[gailtate]

Yeah, it's based on lots and lots of video evidence of the players and coaches. The two most significant data points are a) everything David Shaw says (it's obvious he gets this and knows the difference between the winning mentality of his best teams and the down-on-our-luck nature of the last several years) and b) all of the talk from coaches and players alike about what Patrick Fields brings to the team. This is a theme those in the program openly acknowledge.

My read on morale being fine in the sense of players being excited and motivated is more speculative but also based on the evidence I've seen. "Morale" is always a tricky concept because in an important sense the team is a unitary concept but in another important sense is comprised of many dozens of individuals who have varying levels of buy-in, enthusiasm, drive, etc. But from what I can see of the players who matter - McKee, McGill, Wilson, Rouse, Kelly - I have no reason to besmirch/doubt the excitement and motivation of our players.

"Down-on-our-luck..." Luck? Really?
Luck is where talent and preparation meet opportunity. You can draw a straight line from [a] the drop-off in talent and [b]) shoddy preparation to [c] the record of the last three years. With apologies to Tina Turner, what's luck got to do with it?

[gailtate]

Yeah, it's based on lots and lots of video evidence of the players and coaches. The two most significant data points are a) everything David Shaw says (it's obvious he gets this and knows the difference between the winning mentality of his best teams and the down-on-our-luck nature of the last several years) and b) all of the talk from coaches and players alike about what Patrick Fields brings to the team. This is a theme those in the program openly acknowledge.

My read on morale being fine in the sense of players being excited and motivated is more speculative but also based on the evidence I've seen. "Morale" is always a tricky concept because in an important sense the team is a unitary concept but in another important sense is comprised of many dozens of individuals who have varying levels of buy-in, enthusiasm, drive, etc. But from what I can see of the players who matter - McKee, McGill, Wilson, Rouse, Kelly - I have no reason to besmirch/doubt the excitement and motivation of our players.

"Down-on-our-luck..." Luck? Really?
Luck is where talent and preparation meet opportunity. You can draw a straight line from [a] the drop-off in talent and [b]) shoddy preparation to [c] the record of the last three years. With apologies to Tina Turner, what's luck got to do with it?