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‘Thursday Night Lights’ author will discuss the history of Black high school football in Texas

Michael Hurd and Cowboys great Tony Hill will take part in a live virtual event May 13.

Michael Hurd is the author of "Thursday Night Lights: The Story of Black High School...
Michael Hurd is the author of "Thursday Night Lights: The Story of Black High School Football in Texas."(Michael Hurd)

The Friday night lights of Texas high school football have taken on a mythical quality over the years, but Thursdays have a storied history of their own. Author Michael Hurd will take part in a live virtual event for the Allen Public Library to discuss the largely unknown history of Black high school football in the state.

Hurd’s Thursday Night Lights: The Story of Black High School Football in Texas was named one of the 30 best Texas books for the 2010-19 decade by The Texas Observer and one of the 30 most essential books about Texas by the Houston Chronicle.

The live event will be at 7:30 p.m. May 13 at allentx.swagit.com. Former Dallas Morning News columnist James Ragland will moderate the program. Former Dallas Cowboys receiver Tony Hill will also take part.

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Thursday Night Lights tells the inspiring story of Black high school football in Texas from 1920 to 1970. The segregated high schools in the Prairie View Interscholastic League (the Black counterpart to the University Interscholastic League) included future NFL greats such as “Mean” Joe Greene, Otis Taylor and Charles “Bubba” Smith, who appeared in six Police Academy movies after his All-Pro career.

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Hurd is also the author of Black College Football, 1892-1992, the only book that comprehensively documents the legacies of football programs at historically Black colleges, and he serves on the selection committee for the Black College Football Hall of Fame. He is a board member for the Writers’ League of Texas, a trustee with the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission and a member of the Texas Institute of Letters.

For details about the virtual event, call 214-509-4911.