[Joe Johnson]

A lot of great suggestions. I will only add 2.

#1, get agreement on team governance ("this is how the team is going to run, this is how we are going to come to concensus on the path ahead, this is how we are going to resolve things if concensus is aloof.").

#2, off season projects are the best way to move the needle with respect to developing the talents you need to put a good robot out on the field. Find some way to exercise all your muscles: CAD, coding, electronics & build. Add in PR/Chairmans too if you can (maybe make your project be a robot that will allow you to inspire grade schoolers or recruit more students or raise more money). A big part of a fall project is not just that your team learns new skills but that you all learn what your team is (and more importantly) is not capable of.

In my view, the #1 cause of poor performance on the field is not that robots are hard but that teams pick a robot during the concept phase that is beyond their ability to execute. Even a great team with great resources is going to have a bad time if they continually attempt to design & build robots that they cannot actually pull off.

It doesn't matter what Robonauts/CheesyPoofs/MissDaisy/Pink/LasGuerrilla/FillInTheBlank can build. You need to pick a robot that YOUR TEAM can build.

I wish you all the best.

Dr. Joe J.