Not many people can relate to the lives of the characters on ‘Friday Night Lights.’ The lives of the residents of Dillon, Texas, seem to revolve around the Dillon Panthers’ games on Friday nights and everything leading up to them.
High school students drinking beer on the back of pickup trucks, going to the rodeo and blowout post-game parties in backyards while the parents, boosters and coaches celebrate at Applebee’s. The show brings you farther into the character’s lives showing you their challenges, successes and family lives.
If a game is lost, Coach Eric Taylor comes home to his front lawn covered with ‘For Sale’ signs. His life seems to go up and down with the games he more often wins than loses.
This show is not all about football, not even close. The lives of these Texans are all varied and interesting in many ways. You have no choice but to sympathize with these characters and root for them on the football field and off.
The lives of the Taylors are enviable. The attractive couple, Tami and Eric Taylor, are parents to newborn Gracie, and the 18-year-old Julie, who is dating the team’s former star quarterback, Matt Saracen. Tami is the school’s principal while Eric is the head football coach. Despite their economic or family problems, the Taylors appear to stay madly in love. They are happy no matter what their economic situation and day by day, they conquer the difficulties of raising Julie and dealing with boosters and trying to make everyone happy. Their most recent challenge is the redistricting of Dillon which makes Tami’s job easier with more money for the school, but will result in the loss of many players from Eric’s Panthers.
Despite Tim Riggins’ unstructured family life, he is the perfect boyfriend to Lyla Geherty, the school’s sweetheart and daughter of the head of boosters. Lyla is not all innocent as she first got together with Tim while she was dating the former quarterback of the Panthers, Jason Street, who was paralyzed in a game.
Despite missing most of his classes, seemingly holding a beer in every scene and living with his mess of a brother, Billy, without his parents, Tim is an integral part of the Dillon Panthers’ offense. He was best friends with Jason Street before he moved up north and is now fully dedicated to Lyla.
In the most recent episode, he lets Lyla stay at his house and slowly gets her back on her feet after learning that her father, Buddy Geherty has lost all of her college savings money after investing it in a strip mall that went under. This news is especially devastating as Lyla has just been accepted to Vanderbilt, and without receiving financial aid, her chances of going to college are looking slim.
Tyra Collette is the former bad girl and sort of girlfriend of Tim Riggins. Collette is looking to go to college after turning her life around with the help of Tami Taylor. In the most recent episode, Tyra is planning the wedding shower for her stripper sister who is marrying Billy Riggins. She gets help from Landry, the loveable nerd, who is best friends with Saracen.’
Saracen has dealt with troubles both on and off the field. First he is replaced by the freshman phenom, J.D. McCoy as the starting quarterback, Taylor walks in on him and his daughter Julie having sex, and his grandmother’s mind is deteriorating, the woman whom he has cared for all alone while his father and mother left him.
Although his mother has come back into his life, Matt now needs to face the reality, after she falls out of the car and scrapes her head, that his grandmother needs a level of care and attention that he can no longer provide on his own.
J.D. McCoy is the freshman starting quarterback. His father is so obsessed with him being perfect on and off the football field that he controls every move of his life, which leaves J.D. with no friends, girlfriend or social life to speak of. J.D.’s life revolves around football.
This has changed in recent episodes when he gets a new girlfriend named Madison, who watches his practices and comes over to his house often. This angers his father, especially when one of J.D.’s coaches calls the house and says that J.D. was distracted during practice.
His dad could not control his anger and, at the climax of the episode,’ punched his son repeatedly after their semi-final win. He was not happy with J.D.’s performance despite his throwing the winning pass. J.D. and his mother are taking refuge in the Taylor’s house until they can figure out a plan of what to do with the nut job father.
Each episode of Friday Night Lights is full of drama and action. The storylines of the characters are different but all connected. Football is just one of the many subjects of this show. Luckily, the show’s episodes are put online after they air, ironically, on Fridays at 9 p.m..’
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