There are so many reasons to love Friday Night Lights, from the family dynamic in the Taylor household to the love stories featuring the teenage characters. Many fans became heavily invested in the show even if they didn't love football, and they saw how much being involved in the sport changed the characters' lives.
Many teen shows are known for tackling serious topics and Friday Night Lights deserves a lot of credit for examining difficult subjects alongside the excitement of each weekly football game. Often, when the teens became closer friends or entered romantic relationships, this allowed them to explore questions of class and privilege and the different lives that people led in the small football-obsessed Texas town.
Class Differences
Season 4 of Friday Night Lights saw East Dillon High School opening up again, which meant that some students would be displaced to the new school.
West Dillon was seen as the "good" school as this was where the rich and privileged kids went while the others went to East Dillon. Coach Taylor had a tough time as he became the football coach at East Dillon and realized that these students were struggling in their personal lives and weren't used to having opportunities. This was one way that FNL dealt with class differences, and this was a deep topic that the show often touched on. Some of the major couples also had different backgrounds, as Lyla Garrity was rich and Tim Riggins was being raised by his older brother who didn't have a lot of money.
Recovering From A Sports Injury
Viewers remember when Jason Street got hurt in the pilot episode and his life changed forever.
Suddenly, the favorite Dillon resident and star quarterback faced a future without football, and he really struggled with the loss of his identity. Friday Night Lights did an incredible job of portraying this situation, as it's devastating to experience a sports or dance injury. All of a sudden, it's impossible to compete or perform like before, and the person is left scrambling and picking up the pieces.
Slut-Shaming
Lyla Garrity was called a "slut" after having sex with Tim Riggins, which was incredibly unfair.
When viewers first met Lyla, she was a "perfect" student, daughter, and girlfriend to Jason Street. She loved her school, town, and community, and never questioned what people told her. After Jason's accident, she began thinking more about what she really wanted out of life, and she fell hard for Riggins, who showed her a new side of herself. The show examined what it means to be a "good girl" or "the girl next door" as they proved that when Lyla wanted to evolve, her town didn't support her.
The Mother-Daughter Relationship
Julie and her parents had major struggles as the show went on, allowing Friday Night Lights to focus on the tough relationship that a mother and daughter can have.
While they had been close before, Julie wanted to be independent and date Matt and basically live her own life without involving her mom. Tami, of course, worried about that and wanted to make sure her daughter was okay. While some moms and daughters are best friends and don't experience this kind of tension, many are just like Julie and Tami, and could definitely relate.
Racism
Friday Night Lights talked about racism in many episodes, particularly in the season 1 episode "Black Eyes and Broken Hearts."
After Coach Mac said horrible and offensive racist remarks, the Black players on Coach Taylor's team said that they weren't going to play without him being fired. Coach Taylor handled this terribly, as he wasn't prepared to fire Coach Mac. Eric is a beloved character and is typically portrayed as being noble, and it was important that FNL pointed out that he was incredibly privileged and couldn't see outside of his own experience. He was concerned about winning the next game, and it was disappointing and problematic that he responded this way.
Abortion
After sleeping with Luke, Becky got pregnant unexpectedly, and her mom thought that she should get an abortion. The series handled this topic carefully as Becky wanted to make sure that she was making the right decision, and she knew that she was too young (and didn't have enough money) to raise a child.
Bekcy talked to Tami Taylor about her choice and asked Tami what she would tell Julie, to which Tami replied, "I would tell her to think about her life, think about what's important to her and what she wants and I would tell her she's in a real tough spot and then I would support whatever decision she made." This storyline was well-crafted and proved how contentious this topic is, especially in a conservative place, as Luke's mom pressured Tami to quit her job as principal.
Religion
In season 2, Lyla became more religious and her baptism was a storyline in the premiere. The show examined her decision to become a born-again Christian.
Not all teen dramas explore religion and this was a topic that FNL handled well. Lyla was coming into her own and learning more about herself and who she wanted to be, and after being known as Jason Street's girlfriend for so long, she was ready to focus on what she wanted.
Having Sex For The First Time
Matt was always a sweet and sensitive character and his love story was not only a fan favorite but also a special part of the series.
Friday Night Lights: Every Main Character, Ranked by Likability
Another deep issue that Friday Night Lights tackled was a character losing their virginity. In the third season of the show, Julie lost her virginity to Matt, and it was a super romantic storyline. They went swimming and then ate by a campfire before sleeping together for the first time. Julie thought carefully about her decision and knew that the time was right and that Matt loved and respect her.
Having A Parent In The Military
Matt Sacaren lived with his grandma in Dillon as his dad, Henry, was serving in the military.
Matt learned that his dad had tragically passed away, allowing the show to tackle the deep issue of having a parent in the military. This was never easy for Matt and it was devastating for him to lose his dad when they had never really gotten to know each other properly. The season 4 episode "The Son" dealt with this issue the most, as Matt was grieving his dad and kept watching a video his dad had recorded for him where he said he couldn't come home for Christmas.
Power Dynamics
Once Tami Taylor became Principal of Dillon High, she learned quickly that there were many power dynamics at play, and these usually had to do with the town making football a priority. In season 3, Tami had some conflict with Buddy Garrity, as he wanted the school to use money for a Jumbotron, and she knew that it could be better served elsewhere.
In the finale, Tami got an amazing job offer and her future was bright, which was great to see as she always cared about her position and her students.