Who is George Toma, and how is he a significant figure in the Super Bowl?

George Toma is an American groundskeeper who is among the few individuals still alive who have seen every single Super Bowl game since 1967. Toma excels in taking care of sporting venues, and since the first Super Bowl was held at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, he has worked on every Super Bowl surface.

The upcoming Super Bowl 57's playing field at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, will have immaculate grass prepared for action by Toma and his crew, so the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs players can rest easy.

"I'm here to give the players the best possible condition to play on a safe playing field and then some," Toma told FOX on Friday.

Toma was born in 1929 and has been in the business for more than 70 years. He is known as the "God of Sod" and "The Sodfather" for his skill and commitment.

Since the 1950s, when he first entered the sports turf industry, George Toma has looked after the fields for various Major League Baseball, NFL and NCAA sports teams. He is recognized as one of the business's most informed and experienced groundskeepers.

Toma received the Ralph Hay Pioneer Award from the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2001. As one of the organization's founding members, Toma was elected to the Major League Baseball Groundkeepers Hall of Fame in January 2012. Toma was also admitted to the Royals Hall of Fame in 2012.

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This could be George Toma’s last Super Bowl

New York Yankees v Kansas City Royals

Toma, who has just turned 94, told WNEP-TV that Super Bowl 57 would be his last. He said:

"This is my last Super Bowl definitely, and I would like to see the youngsters carry on."

After hours of practice, Rihanna is scheduled to headline the Super Bowl halftime show to celebrate her comeback. However, George Toma's crew has prepared the field to withstand such a hammering.

"I don't like them stamping on that good grass. After they get rehearsed we spend hours with brushes brushing it up to bring the leaves to stand up again," Toma told FOX.

Toma claims that he keeps attending the Super Bowl because of the professionalism he learned during his younger days in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He started working as a baseball team's top groundskeeper when he was 16. Toma will be at the Super Bowl with his son Ryan, who is also there to assist.

In 1967, George Toma started working on the Super Bowl I fields. He admitted that their budget for their first few games was only $500, but that sum has since soared due to new fields costing over $750,000.