In Miles’s junior year in 1987, Miles rushed for 1,345 yards. Expectations were high every year at Permian High School and in 1988 the
Associated Press, in its preseason predictions, had chosen Permian to win the state title based partly on the play of Miles. From the spring through the early fall of '88, Miles was heavily recruited by numerous top football schools. Letters came from
Notre Dame,
Florida State University,
University of Nebraska–Lincoln,
University of Houston,
Texas A&M,
Clemson University,
Texas Tech,
University of Oklahoma,
Oklahoma State, Louisiana State University (
LSU),
Southern Methodist University (SMU),
University of Southern California (USC),
Purdue University, and
University of Arkansas. However, in a preseason
scrimmage against the Amarillo Palo Duro Dons, Miles's leg was accidentally caught in the
artificial turf when he planted his left leg to stiff-arm a tackler; another player then fell on it from the side. The next day he was examined by a local doctor. The initial diagnosis of the injury was that it was only a sprained ligament. Four days later an
orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Dean, examined Miles and felt the injury was severe enough to require immediate
arthroscopic surgery. The surgery was performed the day before Permian's season opener against
Austin High School. Miles had severely torn the
anterior cruciate ligament. He had also torn the cartilage in his left knee. Miles was given the option of immediate reconstructive surgery, which Dean had recommended, or a program of rehabilitation. Rehab would allow Miles to play football with a knee brace. Both Boobie and L. V. opted for the brace. Miles returned against
Abilene High School, however left the game limping with a cramp after only a handful of carries. The next week against
Midland Lee High School, Permian lost, with Miles threatening to quit the team at halftime for his lack of playing time. Miles quit the team that Monday, and in November 1988 Dean performed reconstructive surgery on his knee. After rehabilitation from the surgery Miles lost much of the speed and agility that had made him a sought-after running back.
Friday Night Lights Miles was a key figure in
Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, a 1990 book by
H. G. Bissinger that followed the story of the 1988 Permian High Panthers
football team as they made a run towards the
Texas state championship. In 2002,
Sports Illustrated named
Friday Night Lights the fourth-greatest book ever written about sports. A movie version of
Friday Night Lights was made and then released in the United States on October 6, 2004. It starred
Billy Bob Thornton as Permian Coach
Gary Gaines. Miles also had a non-speaking cameo in the film as an Permian assistant coach and was seen in many pivotal moments of the film. The film was a box office and critical success and, in turn, spawned an
NBC television series of the same name, which began airing in October 2006. Boobie was played by
Derek Luke. ==After high school and subsequent legal troubles==