Claim: Connie Britton was in Friday Night Lights as a lead.

Friday Night Lights is an American drama television series about a high school football team in the fictional town of Dillon , Texas . It was developed by Peter Berg and executive produced by Brian Grazer , David Nevins , Sarah Aubrey and Jason Katims , based on the 1990 nonfiction book by H. G. Bissinger , adapted as the 2004 film of the same name . The series ' primary setting , Dillon , is a small , close-knit community in rural Texas . Team coach Eric Taylor -LRB- Kyle Chandler -RRB- and his family , Tami , Julie and Grace , are featured . The show uses this small-town backdrop to address many issues facing contemporary American culture , including family values , school funding , racism , drugs , abortion and lack of economic opportunities .   Produced by NBCUniversal , Friday Night Lights premiered on October 3 , 2006 , and aired for two seasons on NBC . Although the show had garnered critical acclaim and passionate fans , the series suffered low ratings and was in danger of cancellation after the second season . To save the series , NBC struck a deal with DirecTV to co-produce three more seasons ; each subsequent season premiered on DirecTV 's 101 Network , with NBC rebroadcasts a few months later . The series ended its run on The 101 Network on February 9 , 2011 , after five seasons .   Though Friday Night Lights never garnered a sizable audience , it was a critical success , lauded for its realistic portrayal of Middle America and deep exploration of its central characters . The show appeared on a number of best lists and was awarded a Peabody Award , a Humanitas Prize , a Television Critics Association Award and several technical Primetime Emmy Awards . At the 2011 Primetime Emmy Awards , the show was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series . Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton also scored multiple nominations for the Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress awards for a drama series . Executive producer Jason Katims was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series . Chandler and Katims each won the Emmy in 2011 .