Theme For Next Season Help

We were in a similar situation about 5-6 years ago at the program I was coaching at.

I like "Leave No Doubt" as a theme.

I like this one except maybe you leave out the "14".  You know, in case you lose one early.  

Since you mentioned your timid starts, you might also consider something that gets them going from Q1.  

Out^3 (that's cubed) for "Out Work-Out Hustle-Out Hit". If you do those 3 things from the opening kick to the end, you'll win regardless of who you play.

Start fast, finish strong.

It's true a slogan won't make a lick of difference, but, they're cool and the kids usually like them.

A slogan that also makes a great huddle-break call: All-in

I agree with this to an extent, but I think there is a fine line which when crossed changes a slogan to a philosophy or a way of doing things.  In those cases, it is maybe not having a slogan, but having a shared vision communicated by the slogan that can be helpful.  I am not super familiar with them, but it seems like Oregon has done this with their "Win the Day."  We used "Never Enough" following a very successful season as a reminder to not settle for where we were at.  We used in on the practice field, in the weight room, when looking at academic in addition to on t-shirts, playbook covers, and the other traditional spots for a slogan.  A neighboring school used "One More" a while back to.  When walking by their weight room, I noticed they had it written on the ceiling above the benches so they must have used it throughout their program as well

We do this. Our acronym is S.H.I.E.L.D. Whenever you break it's to Shield Pride. Nobody but our players know what the acronym is, and younger classes don't find out until they make it through double days at the earliest. You have to pay a price to be a part of the fraternity.  Another school in the area does Gold Dot Pride. Have no idea what it stands for, but the players love  it.

I think you are right on target.  You know for yourself that they never stuck with you in the past (learned as a player/coach) and there is no doubt in my mind that you would have a hard time selling a slogan to your team.  If you hate them and your AD thought it would be great to implement one, the kids would see right through it and not take it seriously.  I learned this from one of my previous HC's I worked under.  I would have these "Hey coach, what about doing this" conversations all the time.  He finally barked at me and told me that he can't fake his enthusiasm for it. Basically, he would rather not implement something that he wasn't naturally passionate about because it would fizz out and he would lose future credibility for something he was serious about.  I totally got it and respected that.

COACH DIXON:

I think if a HC is passionate about something that he feels can spark a fire, then it will because the players will feed off of it.  If it is a slogan, great.  If they are t-shirts handed out for effort, strength, etc., great.  If it is a sign that a player taps before they go out to the field, great.  What ever works for you.  Actually, what ever you have passion for will work for you.

This is very similar to the motivational video thread.  If you just do something to do something, that's all it will be.  But if you are genuinely passionate about it, and it is not out of "your" ordinary, the kids will feed off it and yes, it can make a difference.    

I think the important thing that can be taken from this thread is to know who you are and run with it.  Being a successful coach is not about how many "gimmicks" you can employ, it is about being congruent with your speech, nonverbal expressions, values, tactics and behavior. More importantly, a "gimmick" can turn into a tool when it matches how you present yourself to your team.   My advice is to put yourself in the shoes of your typical teenage player on your team (aware of culture, interests, tradition, family values, etc.) and think what would motivate you.  Take the first thought as a foundation and be creative from there.  Make it yours so that you will have a deep found passion with it and sell it(live it) to(with) your team. 

But at the same time, your expectations for your players and program don't change from year to year do they?  So why change the slogan from year to year?