ODESSA, TEXAS - It is only the second full day of practice in pads, but Permian High School's new football coach, T. J. Mills, already likes what he sees. Tight end Chris Mineo-6 feet, 3 inches and 258 pounds-has just taken a perfect pass on a slant pattern, tucking the ball in the crook of his elbow without breaking stride and deftly shedding a linebacker trying to wrap up his legs. As he heads upfield, Mineo crushes two small and wiry defensive backs who made the mistake of trying to tackle him around the shoulders. Mineo jogs back to the huddle with a big smile on his face while the two defensive backs help each other up from the burned-out grass, grasshoppers and dragonflies flying up from their feet. Then they do it again. And again. And again. .
It's a scene that's being repeated around the country, as thousands of high school coaches prepare their kids for the fall football season with grinding practices, morning and afternoon, in the stifling dog days of August. This is the time of year when championship teams are forged, when dreams of "going to state" are very real, when the hopes for big-time college football scholarships are not so far-fetched-even for little defensive backs.
And here in Odessa, Texas, which may be the cradle of high school football civilization, the team's expectations and dreams are no different. But for the fans of Permian High School football-indeed, for nearly everyone in Odessa-the cracking of helmets and the pushing of blocking sleds around the field mean much more. The 190 kids on this parched gridiron represent the best values that their city has to offer: the blue-collar work ethic of the oil fields, teamwork over individual glory, and the quaint idea that hard work beats superior talent any day of the week. .
The Odessa community has supported Permian football in ways that some professional sports franchises might envy. It sells 5,000 season tickets every year and regularly fills 20,000-seat Ratliff Stadium.
Friday Night Lights People's perception of small town Texas is generally an area consumed by high school football and racism. ... Bissinger's Friday Night Lights is the story of one man's experience with both segregation and football at Permian High School in Odessa, Texas. ...
Have you ever sat in class and dreamed about tomorrow, about the weekend, what you going to do for the next couple of days, or even this night?? ... Sometimes you even have to stay up late at night if you want to finish all your papers. ... We are talking about Friday here oh, come on!!! ... If you could have all of your work done Friday night, you could have a fun and relaxing weekend. ... I think that Friday is very good day in the week. ...
It started out just like any other weekend; cheering at the Friday night football game, staying up until the early hours of the morning emitting an inconsequential flow of babble and laughter through the keyboard to my confidants, then falling into a deep slumber. ... I brushed away the plaque and did my best to rid my mouth of the horrible case of halitosis it had acquired through the night. ...
Critique of Friday Night Lights By H.G. Bissinger Friday Night Lights: A team, a town, a dream is the story of the 1988 Permian High School football team in Odessa, Texas. The book covers a year in the life of the team, from the ending of the 1987 season through the conclusion of the 1988 seas...
The book Friday Night Lights, is a true story of the 1988 Permian High School football team in Odessa, Texas. ... Despite these reasons, the Permian Panthers played on Friday nights in front of crowds that grew up to 20,000 fans. ... Friday Night Lights was written on the account of the teams success during Panthers 1988 football season, and their successful attempt to qualify for a place in the play-offs for the state championship. However there season was cut short, on a rainy night, they were finally beaten in a semi-final game by the Carter Cowboys...
The sun comes up, the sun goes down, to some this Friday is an ordinary day, but to me it is the night for football. ... The game will end and so will life but the memories from the sport on Friday night will be a legacy in every individual high school player's mind....
The name of the author who wrote this very interesting book, "Friday Night Lights," is H. G. Bissinger. Bissinger was a newspaper editor in Philadelphia, after a while he went to Oddessa to meet the members of the 1988 Permian Panther football team. Incredibly enough for the next four months he wa...
They seem to struggle every other Friday night to fill this immense social void. ... This is considered irony of situation because the readers and characters expect the next payday or Friday night out to open the door to a new relationship, however they do not ever meet. ... Every other Friday the woman drank her beer and laughed loudly" (Cisneros 237). ... Cisneros uses symbolism in many different instances in the story; in one instance Friday nights appear to symbolize an empty ritual night, the night the characters will go out on their inadequate search for a companion. ... Ther...