The story "Friday Night Lights" by H.G. Bissinger takes place in Odessa, Texas, a town located in West Texas.  The town has a small community made up of high school football fans. The people in Odessa are brought up watching football, and most people dream about the opportunity to play football, as Bissinger writes, "  from the time they were able to walk they had only one certain goal in their lives in Odessa, Texas. Whatever it took, they would play for Permian" (Bissinger 321). The community treats the football players above everyone because they are seen as celebrities. Just like fans treat celebrities, "Odessa  nurtured football and cherished it and went crazy over it" (Bissinger 321). Throughout the season, the town looks forward to football to satisfy the community. The people in Odessa live for football, they depend on it, it helps them survive and maintain their identity as an elite football town. Football binds the community together and without football the community will no longer exist as a cohesive unit.

In Odessa, Texas football is people's life because they depend on it as Bissinger states, "The grand dukes of Permian, men in their fifties and sixties who had become as dependent on the Panthers as they were on their jobs and children and wives " (Bissinger 321). In Odessa, people depend on football to help them live. A job brings money, insuring the necessities in order to provide for a family. People depend on money to live because without money a person cannot provide for the needs of a family. A person without money may not be able to buy shelter, buy food and buy clothes. If a person is without the necessities, eventually the people will no longer exist. In the same way, without football the community will no longer exist as single unit. In Odessa people depend on football like they do a family. A family brings support to a person; therefore people of Odessa depend on football to bring support to the community. Without the support of a family there is no family, just as without the support of football in Odessa there is no community.  Community is important because it creates a supportive society and it makes each individual stronger and allows them to enjoy life.

Bissinger relates football to readers by comparing necessities of life with simply being connected to the community's football team. Bissinger states, "Mojo football, it helps you survive all this sand, the wind, the heat. I wouldn't live any other place" (Bissinger 319). The author applies the idea of survival to football because it gives the people a reason to survive, "I have to have something to look forward to, or life is just a blah" (Bissinger 319). Without football life is nothing, but the game brings the town joy. Football brings the town hope when the people have nothing to rely on. Hope is like faith and believing in yourself, and without it a person will not become anything. The town's hope and faith is in football, without football the town becomes nothing. This thought is seen when Bissinger states, "When somebody talks about West Texas, they talk about football." (Bissinger 320). Football created the town's name and is the reason the town grew together.  The town became happy because they found faith in football which dis demonstrated when the prays, "We thank you for the athletes bring to our hearts and lives" (Bissinger 323).

In Odessa, football helped define the community's identity, which is seen when Bissinger writes,  " You take away and it almost like you strip the identity of the people." (Bissinger 320). Without football the people in Odessa do not know whom they are or what to think. If there is no identity, then the community no longer exists. "There is nothing to replace it. It's an integral part of what made the community strong " (Bissinger 320). Football is the only thing that can make the town strong and give them identity. Football gives Odessa a name that other states specify them by and the town takes pride in football identity. "There are so few other things we can look at with pride," (Bissinger 320), yet, the town takes pride in high school football. So, football will be the only thing that always identifies Odessa.

Football binds the community together, without football the community will no longer exist. The people in Odessa treat football like going to church and just like going to church brings community together, football brings people in the community together. "It's just a part of our lives. It's just something that you're involved in. it's just like going to church or something like that. It's just what you do." (Bissinger 319). If people live in the town then they are expected to do the same as everyone else which loves the game of football. If people do not attend the football game then they will not be a part of the community. The people at the football game go to support the football team so that they can win and the people have the same thought. Then, the community will come together because they want the same thing. Without football they do not want the same thing and there will be no community. 

The people in Odessa, Texas are living constantly for the game of football. It is what they depend on; it helps them survive and maintains their identity. If there is no football in Odessa, Texas there is no community. Community requires hope, faith, and thoughts that are alike. Football allows the community to stay together as a family and support each other. Football is the heart of West Texas and if it was taken away then the town will no longer exist. The game is so much part of their life that "The oil economy could go to hell. The country could go to hell  never ever Permian football." (Bissinger 323). This statement reflects that the Odessa community has a belief that nothing else matters except football. The community will continue to depend on football.   

