The Top 10 Everything of 2009

The best thing satellites have done for us since GPS. DirecTV agreed to share the costs of making this small-town drama with NBC, and with the big-network ratings pressures eased, Season 3 stepped back from the overdramatic missteps of the second season and focused on the small-bore personal stories of a high school football coach (Kyle Chandler), his players and the Texas town they help give hope to. Season 4 (on satellite now, coming to NBC next year) sent coach Taylor to restart the football program at a wrong-side-of-the-tracks high school, adding a class element to its underdog story. More than just a high school or sports drama, it's an American story with a heart as big as all Texas.
(101 Network / NBC)

See TIME's video about the best TV series of 2009.