Asked if he felt he could succeed where predecessors O'Driscoll, Derek McInnes and Keith Millen have failed, Cotterill said: "It's not a matter of if, but when.
"I will turn things around here, be in no doubt about that. You cannot survive on faith alone.
"This is a fantastic club with good supporters and a brilliant owner and it is going to have a fantastic new stadium. As a manager, you cannot wish for too much more.
"Bristol City have not been used to winning for a few years now and we have to get that winning mentality back into the club.
"The fans turn up and expect us to win a game and, when that happens, it becomes a better club all-round.
"Unfortunately, I'm a little bit impatient. I want to win, I want to be top of the league and I want to be successful.
"I want to get what I want very quickly and, when I don't get it, I become frustrated. I want to be patient, but I'm not very good at it. That's because I'm a winner."
That's the sort of fighting talk that I, for one, want to hear.
"I will turn things around here, be in no doubt about that. You cannot survive on faith alone.
"This is a fantastic club with good supporters and a brilliant owner and it is going to have a fantastic new stadium. As a manager, you cannot wish for too much more.
"Bristol City have not been used to winning for a few years now and we have to get that winning mentality back into the club.
"The fans turn up and expect us to win a game and, when that happens, it becomes a better club all-round.
"Unfortunately, I'm a little bit impatient. I want to win, I want to be top of the league and I want to be successful.
"I want to get what I want very quickly and, when I don't get it, I become frustrated. I want to be patient, but I'm not very good at it. That's because I'm a winner."
That's the sort of fighting talk that I, for one, want to hear.