Football Coach of 'Friday Night Lights' Fame Dies at Age 73
Gary Gaines, coach of the Texas high school football team made famous in the book and movie “Friday Night Lights,” has died. He was 73.
Gaines’ family said in a statement the former coach died Monday in Lubbock after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
Gaines made many stops in West Texas during a 30-year coaching career but was best known for a four-year stint leading the highly successful program at Odessa Permian. Gaines returned to Permian later in his career.
Coach Gary Gaines did more for me as a man than he ever did for me as a football player. Thank you Coach for the life lessons that you taught that I still use to this very day. You left a lasting legacy on my life! https://t.co/a6RcM8KFtl
— Evans-Pickens Family (@PickensThe) August 23, 2022
His 1988 team was chronicled in Buzz Bissinger’s bestselling book, which portrayed a program and school that favored football over academics and attributed racist comments to assistant coaches.
Gaines, who was played by Billy Bob Thornton in the 2004 movie, said he never read the book and felt betrayed by Bissinger after the author spent the entire 1988 season with the team.
The book, which portrayed Gaines as a compassionate coach caught in the win-at-all-costs culture of a high school program in football-crazed Texas, also was turned into a TV series.
Deeply saddened to hear the news of the passing of @THSCAcoaches football legend and former @LubbockISD director of athletics, Gary Gaines. I am thankful to have had a man like him come before me. He was a great example of what the coaching profession should look like. pic.twitter.com/OeXIXY5Lha
— Mike Meeks (@mmeeks11) August 23, 2022
Permian lost in the state semifinals in 1988, a season that included the loss of star running back James “Boobie” Miles to a knee injury during a preseason scrimmage. Miles’ character played a prominent role in the movie.
The book described scenes of “for sale” signs being placed in the front yard of Gaines’ home. His record from 1986-89 was 47-6-1.
Gaines led Permian to the fifth of the program’s six state championships with a perfect season in 1989, then left to become an assistant coach at Texas Tech.
#TexasTech HC Joey McGuire on Gary Gaines’ legacy and the impact he had on Texas High School Football…#WreckEm #txhsfb pic.twitter.com/LcSc1GqIzY
— Arielle Schafer ? (@arielle_schafer) August 23, 2022
He later coached two of Permian’s rivals, Abilene High and San Angelo Central, before returning to college as the coach at Abilene Christian.
The ACU football community is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Texas coaching legend Gary Gaines, who spent five years at the helm of the Wildcat program. We are sending our condolences to the Gaines family. pic.twitter.com/9nmVPLd2FL
— ACU Football (@ACUFootball) August 23, 2022
Another four-year run as Permian’s coach started in 2009, and Gaines also was a school district athletic director in Odessa and Lubbock.
Former Permian Head Coach and former @AthleticsLISD Director Gary Gaines has passed away at age 73.
Gaines also coached for @TexasTechFB under HC Spike Dykes…
RIP to a West Texas Football Legend ❤️ pic.twitter.com/3Z5KlAlOpI
— KLBK Sports? (@KLBKsports) August 23, 2022
“I just can’t find the words to pay respects,” retired coach Ron King, a former Permian assistant, told the Odessa American. “It’s a big loss for the coaching profession. There are a lot of coaches he took under his wing and mentored.”
The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
