Success did not come easy for Appalachian State last year. Fresh off a 19-10 record during the 2002-03 season, the Mountaineers stumbled to a disappointing 9-21 follow-up last year. Using last season as motivation, ASU is off to a 4-3 start this year, far better than last year's 1-4 opening mark. For several of the players on the team, the winning record is attributed to team unity and an improved attitude this season. "We had a lot of new guys last year", said Senior Herbert Jones. "It was always the new guys hanging out with each other and the old guys hanging out with each other." Jones was one of seven new players on the team last season, along with Clint Deas, D.J. Thompson, Demetrius Scott, Cortney Polk, Jay McMillan and Derek Thomas. Senior Chris McFarland said all of the team members try to hang out with each other off the court as much as possible. "A lot of us eat dinner together or hang out in each other's rooms after practice," McFarland said. Head coach Houston Fancher said the improved attitude and chemistry off the court carries over to the on-court team play. "I think until you can trust them off the floor, you can't trust them on the floor," Fancher said. It has to be a carry-over." That unity has led not only to basketball success, but also to the development of a family-type atmosphere among the players this season. "We don't have any of the cliques we did last year," McFarland said. Widely regarded as a true "player's coach," Fancher said he thinks his attitude toward the players is comforting to parents as they decide where they want their sons to play basketball. Fancher's attitude toward the team comes from being a father to 5-year-old Hayden and 18-month-old Ethan. "Cathy (Fancher's wife) and I vow to take care of their kids the same way we take care of ours," Fancher said. "They also know we're going to be stern with them. When [my kids] step out of line, we put them back in line and parents know we do the same thing with our players." The player's genuine affection for Fancher and his family is easily seen at practice. When Haydcn and Ethan (who the team has dubbed "Wheatie") come to practice, the players hug them and pull them on the court to play before their father can get to them. Some seniors like McFarland, Corwin Davis and Noah Brown, remember seeing Hayden on recruiting visits when he was only a few months old. "On my recruiting visit when I was a senior in high school, Hayden was in a stroller," McFarland said. "Now he's out playing with us on the court. So I've kind of watched him grow up." For Houston Fancher, watching the players he loves interact so closely with his kids is far more valuable than any basketball game. "That's as rewarding as anything to see my kids have 15 big brothers," Fancher said. "To me and my wife, it's one of those things that breaks down any barriers in terms of race, religion, creed and ethnic background. That doesn't matter. It's just kids loving kids." The players also cherish their relationship with the two boys. "I've been seeing Ethan since he was born and learning how to talk. You just fall in love with little kids like that," Brown said. "We're just trying to be a big-brother figure to them and treat them like family." Not only do Hayden, Ethan and Cathy regularly attend practice, but they are at every home game, as well as a few away games. The Fanchers also have the team over to their house every month or so to eat dinner together. And, as much as Houston is a father figure to the team, Cathy is their mother figure. "She checks on them just as much as I do," Houston said. 'They come to the house to eat. She made Thanksgiving dinner for them. She's their mom away from home if they need somebody to talk to and a lot of players take advantage of that." Being a father figure to his players and a father to his sons may appear to be very similar, but to Houston Fancher, there is no comparison. "I want to be a better father than I ever am a coach," he said.