Friday Night Lights is an Emmy Award-winning American serial drama television series adapted by Peter Berg, Brian Grazer and David Nevins from a book and film of the same name. The series details events surrounding the Dillon Panthers, a high school football team based in fictional Dillon, Texas, with particular focus given to the team's coach, Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his family. The show uses this small-town backdrop to address many issues facing contemporary Middle America.

Produced by NBC Universal, Friday Night Lights is broadcast by NBC. Premiering on October 3, 2006 with an initial order of 12 episodes, the show was eventually picked up for an entire season. NBC would go on to renew the show for a full 22-episode second season after the first season was completed and season two episodes began airing on October 5, 2007. Only 15 of these episodes were completed before production was stopped due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. During the strike, NBC Universal's decision to release the season two DVD with only the 15 produced episodes and comments by NBC chief Ben Silverman led to speculation that the show would be canceled. Unconfirmed reports of a third season renewal surfaced on March 5, 2008 when Nikki Finke reported on a possible cost sharing partnership between NBC and DirecTV. The alleged agreement would have first-run episodes airing exclusively on DirecTV and then being rerun on NBC at a later date. TV Guide's Ausselio says that the deal is very close and the contract just needs a final signature.

NBC Universal -- which also produces the series -- has approached The CW Television Network, TNT and the owner of E! and G4, about sharing a possible third season of "Friday Night Lights. NBC does something similar with Law & Order: Criminal Intent; new episodes debuted on the USA Network in the fall and are now being repurposed on NBC.

To date, Friday Night Lights has aired 37 episodes.

Subject to multiple timeslot changes, Friday Night Lights has yet to obtain a sizable audience. The show has, however, been a critical success and was featured on a number of critics' top ten lists following its first season as well being identified twice by the American Film Institute as culturally significant. Lauded by critics for its realistic portrayal of Middle America and deep personal exploration of its central characters, the show has been awarded a Peabody Award, an Emmy Award, and a Television Critics Association Award.

In the small town of Dillon, Texas, one night matters: Friday Night. Eric Taylor has recently been hired as the head football coach for the Dillon High School Panthers, the town's pride and joy. Friday Night Lights displays the stress that the town gives the high school players to win, and the hope that the team gives to a small town, and how a team has its low points, it's high points, and how they come together as a team on their way to victory. Written by Zac Abrams