Getting your questions ready
Getting your questions ready
Beat the crowd
10 questions No timer
This Friday Night Lights trivia quiz has 50 free questions with answers and covers all three versions of the story: Buzz Bissinger's 1990 book about the 1988 Odessa Permian Panthers, Peter Berg's 2004 film with Billy Bob Thornton as Gary Gaines, and above all the 2006-2011 television series set in fictional Dillon, Texas — Eric and Tami Taylor, Jason Street's injury, Matt Saracen, Tim Riggins, Smash, Lyla, Tyra and Landry, Buddy Garrity, the move to East Dillon and the Lions, Vince Howard and the finale 'Always'. It also covers how the show was made and saved: the Austin and Pflugerville locations, the DirecTV co-production, the Peabody, the Emmys and the Explosions in the Sky score. Early questions suit anyone who has binged the show once; later ones reward fans who know which stadium the film's title game was shot in and which cast members carried over from the movie. Every answer was checked against encyclopaedia entries before publishing.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01Which real Texas town, home of the Permian Panthers, gave the fictional Dillon many of its traits?
Odessa
Berg set the series in a fictional town rather than the real setting of the book and film.
Q 02Who plays Coach Eric Taylor?
Kyle Chandler
He won the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2011, after the show had ended.
Q 03What is Tami Taylor's job when the series begins?
Guidance counselor
She later becomes principal of Dillon High and finally takes a college job in Philadelphia.
Q 04Which player suffers a career-ending spinal injury in the pilot?
Jason Street
The storyline was inspired by David Edwards, a San Antonio player paralysed in a 2003 game.
Q 05Which quiet sophomore becomes the Panthers' starting quarterback after Street's injury?
Saracen
Zach Gilford played him; his romance with Julie Taylor runs on and off through the whole series.
Q 06Who plays hard-drinking fullback Riggins?
Taylor Kitsch
Riggins struggles with alcohol and family problems, and later ends up in jail after opening a chop shop.
Q 07What is running back Brian Williams' nickname?
Smash
Gaius Charles played him; his arc centres on chasing a college scholarship.
Q 08Which actor plays Landry Clarke, the quarterback's best friend?
Jesse Plemons
His season-two murder storyline with Tyra was widely panned by critics.
Q 09Which season-two storyline was particularly criticised?
The Landry and Tyra murder plot
Reviews for the season were considerably weaker than the first.
Q 10Where is Coach Taylor working when season two begins?
Texas Methodist University in Austin
Tami stays in Dillon with Julie and newborn Gracie while a new coach alienates the Panthers.
Q 11What is the name of the Taylors' baby, born between seasons one and two?
Gracie
Her arrival is part of why Tami stays behind in Dillon.
Q 12Which team does Coach Taylor lead in seasons four and five?
The East Dillon Lions
East Dillon High is underfunded and underprivileged, and he has to build the programme from scratch.
Q 13Which future Black Panther star joined the cast in season four as quarterback Vince Howard?
Michael B. Jordan
He went on to Fruitvale Station and Creed after the show.
Q 21Which band performs the show's score and background music?
Explosions in the Sky
The Austin post-rock band had also scored the 2004 film.
Q 22What is the title of the series finale?
Always
Time's James Poniewozik ranked it the No. 1 TV episode of 2011.
Q 23Where is Eric coaching when the series ends?
Philadelphia
He takes a college job in Tami's new city after finally putting her career first.
Q 24Which two Emmys did the show win in 2011 after it ended?
Q 14Which Lions-side character, played by Jurnee Smollett, aspires to be a football coach?
Jess Merriweather
She works at her father's restaurant, dates Landry briefly, then Vince.
Q 15What is the name of the wealthy Panthers booster played by Brad Leland?
Buddy Garrity
Leland played a similar role in the 2004 film before the series.
Q 16How was the series saved after low ratings on NBC?
NBC co-produced it with DirecTV's 101 Network
Seasons three to five premiered on DirecTV with NBC rebroadcasts months later.
Q 17How many seasons did the show run?
Five
It ended on The 101 Network in February 2011.
Q 18In which Texas cities was the show filmed?
Austin and Pflugerville
Texas matched other states' incentives to keep the production near Austin.
Q 19The show's fictional team borrowed uniforms, cheerleaders and a stadium from which real high school?
Pflugerville
Producers even used footage of real Pflugerville games; the fictional Herrmann Field is named for their coach.
Q 20Which real Texas Longhorns coach appears as a Dillon booster in the pilot?
Mack Brown
A caller to Panther Radio compares Coach Taylor to him.
Lead Actor for Kyle Chandler and Writing for Jason Katims
Katims won for the finale 'Always'; the show was also nominated for Outstanding Drama Series.
Q 25Which prestigious broadcasting honour did the show win?
A Peabody Award
It also won a Humanitas Prize and a TCA Award.
Q 26Where does the former Panthers quarterback move without saying goodbye in season four?
Chicago
He attends art school there and Julie later seeks him out.
Q 27Which character rents a trailer on Becky's mother's property in season four?
Tim
Becky becomes pregnant by Luke and decides to have an abortion in a storyline that drew wide comment.
Q 28Which season-five newcomer, played by Grey Damon, is a basketball player turned receiver?
Hastings Ruckle
He is one of the last additions to the Lions.
Q 29Which universities hosted filming for a Massachusetts-set episode in Julie's senior year?
BC, BU and Tufts
Fictional Oklahoma Tech scenes, by contrast, were shot at UT Austin's Gregory Gym.
Q 30Who wrote the 1990 book the whole franchise is based on?
H.G. Bissinger
Buzz Bissinger was a Pulitzer-winning Philadelphia Inquirer journalist who moved his family to Odessa for a season.