By J. Randolph Evans

Once upon a time, there was a new football coach at a prestigious university. Now, this was not just any university football program. It was a team that had a long and storied history of success. Yet, recent troubles had prompted the university to bring on a new coach – full of promises of better things yet to come.

In the first year, the coach wanted lots of change. He wanted to change the way the university played football – their approach, their attitude, even their goals. His promises of a better team and a better future carried the day even as doubters worried along the way. It was his team and his way. While the team suffered through another losing season, it was just the first year of a new approach and everyone plowed ahead.

In the second year, the coach stayed the course pushing ahead with his new playbook. Grumbling started as everyone started to feel a little uneasy about the way things were going. The coach explained that he had inherited a program full of problems and that it just took time to fix. Each time fans complained, he continued to point to just how bad things were when he took over.

At the end of the second season, the team’s record was no better. Yes, it was a losing football team when he took over. But, it was also a losing football team now. And losing was just not something that either the team or the fans were willing to continue to accept. Something had to be done.

So, just before the third year started, the university made changes to improve the chances for the upcoming season. The idea was that a new defensive coordinator might do the trick. So, while the head coach remained with his offensive coach in tow, there was a new defensive coach on the field. Hopes ran high that the head coach might get the message and things might be different.

As the third season progressed, the coach got a big, unexpected win against an arch rival. For a couple of weeks, there were victory laps and pep rallies and celebrations all around. But it turned out to be just one win. The steady slide continued as the team’s record continued to suffer.

Of course, one win did not a season make. Instead, at the end of the third year, the team’s record was just as bad. The coach had plenty of excuses. He pointed to bad weather and unexpected injuries. There was the tough schedule. And always, he pointed to just how bad things were when he came on board. The problem was that things were not getting any better. The team was headed in the wrong direction and everyone (except the coach) knew it.

By the middle of the fourth season, it was all over. It was time for a new coach.

The bottom line is that losing records just do not get it done – no matter who or why. Americans want winners. It is the essence of being American. That is the challenge that Barack Obama faces. The talent is there. The effort is there. All Americans need is a winning game-plan. But, if President Obama is to survive, he actually needs wins. To get wins, the country needs jobs. If the economy does not turn around, it will not matter why. It will not matter how bad things were when he started. It will not matter how unpredictable the weather has been or which players did not do their job. It will not even matter whether he is a good coach or a good person. It will be about winning.

This is one of the most unforgiving characteristics of American politics. President Jimmy Carter learned this the hard way in 1980 when he lost (even after the Camp David Peace Accords). President George Bush faced the same fate in 1992 when he lost (even after the Coalition victory against Iraqi forces to liberate Kuwait.) It is neither a Democratic challenge nor a Republican challenge. It is the American challenge.

Yes, getting Osama bin Laden was a big win by any measure. But, it is not the championship and it does not make a winning record. The country actually keeps score. Every month, the number of jobs created and the number of jobs lost get released. When they do, Americans take note. More importantly, Americans know based on their own lives whether things are getting better or not.

Next year, Americans will look back at the first four seasons of Coach Obama’s tenure and decide – does the American nation want four more years? Is the country headed in the right direction or the wrong direction? It will actually be that simple, no matter what the pundits say.