Splendid with some grass

John Robinson the new UNLV football coach took a few minutes to become John Robinson the gardener on Wednesday.

Robinson and wife Linda were on hand at Sam Boyd Stadium to throw out the ceremonial first clump of sod. The new all-grass surface, which will take about three days to install, replaces the artificial turf the Rebels had played on before the current stadium refurbishing.

"I think it's great," Robinson said of his new playing surface. "I think every time I go out (to Sam Boyd Stadium) I'm amazed at how much progress they've made and how good it's going to be. I'm not trying to (blow smoke). I really feel great about it."

Robinson's USC team played on grass fields at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. When he was coach of the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League, his team also played on grass at Anaheim Stadium, a.k.a. Edison International Field.

Despite that fact, Robinson is not as much against artificial turf as some may believe.

"Artificial turf has had a bum rap," Robinson said. "The tough thing about it is when you play a game on it your elbows and knees and shoulders really take a beating. I think sometimes your feet can get caught in it. The other thing is in a hot climate it really gets warm. But you feel fast on it."

Robinson said he couldn't remember any key injuries that he saw that could be blamed directly on artificial turf during his years as a coach.

"Nah," he said. "I mean, I like the grass. I think grass is the way it's supposed to be. But if we had an indoor field, I'd be fine with Astroturf."

UNLV will test its new grass surface for the first time on Sept. 18 when it hosts Iowa State.

* NERVOUS TIME ... AGAIN: Wednesday night's practice featured a few more tense moments when star cornerback Kevin Thomas was on the ground for about five minutes with a knee injury.

Thomas banged knees with running back Johnny Graham in a non-tackle drill and fell to the ground in a heap. A night earlier, star safety Randy Black had suffered a similiar ailment during a punt drill. Another starting safety, Quincy Sanders, sat out Wednesday's practice with a sore knee.

So three quarters of UNLV's starting secondary were sitting around with ice bags wrapped around their knees at the end of practice. Fortunately, none of the injuries is considered serious.

* REBEL NOTES: UNLV will practice this afternoon from 3:45 to 5:45. Afterward, players and coaches will head over to the All-American SportsPark for a meet the players dinner with the Rebel Football Foundation. The team will practice Friday night at 7 p.m. .... Robinson said his squad has put in "about 40 percent" of its game plan for next Thursday's season-opener at North Texas. ... Robinson, who begins his weekly coaches' show on Monday night at 9:30 at the Sunset Station Brewing Company, isn't the only Rebel coach with a radio show. Defensive coordinator Jeff McInerney co-hosts a show with Alex Shelton on Thursday nights at 6 p.m. on KSHP-1400 a.m. from Chris' Place on the corner of Warm Springs and Spencer in Green Valley.

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