The winning team, including their two captains Dr. Kevin Mathias and Alex Steinman, posing with their check.
The University of Maryland has the number #1 turfgrass program in the country! Whether ranking golf course management or sports turf management, the Terps are the top. Institute of Applied Agriculture (IAA) Advisor Dr. Kevin Mathias and his teams seized two national titles in as many weeks.
First, the Terps clinched the sports turf title in San Antonio, TX; then they won the Annual Turf Bowl competition in Orlando, FL on February 6, 2014.
The IAA’s four-year-old sports turf program has been a top contender in the competition since its students took third place in their first appearance at the 2011 contest. Two years later the Terps crushed their nearest competitors by 15 points. And a second consecutive national title boosted the students’ confidence.
The annual Turf Bowl Competition is another story. The first-place title has eluded Mathias and his teams for nearly 15 years. “I took our first team in 2000,” says Mathias, “and we’ve always done well. But if we were ever going to win, this was the year to do it.” Mathias explains that the Turf Bowl awards were announced during the closing ceremonies for the first time this year. “So, instead of standing at the vendor’s booth in front of one hundred people, we were in a banquet room with 600 people and projection screens,” says a very proud Mathias.
In 2013 the Terps Turf Bowl teams snagged third and fourth, the IAA’s best showing ever. “I really thought we had a chance to win it last year,” says Mathias. “And when we didn’t, I thought maybe I’d never get there.” However, in 2014 Mathias assembled his own fab four who had their advisor singing with joy.
The winning foursome includes three students studying golf course management at the IAA: Brian Hogan, Matthew Park and Brent Waite, and a turf and golf course management student in the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, Ryan Higgins.
“It was phenomenal!” beams Mathias. “When they called team number 52, all 12 guys jumped up and cheered. Brian Hogan grabbed me in big bear hug. I thought my ribs would crack.” In addition to the fab four, the other students representing the University of Maryland included Brian Dearstine (IAA), Jeffrey Bynaker (IAA), Jim Halley (IAA), Brian Knott (IAA), Stephen Brew (IAA), Tim Burkhart (IAA), Gabe Gammill (IAA), and Virgil Profili (PSLA).
“The response, well wishes, congratulations, and support from our alumni has been phenomenal as well. They are really proud of our students, too,” says Mathias who has been teaching and advising at the IAA since 1979. Along with Mathias, Alex Steinman, Manager with campus rec services, helped coach the teams.
This year’s Turf Bowl included 71 teams and 264 students. The Turf Bowl tests students on various aspects of their profession. It consists of a written exam, developed by superintendents, and a written essay that is based on a business/financial case-study.
As the winning team of the Turf Bowl, UMD was awarded $4,000, which will go directly into the program to enhance lab activities and student learning. In addition, the fab four receive an all-expenses-paid trip to Ponte Vedra, FL, to work at TPC Sawgrass during the THE PLAYERS Championship in May.
“That will be another great experience,” says Waite.
When asked if the wins would help recruit students into the IAA program, Mathias says, “It gives us exposure, and that helps.”
After all, who wouldn’t want to attend the nation’s #1 turfgrass program?
