George Toma — the NFL’s longtime groundskeeper who goes by the nickname, “The Sodfather” — is pissed off at the league over its terrible Super Bowl LVII field conditions … saying he “can’t take it anymore.”
Toma, who spent 18 months preparing the rye grass that was used during the Chiefs vs. Eagles matchup on Feb. 12, unloaded in an interview with ESPN on Tuesday … claiming the sod was overwatered four days before the big game at State Farm Stadium.
Of course, there were numerous instances of players slipping all over the field during SB LVII … with many questioning how the league could mess up on its biggest stage. The NFL refuted any problems the day after the game, though … saying the grass was tested and met the required standards.
Toma is pointing fingers right at the NFL’s field director, Ed Mangan, for the grass being slick the day of the game … claiming, “he waters the hell out of it and puts it right into the stadium and that’s it. Never sees sunlight again. He can’t do that.”
But H20 apparently wasn’t the only mess-up — Toma also claims Mangan made the mistake of not sanding the field enough.
“He sanded it two weeks too late,” Toma told the outlet. “He had only one sanding. He should have had two or three sandings, but he didn’t do s***. And that was it.”
“And not only that, he didn’t take care of it. He wouldn’t listen to anybody.”
After 80 years in the biz, Toma announced his plans to retire prior to SB LVII … citing headaches caused by the league’s handling of field issues in the past as well.
“Me and the league are finished. They can’t tell me what to do anymore. We’re done.”
Now that’s a kick in the grass!!