At the competitive level a player should never look over their shoulder. They should never become complacent. They should always strive to be better. Every recruiting class the coaching staff is looking for better players.
My son’s roommate went from freshman starter, to soph platoon player, to junior year on the bench to being told he wasn’t needed senior year. The team got better and more talented. He didn’t. His attitude also declined.
My son returned in the fall redshirt soph year to find a JuCo All American at the position he thought he had won mid season the previous year. He had to battle to win another position.
One if my son’s travel teammates was a top recruit at a top ten program. For three years the coaching staff tried to hand him the position. Each year he was on the bench by the beginning of conference play. It’s about winning. The names in the lineup don’t matter.