Four fields at Ben Lomond High, Ogden High and Spence Eccles Ogden Community Sports Complex will debut a new kind of turf beginning with the 2026-27 school year.

The $3.8 million project is covered by basic funds and roughly $500,000 fundraised by the Ogden Peaks Classic Soccer Tournament, according to a district meeting agenda from February. The projects are scheduled to wrap in early July, Ogden High athletic director Ross Arnold told the Standard-Examiner.

The installations will provide new surfaces at each high school football stadium and replace two fields at the Eccles complex, typically used for soccer. Soccer teams and marching bands, among other groups, also use the fields inside the football stadiums.

The previous turf inlay at Ogden High’s football stadium had been in place since 2016, which met its end roughly a year shy of its 10-year expected lifespan. The field project comes after the Tiger baseball program debuted its updated home facilities earlier this year.

“They’ve invested heavily in our facilities, which is a real blessing,” Arnold said.

The new surface at each field will be TenCate Pivot Performance Turf. Unlike the former fields, which utilized rubber infill to simulate a durable, grass-like surface, the “pivot” turf, introduced in February of last year, requires no infill and will look and interact similarly to that of grass, with “built-in shock absorption” and a lower risk of skin burns, TenCate’s website claims.

TenCate offers a 12-year warranty on its new field, according to its website. Multiple sources predict the new turf will last anywhere from 12 to 15 years with proper maintenance, which involves routine brushing and washing of the surface material.

BL and Ogden will be among the first schools in Utah to install this type of turf, Arnold said. One field at the Eccles complex already has the new technology laid down.

“As far as I know, there’s nobody in the state that has it,” Arnold said. “There are some schools over in Colorado that have it, but it’s what FIFA uses over in Europe. There are none of the black beads or any of that kind of filler.

“I guess the FIFA players claim that it plays like grass, and the field over at the complex, you walk in it and it feels entirely different from regular field turf. It’s softer, and we’re supposed to get more life out of it.”

Assuming no major delays occur, the entire project at the two high schools and the Eccles complex will be ready several weeks ahead of high school football season. Ogden (hosting Bear River) and Ben Lomond (against North Sevier) are both scheduled to play at home on Aug. 14.

Connect with prep sports reporter Conner Becker via email at cbecker@standard.net, X @ctbecker and Instagram @standardexaminersports.