Relentlessly positive

I wrote a (long) profile story on UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel in today’s paper, and also included is the notebook.
One quote I found interesting but didn’t work in the story was this gem from Neuheisel, who talked about the “Relentlessly Positive” sign he had posted in UCLA’s locker room.
“You can’t say that and then think you won’t have a good year,” Neuheisel said. “(Former Washington athletic director) Barbara Hedges’ biggest thing was hope is not a strategy, but dreaming with your feet on the ground, meaning here’s your plan and here’s how to achieve your dream, that is a strategy.
“We were picked to finish fifth my senior year and we were Pac-10 champs. Now, we got lucky because other teams flopped, but luck is part of it.”