Sahuaro High School Football Field

Highlights A Speed-run
  • Client Sahuaro High School
  • Location Tucson, Arizona
  • Industry K-12
  • Surface Game On Turf Synthetic Turf Track
  • Project Completion 2026
Sahuaro High School in Tucson, Arizona was facing a common dilemma amongst many Southwest schools – keep maintaining a declining, water-hungry natural grass football field or move to a synthetic turf surface in one of the hottest states in the country without compromising athlete safety. Sahuaro High School is one of several Tucson United School District campuses where MMTH is replacing declining natural grass fields with synthetic turf, a district-wide move to escape rising maintenance costs. At Sahuaro, MMTH’s Design, Civil Engineering, and Construction teams engineered a field built to beat the heat. An integrated irrigation system, shock-absorbing padding, and an all-natural CoreMax® and Geofill infill from Shaw® Sports Turf combine for a surface that runs up to 40 degrees cooler than traditional turf, needs far less maintenance, and passes GMAX testing on Shaw's GAME ON® technology. MMTH’s Creative team put the finishing touches on the project with custom midfield and end zone graphics, and produced athlete hype videos ensuring the Cougars take their new, safe, naturally cool field in style.
Services/SCOPE LIST GOES ON AND ON
  • Base Construction
  • Civil Engineering
  • Creative
  • Design
  • Design-Build
  • Excavation
  • Fence Installation
  • Field Construction
  • Field Events
  • Full Conversion - Football Field
  • Irrigation System
  • New Codes
  • Photography
  • Renderings
  • Site Concrete
  • Site Improvements
  • Sports Construction
  • Sports Equipment
  • Track Replacement
  • Turf Surfacing
  • Video

Beat the Desert Heat

When Tucson Unified School District partnered with MMTH to replace multiple natural grass fields with synthetic turf surfaces, the extreme heat was their top concern. The arid climate with its intense direct sun, low humidity, and long dry summers demanded a surface with built-in cooling capabilities and low maintenance costs.  

We started with the base. An irrigation system was critical for the field to be usable. We installed six Hunter high-radius water cannons specifically manufactured for massive turf areas, dust suppression, and sports field cooling. From there, we installed shock absorbing padding followed by an infill mix utilizing CoreMax and Geofill® solutions from Shaw Sports Turf.  

We chose this mix because both deliver a high performance, low maintenance, and sustainable solution. CoreMax is manufactured using olive pits. This 100% natural, renewable product offers improved traction, reduced surface abrasion, and simplified maintenance with no watering required, an excellent cost-efficient fit for Sahuaro’s desert climate. 

The main source of heat on a traditional synthetic turf field is the rubber infill. Removing that heat source from the equation and replacing it with an all-natural infill with built-in cooling capabilities was key to ensuring the Cougars’ field was playable in the extreme heat. Geofill is made from coconut husks and fibers, a material that naturally retains moisture and cools the surface up to 18 hours. That’s 18x longer than rubber, 9x longer than other natural infill options, and overall has shown to be up to 40 degrees cooler than a traditional synthetic turf field.  

Celebrate The Cougar Spirit

The field itself is Shaw’s GAME ON® turf, known for its innovative, tufted technology that reduces cuts and seams, increases consistency and safety, and delivers a high performance surface that passes GMAX testing. Working together with Sahuaro, MMTH’s Creative team created custom midfield and endzone graphics that serve as the finishing touches on a field purpose-built to provide a safe, supportive stage that celebrates the Cougar spirit.  

And that spirit doesn’t stop at the sideline. MMTH’s Creative team took the energy of Sahuaro Football beyond the field, producing athlete hype videos that capture the pride of the program, turning game day energy into content that builds momentum long before kickoff.