Link to Purchase Old Turf (ewu.edu/buyturf)
News Release from AstroTurf
The red glow that has been missing in Cheney, Wash., since May will return this month. And fans will get a chance to purchase some of the original red turf as well.
Workers are hopeful to begin as early as July 21 a three-week process of installing the second generation of red turf at Eastern Washington University's Roos Field. The original red turf at "The Inferno" was installed in 2010, and taken out in May in preparation for its replacement.
Fans can now purchase chunks of the red turf through July 31 via the web at:
http://ewu.edu/buyturf. Cost is $20 for a 2' x 3' doormat; $75 for a 5' x 5' square patio size; and $175 for a 7 1/2' x 7 1/2' tailgate section. Custom sizes are available for $5 per square foot, but the turf is provided in 7 1/2-foot widths.
Proceeds from the sale of the old turf will go directly to the Eagle Athletic Fund, which provides scholarships for EWU's student-athletes.
After the sale has concluded, the purchased chunks will be cut and then made available for pick-up sometime in August at Roos Field.
The basic design of the new turf will be the same with "Eastern" in one end zone, but "Eagles" will replace "Washington" in the other. Fans voted in May on the new design, and more than $9,000 was raised in support of student-athlete scholarships at EWU.
Barring any delays in delivery of the turf or its installation, the project is expected to be completed by Aug. 12, just as preseason practices move from the grass EWU practice fields to the stadium in preparation for the 2020 season. Eastern is scheduled to open the season at Florida on Sept. 5, followed by back-to-back home non-conference games against Western Illinois (Sept. 12) and Northern Arizona (Sept. 19).
AstroTurf received the bid to replace the iconic red field. The nearly $1 million project is part of a $5 million pledge provided by local businessman Jack Gillingham toward the Roos Field Renovation Project. Gillingham's gift was announced on Sept. 19, 2019. (
CLICK HERE for the story).
Eagles Now 57-10 on the Red Turf with Record 14-Game Winning Streak . . .
Having won all five of its regular season home games in 2019 and all eight in 2018, Eastern will enter the 2020 season with a school-record 14-straight wins at Roos Field in the 2019 season. Eastern is now 57-10 (85.1 percent) overall at "The Inferno" since 2010. The stadium has been known as Roos Field since 2010 when a new red synthetic Sprinturf surface made its debut. Eastern's last home loss came on Nov. 4, 2017, versus Weber State.
At its current site, the previous school record was 11 consecutive home wins set between 9/16/78 and 9/27/80 (between losses was from 11/19/77 to 11/1/80). Overall, the school record is 21 set from 1935-40. Eastern had a nine-game winning streak snapped in a 36-21 loss to Montana State on Sept. 24, 2011. The Eagles also had a nine-game winning streak at that venue snapped against Sacramento State on Oct. 21, 2000, when the Hornets made a 23-yard field goal with no time remaining.
Eastern has lost just six regular season games at "The Inferno" – 44-6 (88.0 percent), plus are 13-4 (76.5 percent) in playoff games. The only regular season losses at home for EWU since 2010 are to conference foes Montana State (2011), Portland State (2011 and 2015), Northern Arizona (2015) and Weber State (2017), as well as North Dakota State (2017).
Eastern finished a perfect 8-0 in its debut season at "The Inferno," including three playoff victories. Eastern has won 85.1 percent of its games since the red turf was installed in 2010 – including a 4-0 record versus rival Montana.
The North Dakota State game on Sept. 9, 2017, was the 50th at Roos Field since the red turf surface was installed in 2010. In 2016, Eastern finished 7-1 in the 50th season of football at EWU's current stadium location, which opened in 1967. Eastern has a 170-65 record (72.3 percent) in 235 games at Roos Field (formerly Woodward Field) since 1967, with the Eagles utilizing Joe Albi Stadium in Spokane as the school's main home field from 1983-89.
