VT groundskeepers hard at work preparing Worsham Field

BLACKSBURG, Va. (WDBJ) - Before the Hokies take the field each week, there’s a crew of workers making sure the field looks pristine.

“Typically for us, it’s about two to three days of painting,” Virginia Tech Assistant Groundskeeper and VT Junior Adam Webb said.

For Webb and the team of groundskeepers for Virginia Tech Athletics, there’s a lot work that goes into preparing for each game day.

“We use over 150 gallons of paint per game,” he said. Hashmarks, logos and the endzones all have to be repainted each week.

The groundskeepers also have to keep the grass alive throughout the season.

“Lane Stadium is actually Bermuda grass, it is Latitude 36, the specific variety and we overseed with rye grass,” Webb said. “We overseed about two weeks before our first home game and so it’ll be it’ll be looking green, hopefully for UVA, when we’re rolling over them in November.”

Webb is a junior in the Crop and Soil Sciences program at Tech.

Working with athletics, he’s able to get first hand experience outside of the textbook.

“I’ll be in class on Mondays and Wednesdays and I’ll come into work on Tuesday, and I’ll do exactly what I just learned in class, so learning it from the textbook to getting that hands on experience is really beneficial,” he said.

Webb says seeing the Hokies play on a field that he helps prepare makes the hard work worthwhile.

“Seeing the Hokies win, that’s all it’s worth,” he said. “It’s a long week when the Hokies go down.”

Copyright 2022 WDBJ. All rights reserved.