Wikipedia Deep Dive

Permian High School

11 min read

Where Football Is Religion

In 1988, a high school football team in West Texas became the subject of one of the most celebrated sports books ever written. Buzz Bissinger embedded himself in Odessa, Texas for an entire season, following the Permian Panthers as they chased a state championship. The resulting book, Friday Night Lights, revealed something far more complex than just football. It exposed the raw nerve of small-town America—the dreams, the pressure, the economic anxiety, and yes, the obsession with a game played by teenagers.

That book spawned a hit movie in 2004 and an acclaimed television series. But long before Hollywood came calling, Permian High School had already built one of the most storied football programs in Texas history.

And in Texas, that's really saying something.

Named for an Extinction

Permian High School opened its doors in 1959, taking its name from the geological formation that lies beneath the dusty plains of West Texas. The Permian Basin is an underground treasure trove, one of the most prolific oil and natural gas producing regions in the entire world. But the name itself carries a darker echo.

The Permian Period was a geological era that ended approximately 252 million years ago. What ended it? The most catastrophic extinction event in Earth's history—worse than the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. Scientists call it the Great Dying. Roughly 90 percent of all marine species and 70 percent of terrestrial vertebrates vanished. Volcanic eruptions in what is now Siberia released enough carbon dioxide to turn the oceans acidic and the atmosphere toxic.

So when you hear fans chanting for "Permian," they're technically cheering for a mass extinction.

Nobody in Odessa thinks about that, of course. They think about oil. They think about natural gas. And they think about football.

The Mojo Mystique

Every great football program needs a rallying cry. For Permian, it's "Mojo."

The word has become so synonymous with Permian football that it's impossible to separate the two. But where did it come from? The legend traces back to 1967, when a group of Permian alumni traveled to Abilene to watch their Panthers play the Cooper Cougars. According to the story, some fans started chanting "Go Joe!" for one of the Permian players.

Other fans misheard it.

"Mojo!" they shouted back.

And a tradition was born. Whether this origin story is completely accurate or has been embellished over decades of retelling doesn't really matter. What matters is that "Mojo" became the identity of Permian football—a mystical force that opponents had to contend with alongside the players themselves.

A Dynasty in Black and White

The Panthers play their home games at Ratliff Stadium, and they've given that stadium plenty to celebrate. Permian has won six state championships, a remarkable total that places them among the most successful programs in Texas high school football history.

Their first title came in 1965, when they competed in the 4A classification. At that time, 4A was the largest classification in Texas high school football—the biggest schools in the state, competing at the highest level. They won again in 1972, and that year, the National Sports News Service selected Permian as co-national champions.

Think about that for a moment. A high school in Odessa, Texas, a city of around 100,000 people in the middle of the desert, was deemed the best in the entire country.

The 1980 championship came in the new 5A classification after Texas expanded its categories to accommodate growing schools in Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio. Permian proved they could compete with anyone. Four more championships followed: 1984, 1989, and 1991.

The 1984 title holds a curious distinction in Texas football history. Permian shared the championship with French High School from Beaumont, located on the opposite side of the state near the Louisiana border. This co-championship was the last time the University Interscholastic League, the governing body for Texas high school athletics, awarded a shared football title. After that, they adopted overtime rules similar to those used in college football to ensure a single winner.

When Bissinger arrived to chronicle the 1988 season, he was documenting a program that had won four state championships in the previous decade. The Panthers fell short that year, losing in the state semifinals. But they bounced back to win it all in 1989—earning another national co-championship—and again in 1991.

The Friday Night Lights Effect

Bissinger's book did something unusual for sports writing. It used football as a lens to examine American society itself. The pressure placed on teenage athletes. The way a town's identity can become dangerously intertwined with the success of its football team. The racial tensions simmering beneath the surface. The economic anxieties of a boom-and-bust oil economy.

The book was controversial in Odessa when it first appeared. Many residents felt Bissinger had portrayed their community unfairly, focusing too heavily on the negatives. But over time, attitudes softened. The book became a classic, assigned in college courses across the country.

When the movie adaptation arrived in 2004, it took some liberties with the facts—that's Hollywood—but it captured the intensity of Texas high school football. One interesting casting note: Roy Williams, who played wide receiver for the Detroit Lions, Dallas Cowboys, and Chicago Bears during his NFL career, actually attended Permian High School. In the movie, he played an assistant coach for Midland Lee, one of Permian's fiercest rivals.

The television series, which ran from 2006 to 2011, strayed even further from the book, creating fictional characters and storylines. It was set in the fictional town of Dillon, Texas, but the DNA of Permian and Odessa ran through every episode. The show earned critical acclaim and a devoted following, introducing a new generation to the culture of Texas high school football.

Beyond the Gridiron

Here's something that might surprise you about Permian High School: one of its most acclaimed programs has nothing to do with football.

The Permian Orchestra, founded the same year the school opened in 1959, has built a reputation for excellence that rivals the football team's. Under its founding director J.R. McEntyre, the program established standards that have endured for more than six decades.

But the true jewel of the music program is Satin Strings.

Satin Strings is a strolling strings ensemble, which means exactly what it sounds like: the musicians walk while they play. Violinists stroll. Violists stroll. Even the cellists carry their instruments and move through the audience. Only the bass players remain stationary—those instruments are simply too large to carry while performing.

Founded by Charles Nail and now directed by Todd Berridge (who studied under Nail), Satin Strings has performed at events that would make most professional orchestras envious.

In 1994, they played at the D-Day commemoration ceremonies in Normandy, France, marking the 50th anniversary of the Allied invasion that helped end World War II. That performance opened doors. Three years later, they received an invitation to play at President Bill Clinton's second inauguration in 1997.

When George W. Bush was inaugurated in 2001, Satin Strings was there again. And again in 2005 for his second term. Bush, of course, had Texas connections—he had been governor before becoming president and owned the Texas Rangers baseball team. But the invitation wasn't just about Texas pride. Satin Strings had earned a national reputation.

They even performed at the inauguration of the governor of Chihuahua, Mexico in 1998, demonstrating reach that extended beyond American borders.

The Rivals Across Town

Permian's primary rival is just across town: the Odessa High School Bronchos. The two schools have competed against each other since Permian opened, and the annual game between them divides the city.

In Texas, where football allegiances run deep and often follow family lines across generations, the Permian-Odessa rivalry is particularly intense because it's so local. You might work alongside a Bronchos fan. Your neighbors might be Panthers supporters. The game isn't just a competition between two schools—it's a referendum on which side of town produces better football.

Permian also maintains heated rivalries with Midland Legacy and San Angelo Central, creating a web of regional competition that spans West Texas. These aren't just games. They're events that can fill stadiums with 20,000 or more fans on a Friday night.

Notable Alumni

Permian has produced its share of professional football players, including Roy Williams, who caught passes from Tony Romo in Dallas and was known for his spectacular leaping catches. Britt Hager played linebacker in the NFL. Daryl Hunt was an All-American at the University of Oklahoma before joining the Houston Oilers.

But Permian's alumni extend well beyond athletics.

Raymond Benson wrote the official James Bond novels from 1997 to 2003, taking over the franchise created by Ian Fleming. Jim J. Bullock became a familiar face on television in the 1980s and beyond. Mike Conaway served in the United States House of Representatives, representing Texas's 11th congressional district, which includes—naturally—Odessa.

Perhaps the most poignant figure is James "Boobie" Miles, who was featured prominently in Friday Night Lights. Miles was a running back with legitimate professional potential until a knee injury during the 1988 season derailed his career. His story became one of the book's most compelling narratives—a cautionary tale about the fragility of athletic dreams and the lack of a safety net for young athletes when those dreams shatter.

Toby Stevenson won a silver medal in pole vault at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, proving that Permian could produce elite athletes outside of football. Jesus Olivares became a world champion powerlifter, demonstrating strength that would make any football coach envious.

The Weight of Tradition

What does it mean to attend a school where the football program has been featured in a best-selling book, a major motion picture, and a critically acclaimed television series? What does it mean to play for a team where alumni show up to games expecting championship-level performance because that's what they delivered decades ago?

It's a complicated inheritance.

On one hand, there's tremendous pride. Permian students know they're part of something larger than themselves, a tradition that extends back to 1959 and has produced some of the greatest high school football teams in American history. The orchestra students know they're part of a program that has performed at presidential inaugurations and on foreign soil.

On the other hand, there's pressure. The kind of pressure Bissinger documented in his book hasn't disappeared. Texas high school football remains an intense, high-stakes endeavor. Communities still invest enormous emotional energy in the performance of teenagers. The expectations haven't diminished.

Permian began adding freshmen to its campus during the 2015-2016 school year, which required physical expansion of the facilities and brought more students into the fold. The program continues. The tradition endures.

Understanding Texas Football Culture

To understand Permian High School, you have to understand something fundamental about Texas. High school football isn't just popular there—it's closer to a civic religion. The roots run deep, intertwined with community identity, economic cycles, and regional pride.

In much of Texas, there isn't a professional sports team nearby. The Dallas Cowboys are hours away. The Houston Texans might as well be in another state. But the local high school? That's right there. Those are your neighbors' kids on the field. That's your community's reputation on the line.

This intensity has positive aspects. It creates community cohesion. It gives young people something to work toward. It fills stadiums and creates shared experiences that bind generations together.

But there are darker elements too. The pressure on young athletes can be overwhelming. Educational priorities can become distorted when the football coach wields more influence than the principal. And communities can struggle to define themselves beyond their football programs, creating identity crises when the wins dry up.

Permian High School embodies all of this. It's a public school in West Texas that happened to build one of the most successful football programs in state history during an era when that success attracted unprecedented media attention. The book, the movie, and the TV show transformed Permian from a regional powerhouse into a national symbol.

Whether that symbol represents the best of American sports culture or something more troubling depends largely on your perspective. But one thing is certain: when Friday night comes to Odessa, Texas, the lights at Ratliff Stadium will shine, the crowd will chant "Mojo," and another chapter in Permian's ongoing story will be written.