In anticipation of Season Two of Friday Night Lights, we're taking a closer look at each of the primary cast members, most of whom you probably do not know all that much about (and might like to).

Yesterday, we profiled the young talent that is Gaius Charles (Smash). It's time to go a little older today as we profile Connie Britton, who has received widespread acclaim for her portrayal of Tami Taylor.

Connie Britton (birth name Constance Womack) was born on March 6, 1968, in Boston, Massachusetts. When she was a child, her family (mom Linda, father Allen, and sister Cynthia) moved to Lynchburg, Virginia.

She majored in Asian Studies and spent a semester living in China while at Dartmouth College, where she graduated in 1989. Upon graduation she moved to N.Y. City, where she spent two years at the Neighborhood Playhouse studying with Sanford Meisner and two more years at off-Broadway theatres.

She moved to Los Angeles after the success of "The Brothers McMullen." She eventually got the role of Nikki Faber on ABC's Spin City, the Michael J. Fox comedy that won many awards from 1996-2000.

Connie Britton also starred in Lost at Home (2003), while her other TV credits include The Fighting Fitzgeralds with Brian Dennehy, a recurring role on The West Wing and a recurring role on 24, during its fifth season, as Diane Huxley, the landlady of Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland).

Interestingly, Connie played the wife of the head coach in the movie adaptation of Friday Night Lights before being cast in the TV series of the same name. Britton's character has a different name, Sharon Gaines, in the film.

Perhaps most amazingly, despite being known for her tremendous acting as the mother of teenager Julie (Aimee Teegarden), Britton, 39, has no children.

Connie is divorced, but still uses her married surname, Britton, as her stage name. Residing in New York and L.A., she likes hiking, yoga, and volunteering.

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.