It doesn’t matter if you’re cheering for the Cowboys, the Sooners or another gridiron team this season, agriculture is all around you as you prepare for game day; from the football itself to the food at your tailgate.
Although it may be known as the ‘pigskin,’ footballs are in fact made out of cattle hides. With more than 2 million beef cows in Oklahoma, cattle are one of the state’s top commodities.
With just shy of 1,000,000 cotton bales produced right here in Oklahoma 2017, a portion of that will go on to produce game day items athletes wear before, during and after a game, like:
- sweatpants
- sweatshirts
- hats
- t-shirts
- jerseys
- socks
- bandages
- medical tape
- towels
- gloves
Mainly a combination of beef and pork, the hotdogs at your tailgate could have easily started at one of the many farms or ranches right here in the Sooner state. Oklahoma is home to nearly 2,000 hog farms that raise roughly 2 million pigs yearly. Make sure to support Oklahoma pork producers by enjoying a hotdog at your next game.
ON THE FIELD
When working on a new grass variety, the researchers at Oklahoma State University Turfgrass Management have a long list of requirements before rolling out a new variety to the public, such as:
- fine texture
- high density
- dark green color
- uniformity
- drought resistance
- cold hardiness
- salinity tolerance
- ability to handle constant foot traffic
- shade tolerance
- ability to handle diseases, insects and weeds
- quick recovery after traffic injuries (a football game)
FUN FACT
Turf grass varieties produced at OSU have gone on to be used at facilities such as the U.S. Naval Academy Golf Course; practice fields for the Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins and the Tennessee Titans; the ballpark for the Texas Rangers; several fields for the University of Oklahoma; and the baseball field at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.
