From rock 'n' roll to football, grounds crews have less than a week to get Soldier Field back in shape after the stadium was taken over by U2 this past weekend. The Irish band's massive stage was still being taken down Tuesday while new sod was going in on the other end of the field.
Soldier Field's general manager has no doubt the field will be ready for the Bears' home opener on Sunday.
"It's no different than any season. We always play preseason games and do a re-sod for the regular season. This is no different than every year," said Tim LeFevour, Soldier Field GM.
LeFevour says it is routine to re-sod the field three times during the regular season. Despite that, players have complained about the field.
In a 2008 NFL Players Association survey, Soldier Field was named the fourth worst grass playing field in the NFL. Bears players chose their home stadium as the worst grass surface in the league.
Tight end Desmond Clark recently blogged about how bad he thinks the field is.
"Players will always have their opinions about fields, you know, where they have their particular concerns. This is a northern climate city with a grass field. We're one of the few left in the NFL. Most players are thrilled that they get a chance to still play on grass," said LeFevour.
LeFevour says the field is state-of-the-art: There is an underground heating system and also a sprinkler system.
The sod crews will have the job finished by Tuesday night, then lines will be painted Thursday, in plenty of time Sunday's game against the Steelers.
