Recognizing reality versus never giving in

The content of this Andrea Adelson feature is about college football coaching but applicable to any sport.

An excerpt:

"Still, he felt tapped out. He could keep clawing and scraping, trying to bring the Aggies to respectability and, eventually, bowl eligibility. Then, Walker looked at reality. All the boulders in his way would never be cleared. He had no future there.

So Could Coach K or Roy Williams or Bill Self succeed at Grambling State had they started out their respective careers there?