The prep before the play

1. What does it take to get the field ready?

Before every home game, we have to string lines and then we paint the field. Paint all the lines, the hash marks and the numbers. It takes approximately five hours. It takes at least four to five gallon cans of paint. People don't realize how much effort it takes to paint a field. We also volunteer to do the mowing and periodically we'll irrigate the field and then roll it too.

2. You do this all for free. Why?

Two of us are born and raised Blufftonites. I'm from Detroit and transferred here. We love the school and feel that the students are worth it. The school does give us tickets for all of the home games as gratitude for us volunteering our time. Last year, the school recognized us during one of the games and gave us each a jacket for our effort.

3. What's the toughest part of what you do?

The toughest part is probably running new lines. We have to string those very tight. It just takes quite a bit of effort to do that part.

4. Have there been tough field conditions to deal with?

The most difficult time is right after a rain or when it is raining and it rains the day before the football game, and we still have to paint the field. We just have to be careful when we run our lines so things don't run all over. And then we had the flood last year. That was a big effort. A lot of the students and football players came out. It was a joint effort from everybody to get the field ready. This year the field has been very dry because of the droughts we've had and the rains are really a blessing to us.

5. Is there anything you can do to give Bluffton the competitive edge?

No. Sometimes we actually measure the distance between our lines to make sure we are pretty accurate. We do try to mow the lawn so that the grain is going in different directions. Every five yards, the grain will change. The players play both directions, so if our team has the competitive edge during one period, then the other team will have the same during the other period. It just looks nicer and it is worth the effort to do. We want the field to look as nice as possible for the game.

6. Is there anything else people wouldn't realize it takes to get a field ready?

I think people would be surprised at the cleanup effort it takes after every game. We try to put out as many barrels as possible, yet people just throw their trash right beside the barrels. I think if people had to do the job one time, there would be a whole different, better attitude about that.

7. Some schools are going to artificial turf. What do you think about that?

It's very nice. You don't have to repaint the lines or anything. That is a big expense. Each can of paint is about $45 to $50. It wouldn't bother us to be out of a job if the field really looked great.