Jim Dent

Jim Dent

Jim Dent (Harry James \"Jim\" Dent) was born in 1953 and is currently 73 years old.

Jim Dent is an author and sportswriter who worked for several sports magazines and newspapers. He graduated from Southern Methodist University and covered the Dallas Cowboys for 11 years during the 1980s and 90s.

ESPN produced a made-for-TV movie based on Dent’s work, called The Junction Boys in 2002. In 2021, Luke Wilson, Martin Sheen, and Robert Duvall appeared in 12 Mighty Orphans, based on one of Jim’s books.

Twelve Mighty Orphans tells the story of over a century ago, this school was built in Fort Worth, Texas, to educate and house the orphans of the Texas Freemasons. It was a rather humble project that quietly existed on a hillside on the east end of town for years. Life at the Masonic Home would soon change, however, with a bespectacled and lean coach named Rusty Russell. Here was a man who could bring rain in the middle of a drought. And here was a man who, in nearly no time at all, brought the orphans’ story into the homes of millions of Americans.

During the 30s and 40s, there was nothing bigger in Texas high school football than the Masonic Home Mighty Mites, a group of orphans bound together by death and hardship. Despite being outweighed by at least 30 pounds per man, these kids were still the toughest football team. They started with nothing, not even a football, but in just a few years were playing for the state title on the highest level of Texas football. Here is a winning tribute to this brave band of underdogs coming from a time when America needed fresh hope and big dreams in a desperate way.

The Mighty Mites are still a notable moment in the long history of American sports. Equally as significant is the depth of the inspirational message. It’s a profound lesson in fighting back and clinging to faith. The true winners in Texas high school football weren’t the kids from the largest schools or the ones wearing the most expensive uniforms. They were the scrawny kids from a little orphanage that wore scarred helmets and faded jerseys that didn’t even match, kids coached by this devoted man who lived on peanuts and drove them around in an ancient, smoke-belching truck.

In penning such a tale about unforgettable characters and great football, Jim comes forward to reclaim his spot as one of the top sportswriters in America today. This inspirational and remarkable tale is about an orphanage and the man who created one of the top football teams Texas has ever known. Their story is the original Friday Night Lights.

Related Authors

Fans of Jim Dent also enjoy these authors:

1. Tara Westover, author of: Educated: A Memoir.
2. Taylor Jenkins Reid, author of: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
3. Thomas Gifford, author of the Ben Driskill Series.
4. Tim Garvin, author of The Seb Creek Mysteries Series.
5. Tom Threadgill, author of the Jeremy Winter Thriller Series.

Jim Dent: F.A.Q