Featuring the finest moment in Coach Taylor’s career. Proper goosebumps.
Right from the very first episode when Jason Street was tragically paralysed, fans knew that Friday Night Lights was never going to be just about sport. In many ways, football is secondary to the events in Dillon because the real drama unfolds away from the field.
Throughout the first season of the beloved show, Coach Taylor managed to get the very best from his Panthers players because he knows what it takes to play like champions. However, he also knew what it takes to mould men.
Discipline, courage, and sacrifice will take you a long way on the gridiron, but what makes Taylor such an interesting character is the fact that he genuinely cares about his players as people.
Every. Single. One.
When the arm needs to be placed around the shoulder and a few quiet words spoken, he knows how to deliver the message. In fact, with one look, he can inspire his players to run through a wall of fire.
However, he’s also a man that’s not to be messed with.
In the Season 1 finale, State, Friday Night Lights’ debut run of episodes ends on a euphoric high because it’s the perfect mix of what’s so brilliant about the show.
In terms of drama, we’ve got Tyra and Landry coming to terms with the sexual assault and attempted rape that she endured in the Mud Bowl episode. Elsewhere, the spectre of Ray “Voodoo” Tatum looms large as Matt Saracen and the Panthers come face-to-face with the prodigy that got away.
Aside from this, Coach Taylor also has to deal with a situation that’s unique and unheard of, his players losing faith in their leader after news emerges that he took the head coaching job at TMU.
Ultimately, everything comes together in one of the finest speeches that has ever been written and delivered. If you’re wondering what makes Kyle Chandler such a good actor, here it is.
“When Jason Street went down in the first game of the season, everybody wrote us off. Everybody. And here we are at the championship game. Right now 40,000 people have also written us off. But there are some who do still believe in you, a few who’d never give up on you. When you take that field, those are the people I want in your minds. Those are the people I want in your hearts.
“Every man at some point is gonna lose a battle. He’s gonna fight and he’s gonna lose. But what makes him a man, is that in the midst of that battle he does not lose himself. This game is not over, this battle is not over. So let’s hear it one more time, together. Clear eyes, full hearts, CAN’T LOSE!”
In the famous words of Tim Riggins, Texas Forever.
Friday Night Lights airs at 00:05 on TG4.
Clip via Raul Lopez
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