The main focus of the team and coaching staff the last few weeks was the idea of a bowl still being on table, "playoff mode", one-game seasons, etc. And to be fair, it sort of worked. In an overall sense, the last three games were probably the best they've played this year.
But now that carrot at the end of the stick has been ripped away. And while the rivalries matter to the fans, you have to wonder exactly how much they really matter to the players who've transferred in. It is going to be really interesting to see how the team comes out on Saturday, because I think there are really only two possibilities. Either the team stays bought in and continues to play hard and determined like they have for the last few weeks, or they finally do just roll over and pack it in. The former would raise some pretty interesting questions going forward, since it would imply the team still is bought in to the coaching staff, while the latter would be (or at least should be) a very clear and definitive final nail in the coffin.
I hope they put in a good performance out there, especially for guys like Aaron Casey who've put in so much effort and deserve to go out with a win in their final home games, but for that to happen, the coaching staff is going to come up with one hell of a strong motivational pitch. I hope they do, especially because they probably aren't going to have anything to feed off of from the fans on Saturday besides hostility. They'll need to produce their own fire.
But now that carrot at the end of the stick has been ripped away. And while the rivalries matter to the fans, you have to wonder exactly how much they really matter to the players who've transferred in. It is going to be really interesting to see how the team comes out on Saturday, because I think there are really only two possibilities. Either the team stays bought in and continues to play hard and determined like they have for the last few weeks, or they finally do just roll over and pack it in. The former would raise some pretty interesting questions going forward, since it would imply the team still is bought in to the coaching staff, while the latter would be (or at least should be) a very clear and definitive final nail in the coffin.
I hope they put in a good performance out there, especially for guys like Aaron Casey who've put in so much effort and deserve to go out with a win in their final home games, but for that to happen, the coaching staff is going to come up with one hell of a strong motivational pitch. I hope they do, especially because they probably aren't going to have anything to feed off of from the fans on Saturday besides hostility. They'll need to produce their own fire.
