Crews from the Sports Construction Group L.L.C. of Brecksville, Ohio, began synthetic turf replacement at Youngstown State’s Beede Field/Stambaugh Stadium on Monday. The project will move quickly and is expected to be completed in early June.

SCG will install a Shaw Sportexe PowerBlade HP+ synthetic turf system, which combines the appearance of natural grass with the engineered performance of modern synthetic turf. It is specially designed to enhance player speed and performance while providing for maximum player safety.

In addition, SCG recently installed Shaw Sportexe PowerBlade HP+ synthetic turf in YSU’s Watson and Tressel Training Site, an indoor practice facility for several YSU athletics teams.

The Penguins will be one of four Division I football programs to play on the surface. Arkansas’s Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, Middle Tennessee State’s Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium and UC Davis’ Aggie Stadium are the only other PowerBlade HP+ Division I fields.

Youngstown State Athletic Director Ron Strollo said he is impressed by the Candy and Eddie DeBartolo and Family Field in the WATTS, and the surface in Stambaugh Stadium will be just as immaculate.

“Nobody builds quality athletic fields like Sports Construction Group. Their experience at the pro, collegiate and high school levels is unparalleled,” Strollo said. “We saw this first hand with their work on our new Watson and Tressel Training Site. It made SCG the obvious choice for the field construction at Stambaugh Stadium.”

Stambaugh Stadium is home to the YSU football and soccer programs and plays host to high school footballgames, numerous intramural events and Health and Physical Education classes.

Through careful planning, the funding for the project comes from a reserve plant fund dedicated solely for the replacement of the stadium’s turf.