MORRISVILLE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — Morrisville State College got to test out their new black turf field in their home opener on Saturday, September 16, against Catholic University. During halftime, they made the new Drake Field official with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and honored their Wall of Fame inductees. This was the first time they inducted alumni into the Wall of Fame in eight years.

The black turf field caused an uproar on social media because of the unique change from a regular green turf field. The topic even caught national attention.

Why a black turf?

The decision had a lot of preparation behind it and President of SUNY Morrisville, David Rogers, said, “We did a survey with our student-athletes in the spring, and they almost all said black would be the thing. So I know this is working because high school kids want to come play here. We’ve got college teams that have already played, and they said they can’t believe how much fun it is to be on this turf.”

While public opinion on the black turf is still up in the air, the new Wall of Fame inductees and SUNY Morrisville alumni believe the fact that the school got national attention will make a lasting impact.

Former SUNY Morrisville quarterback Lemar Johnson said, “We’re getting a lot of the recognition right now. A lot more people are going to come here. It’s a small school, so a lot of people don’t know about it.”

“Just to be recognized on such a big national news, it’s so cool that a small school in Upstate New York got put on such a big screen,” former SUNY Morrisville women’s lacrosse midfielder Shelby Wood said.

While the Morrisville Mustangs lost their first game on the black turf, they’ll have another chance for their first win at Drake Field against SUNY Cortland on September 30.