the mediocrity and bad losses should be motivating THIS group of players. I still wonder if that macro/cultural/implicit environment isn’t one that inadvertently creates an oh-so-subtle vibe of entitlement.

I just think about the junkyard dogs we had back in the day. Guys that were just tough as nails and who believed they could outplay anyone (even when that wasn’t true). The most recent group like that, in my mind, was the Chris Ellis, Vince Hall, Brandon Flowers cohort. They were talented but always took the field with an edge, a chip, an attitude. There have been plenty of players since then who had that attitude, but I don’t think the entire culture of the program has been like that for some time.

Does that distinction make sense?