"Friday Night Lights" Close To Renewal

There has been no official word on the fate of "Friday Night Lights", but everyone in the industry knows that folks at NBC love their low-rated sports drama and they desperately want it to succeed.

Although there was very heavy promotion for the series and the network even benched the critically-acclaimed but equally ratings-challenged "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" for a week to try out "Lights" in the more appropriate post-"Heroes" slot, the ratings for last week's Tuesday night installment had been rather disappointing (6,25 million).

The buzz has spread, however, that the network is looking at its winter line-up in anticipation of the FOX juggernaut "American Idol", looking for ways how to support their freshman dramas and ensure their growth. And it seems, "Friday Night Lights" may be a part of those plans.

In other back-nine news, ABC has given its Monday night drama "What About Brian" full season renewal since the drama manages to hold on to most of its Bachelor audience and it even beat NBC's "Studio 60" on one occasion.

The news also comes as a bit of surprise, as the drama's last episode on October 30 attracted less than 7 million viewers, coming in third for the hour, behind NBC's "Friday Night Lights".