they practice?" one of the producers asked increduously, looking down at the tire grooves and mud on tiny Wilson Field, the practice site for Muskegon's varsity, junior varsity and freshmen teams.

There's been talk. This should illustrate the need for action.