I have watched every episode of FNL and I am huge fan. I lurked on this board on many times. However, I am so dissapointed in the third season I cant say enough about it. I hope if they do have a fourth something is done.

My biggest problem was really they had only a few introductions of people. The McCoys were a great addition and a great story line but what about the younger football players. Personnally ET losing his job did it for me. Real life that would never happen coaches do not lose their job after finishing runner up in the state finals generally they get a raise. That came from a Texas High School football coach. I like the story line that were beginning to develop but the next episode didnt follow them up, basiccally Lyla's problems were so were Tyra's. I just didnt get the feel of season one, I hope if there is a season 4 it will have more episodes and ET situation will be dealt with in a real life aspect. That just blew my top off. I know there has to be drama but there needs to be some realism as well. EDHS will be 3a at best he wont be able to compete with Dillion High sorry thats a fact. Hopefully the ratings will be good for a season 4 but I have my doubts. Just hoping and praying we get a season 4 and it makes sence.

I think that perhaps this season was different because it was so short. They only had enough time to let us get to know the new characters on the surface. I don't think they shortchanged us at all. We knew enough about the McCoys to know that Joe was on the edge from the beginning. I hate we only had thirteen episodes for this season but IMO, they did a great job of ending the "stories" of characters we knew so well and they opened the door for us with the new characters.

As for Coach Taylor going to East Dillon next season, if there is one, I just don't see that happening. Something will happen that will change everything! I really hope so.

I agree that it's not likely for a coach to be fired after getting to the state finals, but one thing to keep in mind is Joe McCoy has the $$$ to buy influence and he really wanted Taylor gone, as well as his son to be the team star. It's not hard to see some of the board being influenced by direct bribes or indirect promises of cash donations to the school or the district.

One problem with that, however, is that McCoy said that he moved to Dillon specifically for Coach Taylor. Now that the whole CPS thing happened, I guess he's mad, but then, why stay in Dillon?

I have seen the entire season 3 on Direct tv and feel it is has been an incredible season. Especially being only limited to 13 shows. This was a season of an emotional rollercoaster. There were things that I liked, things that made me cry, things that made me mad and things that made me laugh. And for you to say you are disappointed in this season is wrong. I read all what you wrote and see how passionate you are about what changes occured.......if you are that upset, then obviously the writers did their job. I know everyone will be upset about Coach Taylor, but remember, they had him written off to TMU and then brought him back, because he is the back bone of Dillon High Football! I love this show and truly think that season 3 is great! It brought out every emotion and that made it great! I can't wait to see what happens next!!!

I totally agree with you Lisa3628! The only thing wrong with this season was the fact that it was way too short. This season made me cry and feel so sad as we said goodbye to some of the characters we have all grown to love and then there is the finality of graduation and the fact that the other kids will be leaving. We may not see them leave but, if there is a season 4, we will know that they went on with their lives and grew up!

They really didn't have the time to introduce new characters in depth because time. They had tie up last season and get on with the stories for this season. Maybe next season we will get a full 22 episodes and they can spend a bit of time letting us know where our "kids" are and what they are doing. Perhaps some of them will return and we can really find out more about them and the writers will have time to really let us get to know the new people on the show.

As for JD McCoy, I think he was way to young to be QB for that championship game. He was just not experienced enough to deal with the pressure. That fight with his dad and the total DFACS visit upset the entire family and JD was totally upset, too upset to play. I am surprised the coach let him play.

We will always need another season. This show is so good until it hurts to think that it may not return. There are way too many stories to tell.

Season 3 was definitely a step up from Season 2, but perhaps not quite up to the level of Season 1.

While I am more of a fan for the football of the series as opposed to the soap opera of it, this season was much more balanced and also the romances were more believable than last year.

The one thing I was disappointed in was the State Championship game. In Season 1, Dillon was down 26-0 at half, this year, 27-0 at half. Then of course, they come back and make a game of it.

I recently listened to an interview Peter Berg gave, and he tried to make the point that there are only so many hail mary's and interceptions and fumbles for drama, but I say that you don't have to have those last-second wins to provide the drama of football. I've seen hundreds of games, and the best games aren't always won on the last play.

But the football in this show isn't what draws the viewers in, so I guess I'll have to settle for the secondary role it has.

I think that this (S3) was an awesome season, I miss seeing new shows already and I am watching the reruns. I hope that we will see the kind of ratings that will earn us a S4. Unlike many of you, I did not dislike S2. I wasn't crazy about the murder cover up, but when it happened, I could see how two dumb kids could do exactly what they did. I thought the rest of the season was terrific. Anyway, I love FNL!!!! and I hope that the make enough seasons we all get bored with it!

I agree with alot of the comments the last two posters made:

1. Season 3 was excellent, but probably not quite as good as Season 1. I think it would be pretty impossible to top Season 1 though. Season 1 was new, established the show as something unique (which is part of the appeal) and it had 22 full episodes which we are not likely to get again. Anything that gets even close to Season 1 (like Season 3) is an accomplishment.

2. I was a little baffled at the "State" game in Season 3 too because he seemed like the script from Season 1 but only with the twists that JD got benched and Dillon lost (and there was no Voodoo Tatum). I would have expected something a little different. I would think the writers would have been conscious that it was too much like the Season 1 state game. Overall, there are too many last second finishes to be believeable but it is a flaw in the show I can live with. It does get alot of the other football details right.

3. Season 2 was not as "bad" as people sometimes describe it to be. In waiting for Season 3 to come along, I rewatched alot of Season 2 and found most of it to be pretty good. The murder plot still seems unnecessary and they strayed a bit from the football season towards the end, but there were still alot of good episodes and scenes. It was the worst of the 3 season but it was still a pretty good show even in Season 2. One thing that is probably a shame is that they didn't think of the JD McCoy addition until this Season. That plot would have worked as well or better last season and would have rooted the show more towards the football. It would have been a better "shake up" for the show than the Tyra-Landry murder stuff.

I WAS REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO A NEW SEASON ON NBC...
WHY ARE WE WATCHING SEASON 3 AGAIN..
BRING BACK THE 101!!!

I really does happen out there when you have Boosters with a lot of money. And Friday Night Lights is in that community.

Bring on season four makes for a great story line when Taylor kick there ASS!

I agree with those who have commented that Season 3 is a lot better than Season 2, which IMHO was really bad. It was as if a completely different set of writers wrote S2, and then they brought the S1 writers back for S3. I also agree that there may never be another season that even comes close to S1, but S3 was a very good attempt. They returned to the things that made S1 so great, and avoided some of the far-fetched storylines (the murder, the Julie/older teacher, Matt/Carlotta, etc.) that totally muddled S2. To make matters worse, S2 was truncated, so it seemed like there were a lot of loose ends that never got tied.

For the most part, it was almost like S2 never happened. There were no mentions of the storylines I listed above, and some of the characters and events of S2 were totally ignored. Santiago disappeared and was never mentioned. Lyla's new-found Christianity apparently evaporated (unfortunately), and so did her beliefs and her church friends.

The best part was returning the focus to the football team and the conflicts and achievements they had. Still, there were some pretty far-fetched game scenes. The State Championship game was very far-fetched; it's extremely unlikely that one team can man-handle another for one half, and then disappear in the second half like that. However, probably the most far-fetched story was when Coach Taylor let his freshman quarterback, J.D. McCoy, call his own plays in one game. That would never, ever happen.

All in all, S3 was very enjoyable. The season finale left you mad at how CT was treated, but it also left you with a good feeling about everyone's future. If there is no S4, then this was a good way to end it. I certainly hope that there will be an S4, but at the same time, I don't want it to be anything like S2, and with almost all of the main characters moving on to college, I'm not sure if S4 can continue the magic that S1 and S3 had.

I am disappointed in the episode I am curently watching. It seems after the last one which had a sensationalized scene, 'It Ain't easy Being...'that the writers feel they have to push the envelope. Is this due to pressure from above? Ratings? And yes I know the times we're in. And yes I am an Austin Native, Austin isn't the Austin I gew up in, unfortunately. I am disappointed. I feel it is a step down.

**Agreed, football is full of drama and suspense.

**Agree with you about the disappearnce of Faith, Hollywood can't stomach it for too long, they return to their old ways. Also agree about the story with Santiago. It added a little rawness-unpolishness. Peace be with you.

** Unless he is being written out for whatever reason, your probably right.

Are you out of your mind??? This season was so awesome!

I agree!!!

I defiantly agree that season 1 was the best, while season 3 i liked in a close second because it was a return to football and "football drama" (QB controversy, JD and his dad, Rigs being recruited, etc.) What you have to remember about the second season is that there was the writers strike, meaning that more football stuff was probably planned, but just couldn't be showed. I thought they did well wrapping up what they could, and perhaps when the S3 DVD is released we'll get some "what might have been" bonus's

I also had told myself that if S4 didn't happen, the season finale was a perfect way to end the show, however, we don't need to worry bout that! I think that season 4 will be a "make or break" season. If it isn't done right, S5 will go unnoticed and FNL will just fade, sad to say. Let's hope it doesn't!

Also, I don't think Coach will end up back at Dillon. East Dillon seems more like a better place for him, as he was never happy with the over the top treatment and so on (Mud Bowl?). Plus, watching him build the team will be interesting!

The one thing everybody had to realize is that the writers of season 2 and 3 had less episodes to work with then in season 1. Season 2 aside from the murder coverup was really good. I think there was a lot more that the writers wanted to do in season 2, but I think everyone has forgotten that season 2 was right in the middle of the writers strike. It seemed they wanted to do a lot more and could not. It was different from the first season but is still was very good.

Now season 3 I think was a step up form season 2, and I think the reason for this is because they knew ahead of time that they only had 13 episodes to work with and they made it work. In this season we got to see the characters grow up a little bit, and see some new ones arise. The only issue I had with season 3 was the McCoy's. I liked the whole J.D. fighting for the starting spot, but his parents were stupid. I know thought that the writers are doing there job if they make me wanted to punch J.D.'s dad in the face. Everyone just has to remember that the show now is limited to what they can do because of only having 13 episodes. I really hope now that they have said that there will be seasons 4 and 5 that maybe we can get even more after that with more episodes.

I totally agree with you about season 2(as I have not yet seen any of season 3)!
I thought that, for the circumstances, the writers did a fantastic job with season 2.

I was not disappointed with this season at all. I loved that Matt & Julie got back together. I loved that Tim got his act together and he and Lyla were together. I loved that Landry & Tyra rekindled their friendship. I cried at the end of every episode! I think Season 3 was awesome!!!!!!!!!!!