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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Patrick Andres

Wrigley Field’s Turf Is an Absolute Mess for Low Scoring Iowa-Northwestern Slog

It was a game so bad that the playing surface rebelled.

With a little over five minutes left in Saturday's game between Iowa and Northwestern at Wrigley Field, the Hawkeyes maintained a 7-0 lead. One of the least anticipated offensive matchups in college football history had lived down to the hype, with both teams barely cracking 100 yards for the afternoon.

However, things went from bad to worse when the game was delayed by a turf issue.

Screenshots from the game broadcast on Peacock quickly began circulating on social media, which devoid of context appeared as if the groundskeepers were searching for moles or groundhogs.

The Wildcats' games at Wrigley Field have been fraught with difficulty since they began playing there semi-regularly in 2010. In the first game played there between Northwestern and Illinois that year, an issue with the placement of the playing surface forced both teams to travel the same direction. Subsequent matchups have gone smoother, but slippery turf has been a recurring issue.

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