If it wasn't for Eric Kleypas and his crew, Auburn Football wouldn't exist.
These men make it possible for the football team to practice, play games and for fans to enjoy the games.
Countless hours of hard work go into keeping up the fields and these men do not get the credit they deserve.
Field maintenance is an everyday job that takes a special patience.
Kleypas, manager of turf and grounds, said during football season his crew works a 50- to 70-hour week.
It takes him, six full-time employees and five to six students to keep the fields in good shape for the team and fans.
Kleypas said he is used to all the work because he has been working on the fields since he was a student here at Auburn.
Kleypas helped out between classes and became a full-time employee in 2002.
Each day, the crew starts out by riding the fields looking for problems.
"We look for insects, diseases, wear and tear, anything that catches the eye," Kleypas said. "Then we're mowing the fields and painting the lines, getting it ready for practice."
Wednesdays mark the initial setup for home football games.
That's when Mick Cronin and Brad Kirkland begin painting the SEC logos and the Auburn symbol (AU) on the 50 yard line.
Kleypas said it takes three days and over 200 gallons of orange, blue and white paint to complete the logos.
Cronin began work on Auburn's turf eight-and-a-half years ago after leaving work at Central Florida.
Kirkland came to Auburn in 2006 once he finished interning with the Boston Red Sox and the Denver Broncos.
Kleypas said he will never forget when one of his crew members was painting the Auburn symbol on the 50-yard line while the eagle was practicing its flight around the Jordan-Hare Stadium.
The eagle flew right over the staff member's head and nearly took his hat off.
The incident scared him so badly he vowed to never paint the AU again.
On a typical game day, the turf management crew arrives six hours before kickoff.
That's four hours before the football team arrives at the stadium for the Tiger Walk.
The crew sets up the sidelines, puts out the sideline tarps, trashcans, flags and goalpost pads.
Kleypas, Cronin, Kirkland and the rest of the crew don't do much during the game, but as soon as the game ends, it's back to work.
"We mow immediately after the game, clean up the clippings and roll the divots back down," Kleypas said. "As soon as TV gets out, we'll turn on the water."
Cleaning up after games, like the Auburn vs. University of Florida game in 1997, is not fun for the turf management crew.
"Fans took the field, ran through the hedges and took the south goalpost all the way to the top and were going to throw it over the bleachers," Kleypas said. "That was pretty wild. We did a lot of cleanup to damaged hedges and the turf after the game."
With all the time and effort put into maintaining the grounds, students can only hope that everything goes smoothly this weekend, as the Auburn football season officially kicks off this Saturday at 6 p.m. against Lousinana Tech.
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