'No Smoking, Please'

‘NO SMOKING, PLEASE’

It’s not the rough football players Michigan officials are worried about Saturday when the Wolverines tangle with Vanderbilt at Michigan Stadium.

It’s those photographers on the sidelines who could ruin part of the new $250,000 artificial turf. Discarded lighted cigarettes can cause costly damage to the Tartan Turf.

“Please do not smoke on the sidelines,” Sports Information Director Will Perry said in a memo to all photographers who will be covering the opening game. A few special attendants will be stationed along the sidelines to remind members of the photographic corps.

“Gum also will damage the Tartan Turf,” Perry warns.

Perry, however, figures his warning has humanitarian overtones and should help “all those who’ve been wanting to give up smoking.”

PHOTO CAPTION: Examining The Turf: Michigan Athletic Director Don Canham, the man primarily responsible for the installation of the artificial turf in Michigan Stadium, takes a look at the “carpet” on which the Wolverines will play their season-opener Saturday. The yard lines are painted white on the light green turf and the numerals are exceptionally large. Coach Bo Schembechler will have to sets of shoes ready for each player each game. One set, a soccer-type shoe, will be worn in dry weather, and the other, more like a regular football shoe, will be worn when the field is wet. The turf has been somewhat slippery when wet.