MANSFIELD — A new era of Mansfield Senior football will dawn over a renovated Arlin Field when toe meets pigskin this fall.

The Tygers will have a new head coach and a new playing surface when the 2025 season kicks off in August. The original artificial surface was installed at Arlin Field in 2011 with a life expectancy of 10 years, give or take.

“It’s way overdue,” said new Senior High coach Antonio Fletcher, hired last month to succeed Chioke Bradley. “It was becoming a safety issue.

“The turf is inspected every year and after last season we were told it really needed to be replaced.”

The surface is impact tested each year and assigned a number, called the g-max, to determine the relative safety of the field. A g-max score of more than 200 means the surface should be replaced. Arlin Field’s g-max score prior to the 2024 season was 187.

“It was time. Actually, it was past time,” co-athletic director Jack Soliday. “We were told it would last 10 years and we got 14 out of it.

“The seams were starting to come apart and it was becoming worn in places.”

Cincinnati-based Motz Group was in charge of the replacement, which was completed in early-March. The project cost $764,000. Funding came from permanent improvement funds.

“No operating money was used whatsoever,” Soliday emphasized.

The new-look surface features the traditional Tyger logo at midfield and now includes a silhouette of a tiger stretching from end zone to end zone.

The most noticeable upgrade is on the hillside on the west side of the stadium. The green turf covering the hill was replaced by black and orange tiger print with ‘Mansfield’ emblazoned across the turf. A white tiger paw logo covers the bank in the corner nearest the intersection of West Fourth Street and Trimble Road.

“It looks great and the kids love it,” Fletcher said. “That has generated a lot of excitement among our kids.

“They want to get things turned around and they want to do it on the new turf.”

The replacement surface means Arlin Field will continue to be a major player in the playoffs. The iconic venue has hosted more than 70 Ohio High School Athletic Association neutral-site playoff games since the playoff era began in 1972, including the Division V state championship game in 1980.

Arlin Field hosted a memorable Division IV regional semifinal game last fall between Richland County rivals Ontario and Shelby. The game drew more than 8,000 fans to the 12,000-seat venue.

“Every year we know we’re going to have at least two and usually three playoff games,” Soliday said. “Really we were the only site in the area that could handle the crowd of the Ontario-Shelby game. For the last 10 years or so we’ve hosted the Division I state semifinal that matches the Cleveland regional winner with the Columbus regional winner.

“Having the new surface will allow us to continue to host those big-time games.”