As the Jacksonville Jaguars navigate another NFL season, one local author is shifting the conversation from wins and losses to the emotional well-being of athletes. Gail Carter-Cade, a Jacksonville-based writer specializing in healing and emotional resilience, has penned a poem dedicated to the Jaguars, not as critique but as a gesture of support after witnessing players' visible disappointment following a tough away game.
Carter-Cade, a self-described die-hard Jaguars fan who travels to at least one away game each year, attended a recent game in Nashville, Tennessee, with her family. After a loss, they positioned themselves near the players' exit tunnel to offer encouragement. “We were rooting and hoping for them to win. Unfortunately, they didn't,” she said. “Our hearts sank. We tried to get their attention to let them know we came all the way from Jacksonville to support them. Most of the players looked down or straight ahead. They wouldn't even make eye contact.”
Rather than letting that moment fester into disappointment, Carter-Cade transformed it into a purpose-driven poem titled “A Loss.” The poem, written in the voice of a player, captures the internal turmoil following a defeat: “Now I feel like trash / I can't take the rehash / Or the student's backlash / We didn't win the game / But next time we will reclaim.”
According to Psychology Today, athletes often experience deep emotional fallout after losses, including sadness, shame, anger, fear of disappointing others, self-doubt, anxiety, and loss of confidence. Carter-Cade recognized these invisible struggles as a form of grief. “After a loss, athletes don't just feel physical pain. They feel grief,” she explained. Her poem reframes loss as feedback rather than failure, emphasizing a growth mindset. “A pro doesn't avoid losses. They respond to them. What matters is the growth mindset — what they learn, how they practice, and how they show up next time,” she said.
Carter-Cade hopes the poem resonates beyond the Jaguars, inspiring students, professional athletes, and fans to acknowledge the emotional toll of competition. “I wrote this poem to let athletes know how they feel matters — and to let fans understand the emotional toll of the game,” she said. “In this way, we can truly uplift the pain.”
The author, who has published workbooks and books on fostering growth mindset through poetry, sees this as an extension of her mission. Her workbook, Uplifting The Pain By Fostering Growth Mindset Through Poetry Now, and her book Uplifting The Pain of Behavioral and Learning Styles Through Poetry Now, available on Barnes and Noble, explore similar themes of emotional resilience.
Carter-Cade remains steadfast in her support for the Jaguars. “I continue supporting the team because they show heart and the will to keep fighting,” she said. “The scoreboard doesn't measure Trevor Lawrence's character or work ethic. It doesn't show that he's a fighter.” Her poem and message aim to rally Florida behind a broader understanding of athletic struggle, turning disappointment into a catalyst for deeper connection.
