By Pat Harty

IOWW CITY, Iowa – Don Patterson is right in saying that playing college football games at night in November, and especially in late November, is ridiculous for teams that aren’t located in a warm-weather climate.

Playing a late November night game in Los Angeles, Miami, or even Seattle, is much different than playing a late November night game in Iowa City.

The Iowa football team will host Nebraska in the annual Heroes Game on Friday with kickoff set for 6:30 p.m. at Kinnick Stadium.

The game will be televised by NBC, and that’s what matters the most – television revenue.

There was a time not so long ago when the Big Ten Conference had a rule against playing night games in November mostly because of weather concerns.

But as the thirst for more television revenue continues to grow, making sense often takes a back seat to making money.

There is no other way to explain it.

The only reason night games are now being played in November is to make money.

Who cares if the temperature is below freezing at kickoff, which will almost certainly be the case when Iowa (7-4)  faces Nebraska (6-5) on Friday since the high on Friday is supposed to be just 28 degrees?

Football players are rugged and tough and should be able to take the cold weather if there is money to be made, right?

That seems to be the only rationale for explaining why night games are now being played in November.

The weather will undoubtedly be a factor in the Iowa-Nebraska game. It probably would have been a factor even if the game started at 11 a.m. or noon.

But with a 6:30 p.m. kickoff, imagine how cold it will be in the second half.

Some fans might choose to stay home and watch Friday’s game on television, which would be just fine with the television executives because that is ultimately what the networks want.

Don Patterson made his usual Monday appearance on the Hawk Fanatic radio show and podcast and he addressed multiple topics in addition to playing night games in November.

The former Iowa offensive coordinator under Hayden Fry looked back at Saturday’s 29-13 win at Maryland and forward to Friday’s game against the Cornhuskers, who are bowl eligible for the first time since 2016.

Patterson, who was also the head coach for Western Illinois from 1999 to 2009, believes that walk-on quarterback Jackson Stratton deserves to start against Nebraska because of how he played in the win over Maryland.

Stratton only passed for 76 yards, but he avoided throwing any interceptions and he ran the offense with poise and precision.

“I was very impressed with how Jackson ran the offense,” Patterson said.

The status of sixth-year graduate quarterback Cade McNamara, who started the first eight games this season, is uncertain for Friday’s game as he apparently continues to battle with the effects from a concussion that he suffered against Northwestern nearly a month ago.

Junior quarterback Brendan Sullivan, who started against Wisconsin and UCLA, is also recovering from an ankle injury that occurred early in the second half against UCLA.

Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz might help to clarify the situation at quarterback when he addresses the media in his weekly press conference on Tuesday.

He also might have something to say about playing night games in November.