Lincoln moves football season opener to EMU as new field turf installation nears completion

YPSILANTI – Fans hoping to get their first glimpse of Ypsilanti Lincoln’s football team on the new field turf will have to wait a little bit longer.

The Railsplitters were scheduled to open the 2019 season at home against Adrian on Friday, Aug. 30, but the game had to be moved to Eastern Michigan University’s Rynearson Stadium due to the project being a few days off schedule.

Lincoln head football coach and athletic director Chris Westfall said the decision to relocate the contest was made last week.

“There’s a chance that the field’s done at 3 p.m. on Friday night (of Aug. 30), but we’re at the point where we can’t wait, we gotta get that game scheduled,” he said.

The gray turf has been laid down, but workers are still putting the finishing touches on the project which includes cutting the hash marks and placing the logos and letters in the end zone before laying the infield, according to Westfall.

The project’s expected finish date was push back due to the rain season in the spring that kept workers off the field, Westfall added.

“All the guys that do the site work, pushing dirt around, the drainage and all that, they really couldn’t work in May, there was so much rain," Westfall said. "All the turf jobs got pushed back, so we’re going to miss by just a couple days.”

Lincoln’s varsity team will be away in Week 2, but is expected to play on the field in Week 3 when it hosts Farmington. Westfall said the junior varsity team should be able to play on the field next week and that the soccer and lacrosse teams will also play on the field the field when it’s done.

The field turf is just one of many athletic renovation projects Lincoln has in the works.

Thanks to a 25 million bond that passed last year, the athletics department is expected to have a new baseball and softball complex, a 120,000-square foot indoor facility along with a new concession stand and locker room facility at the football stadium.

The cost for the field turf wasn’t disclosed by Westfall, but he did say it came in under budget. Westfall added that he’s hopeful all the athletic projects will be finished within the next two years.

“There’s some big stuff coming,” he said. “It’s one of the most exciting things I’ve ever been a part of. We got all this positive momentum. There’s a lot of positive athletic momentum and the community sort of paying that off with some tax dollars to improve the facilities is a huge deal. Everybody is excited about it.”

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