1. Develop state diagrams early! It will make coding so much easier.
2. Hot glue is your best friend.
3. Keep it simple. Simplicity + a little creativity goes a long way.
4. Simplify during the brainstorm stage. 
5. Have a spare of any critical components! They like to die when most inconvenient...
6. Start early! You'll be glad you did! Finishing touches seem to take a week.
7. Make sure your interpretation of the guidelines is the same as the graders!
8. Always turn off power when troubleshooting circuits...
9. Have separate wires connecting high load grounds back to the power supply and make a common ground connection to the TIVA from there.
10. When in doubt add a capacitor.
11. SourceTree can save you from catastrophe.  Make sure your entire team is comfortable working in branches and communicate when merging.
12. When debugging, don't jump straight into code first. Many times, it will be hardware issues like poor connections or fried components.