After he proudly went inside to announce he was finished, his father pointed to some mistakes and made him start over. Subsequent washings brought more constructive criticism.

On the ninth try, Cutcliffe finally got it right -- his first lesson in completing a job correctly.

Now, Cutcliffe admires sales representatives who close deals and professionals who finish projects before everybody else.

He believes there is an art to finishing.

"That's something a lot of us spend half a lifetime trying to develop," Cutcliffe said.

It's also an art football coaches in the Triangle are trying to master as the 2008 season begins. Cutcliffe is a first-year coach trying to improve a Duke team that was 6-45 under predecessor Ted Roof.

North Carolina's Butch Davis and N.C. State's Tom O'Brien are in their second seasons after taking over for coaches fired after losing seasons. All are rebuilding after their teams posted losing records last season.

Each has a distinctly different formula for reaching the successful finish Cutcliffe talks about.

Cutcliffe is a noted quarterbacks coach and offensive strategist. Davis is taking advantage of his star power and NFL background. O'Brien is a former Marine preaching discipline and consistency.

"With him, the format never changes," N.C. State wide receiver Donald Bowens said. "You know what he expects, and then you just go out there and do what you've got to do."

Wake's example

The Triangle coaches need only look as far as Winston-Salem for proof that the right plan can rebuild even a program with a woeful football history.

Before coach Jim Grobe was hired following the 2000 season, Wake Forest had struggled to losing records in seven of the previous eight seasons. Athletic director Ron Wellman was patient as Grobe posted a record of 26-32 over his first five seasons.

Grobe redshirted virtually every freshman and installed an unconventional offense that used "orbit sweeps" by the wide receivers to spread the field horizontally and then hit opponents in the middle with straight-ahead running plays. Wake Forest wasn't often going to beat traditional regional powers for marquee recruits. So Grobe focused on tough, smart players who were willing to redshirt and fit his style.

In 2006, the Deacons won their first ACC title in 36 years and played in the Orange Bowl. Last season Wake Forest finished 9-4 with a win over Connecticut in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Grobe returns nine starters on defense and six on offense and was picked second in the Atlantic Division by the media that cover the ACC.

"We're finally reaping those rewards [of redshirting]," Grobe said. "We're playing a lot of 22-, 23-year-old guys. Most of our football team, the guys that we're really hanging our hat on, are the guys in their fourth-year junior and fifth-year senior years."

That approach fits Grobe's personality and background. He spent 11 years as an assistant coach at Air Force, whose recruiting opportunities were limited to players willing to enroll at a military academy.

NFL background

North Carolina coach Butch Davis' background is much different from Grobe's.

Davis came to the Tar Heels with two Super Bowl rings from his time with the Dallas Cowboys. He rebuilt the Miami Hurricanes into a national title contender before leaving to be come head coach of the Cleveland Browns.

He is selling Big-Time Football at North Carolina even though it trails Clemson, Florida State, Maryland, N.C. State and even Duke in its number of overall ACC titles.

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