So many things have changed at Dillon High and the first day of school is the real test. Matt stands by as his world comes crashing down, while Landry still copes to make sense of his. All eyes seem to be focusing on Smash, while Tami tries to adjust to having a teenager and a newborn.

Matt and Smash have a hard time listening to their coach as they prepare for their first game of the new season. Coach Taylor heads back to Dillon to check on his family and finds out just what is happening to the Panthers since he's left.

Tim and Jason go to Mexico as Street hopes to explore experimental surgery. Riggins, who is worried about Street, turns to Lyla Garrity, who's busy helping a newcomer acclimate to Dillon. Meanwhile, Coach Taylor decides on a big career move that will change his life. A development in a police search deeply affects the lives of Tyra and Landry.

Coach Taylor returns to Dillon, but it is not an easy homecoming; the team must deal with conflict between Saracen and Smash; Riggins turns to Lyla for help in changing Street's mind about surgery.

As college football scouts approach Smash, he must make a life-changing decision. Coach Taylor has set his sights on a potential addition to the team. Tami appoints Lyla and Tyra to be in charge of this year's Pantherama. Matt is living his dream, with his new cheerleader girlfriend by his side, but yet he is drawn to the live-in nurse. Julie turns her jealousy into a twisted relationship.

As Smash sets out on his first recruitment trip, Saracen asks his cheerleader girlfriend for an open relationship.

Landry admits to the murder of Tyra’s assaulter but the struggle with his conscience continues. Meanwhile Jason Street is set up with an online dating service by Herc. The Taylors get ready for baby Gracie’s christening, while tensions increase between Tami and Julie.

Dillon County is hit by a tornado with Laribee High School affected by the damage forcing both rivals to share Dillon's resources. Julie and Tami adjust to Tim Riggins' living in their house, and tension builds between Landry and Tyra.

Brian "Smash" Williams takes heat from the major colleges that want a verbal commitment to their program. Meanwhile tension is still high between Coach Taylor and Tim Riggins regarding the situation with Julie. Tim doesn't know where to turn. And all eyes are on Coach Taylor as he prepares the Panthers to play Laribee High School in the season's biggest game.

Tami and Coach Taylor look into day care for Gracie, but find themselves having a tough time letting go. Meanwhile, Lyla starts working as a deejay on a Christian radio station and, despite being ridiculed by Tim Riggins, she is able to strike a chord with him. Elsewhere, Matt Saracen discovers that he is actually in love with his grandma's at-home nurse, while Brian "Smash" Williams learns that those close to him may not be ready for interracial dating.