{"id":54345,"date":"2012-02-03T13:18:07","date_gmt":"2012-02-03T18:18:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=54345"},"modified":"2023-06-27T13:14:40","modified_gmt":"2023-06-27T17:14:40","slug":"uconns-mike-sargent-will-be-on-the-field-for-super-bowl-xlvi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2012\/02\/uconns-mike-sargent-will-be-on-the-field-for-super-bowl-xlvi\/","title":{"rendered":"UConn\u2019s Mike Sargent Will Be on the Field for Super Bowl XLVI"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Mike<\/a>
Mike Sargent '12 (CANR) a student in UConn's turfgrass program, is this year's winner of the Toro Super Bowl Sports Training Program. (Photo courtesy of Toro)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 68,000 raucous spectators will be packed into Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to watch the New England Patriots meet the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI on Sunday. UConn\u2019s Mike Sargent ’12 (CANR) will be there, too, but he\u2019ll be viewing the game from a completely different vantage point than the average fan.<\/p>\n

Sargent, a native of Belmont, N.H.,\u00a0 is a double major in turfgrass & soil sciences and horticulture, with a minor in landscape design, in the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture. As the winner of the Toro Company\u2019s Toro Super Bowl Sports Training Program scholarship, he has spent the week leading up to the Super Bowl working alongside NFL field director Ed Magnan, groundskeeper George Toma, and the Super Bowl grounds crew. He\u2019s been learning about turf maintenance, logo painting, field preparation for media day, and preparations for the halftime extravaganza that will be headlined by Madonna.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been an awesome experience,\u201d says Sargent, who admits to being \u201ca huge Patriots fan.\u201d He has spent the week learning the \u2018tricks of the trade\u2019 from veteran grounds keepers, and he\u2019s also had the chance to meet players from both teams and to mingle with the cast and crew of the half-time show.<\/p>\n

\u201cOn Wednesday, I got to hold the net and return the ball to [Pats\u2019 place kicker] Stephen Gostkowski when he was practicing. That was amazing,\u201d he says. \u201cI never expected I\u2019d have the chance to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Mike<\/a>
Mike Sargent, left, helps drag the field in preparation for the 'big day.' (Photo courtesy of Toro)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This year\u2019s game is being played on synthetic turf, which means that Sargent has been learning the nuances of keeping the layers of rubber and sand in great shape, as well as making sure the surface will be neither too soft nor too hard come game time.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t the type of surface he\u2019s used to,\u201d says Jason Henderson, assistant professor of plant science and landscape architecture in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, \u201cbut there\u2019s still a lot of maintenance involved. This is a great opportunity for Mike to learn from the best people in the business. He\u2019s really outgoing and a quick learner, and he knows enough to keep his mouth closed and his eyes and ears open. I\u2019m sure he\u2019s making the most of this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

The process of applying for the Toro scholarship involves filling out an application, supplying references, and writing an essay. Sargent went the extra mile and provided a video highlighting his experiences at UConn.<\/p>\n

\u201cI sent my application off in October and began thinking how great it would be if I won and if the Patriots could make it to the Super Bowl,\u201d he says. \u201cI was notified [that I\u2019d won the scholarship] during Thanksgiving break and then I just had to wait for the Pats to do their part.\u201d<\/p>\n

UConn\u2019s program is designed to provide students with basic and applied knowledge in all aspects of turfgrass science including the development and care of golf courses, athletic facilities, and commercial properties. With two-year, four-year, and graduate programs to choose from, there are opportunities in teaching, research, public service, or agribusiness upon graduation. The various programs boast nearly a 100 percent job placement rate among graduates.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of the success of our program comes down to attracting motivated and focused students, like Mike,\u201d says Henderson. \u201cWe provide the opportunities, and the students provide the passion and the work ethic to do well.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Toro Company has worked with the National Football League for over 40 years to prepare fields for the annual Super Bowl, the NFL\u2019s showcase event. In 2003, the company established the Toro Super Bowl Sports Training Program. Sargent is the second UConn student in the past five years to earn this scholarship.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A UConn senior will be viewing ‘the big game’ from a special place on the field.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":54359,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,2234],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[56],"class_list":["post-54345","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","category-university-life"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-08 19:23:10","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54345","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/21"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54345"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54345\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54380,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54345\/revisions\/54380"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/54359"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54345"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54345"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54345"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=54345"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=54345"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}