At least by my definition it isn't. It has a population of almost 100,000, according to Wikipedia. I tend to think of a small town as having well under 50,000 residents.
It also has two high schools - Permian and Odessa High. But I think it made a better story to make it seem like Permian was the only school in town, and that Odessa was more like a town of 15,000-20,000 (population).
Keep in mind this was 1988 west Texas and we had lost the majority the oil boon by then so many people had left and families that were born there were about the only ones to stay. And two schools was nothing considering the amazing birth rates of the 60's and early 70's, for the area, had the boon not come to an end a third school would have been needed around that very time.
It wasn't the absolute low point in 88' but it was compared to what it had been and is actually slowly becoming again as far as available work, living wages and job security.
'Friday Night Lights' is more about the culture of football fanaticism. The fact that Odessa has a population of 100k v 15 or 20k is immaterial. I will agree that the movie moved at a snails pace. The director tried to give some focus to developing sub plots and there were many. I especially liked the QB who had a sick mom and struggled to stay home or go to away to college. What i could relate too was the character Boobie Miles who embraced the fame of being a local football hero and his future as a pro football running back. Of course there was the reality of a 'cheap shot' injury that changed his life and made him rethink his future. The high school I attended had the same mentality as Permian High School. During my freshman year we had a football star who was the local hero. He could walk down the hallway and students would be in awe. I did meet him briefly when I got in a fight and he walked into the bathroom and asked how i was doing. Now I'm 42 years removed from high school and the football hero mentality is holding firm. 'Friday Night Lights' is a reminder that embracing a singular ambition can be too all consuming. And the final scene of Coach Gaines removing names and putting up new names of players was a sober reminder that life does move on.
shareNice story, what happened to the football star? Have you been able to track him down to see if he continued to shine under the stadium lights or not?
On the topic though, it is how funny how relative things are according to where you are. I'm in Ohio now, and we have the same scale of saying how big or small a town is. I spent some time in Asia, and 100,000 is considered a small city, 500,000 is a mid-sized city,and 1 Million plus is a large city where you get a metro, and of course then there are the super cities like bangkok, seoul, beijing, etc. So kind funny to see how relative population size to where you are.