HIgh Winds Expected For Northwestern-Duke Game At Temporary Lakeside Stadum

Getty Image / James Black

Northwestern has one of the prettiest settings for college football in the entire country this year. As Ryan Field is being torn down and built new, they’ve set up a temporary structure right up against Lake Michigan, and that stadium will host tonight’s P4 Duke-Northwestern matchup.

College football fans and observers have been saying for months how brutal the conditions will get there when the calendar changes into November. But, we’re going to get a sneak peek at the hardcore conditions tonight, the weather is expected to be brutal.

The  Lanny and Sharon Martin Athletic Facility seats just over 12,000. While that wouldn’t fly for some much bigger fan bases in the Big Ten like Ohio State, Michigan, and Penn State, it works for a smaller fan base like Northwestern. Honestly, it looks like an awesome place to play and watch a football game the next two years.

Chicago is known as the Windy City, and there’s a reason for that, as that cold wind pervades the city for much of the year. At least when the Bears are playing at Soldier Field, they’re a bit further from the lake and the structure itself shields players and fans from some of the wind.

That’s not the case at Martin Athletic Facility, and the elements are going to impact a game much sooner in the season than previously thought.

Yeah, good luck passing or kicking in conditions like that. A game that wasn’t going to have a lot of offense to begin with is going to be even uglier.