A Game-by-Game Look at the Al Groh Era

Needing to blow off a little steam from the baseball game, I think I’ll throw another log onto the Wahooze fire. If you are a member of the Cavalier Keeper League fantasy football league, you’ve seen this before. If not, it’s new for you… so enjoy.

I’m going to take a quick look at every game Al Groh has coached at the University of Virginia. I'm assigning each game a grade, 1-5. (1 = piss-poor embarrassment / 2 = loss, but not a bad loss / 3 = "good" loss or a "bad" win / 4 = nice, solid win / 5 = awesome, beyond-belief victory) Then I'll average the scores to yield a grade for the season.


2001

@ Wisconsin - (L) 17-26
We hung for a while, but we fell too far behind after Antoine Womack got hurt (again and as usual). Grade: 2

Richmond - (W) 17-16
Too close for comfort against a D2 team. This is the definition of a "bad" win, in case you were confused by my grading criteria. Grade: 3

@ Clemson - (W) 26-24
Niiiiiiiiiiiice. Grade: 4

Duke - (W) 31-10
Solid thumping of a shit Dook team. Grade: 4

@ Maryland - (L) 21-41
Ouch. This one really stung. Grade: 1

@ North Carolina - (L) 24-30
UNC was good this season. Grade: 2

Florida State - (L) 7-43
Blown out at home. Never good. Grade: 1

@ N.C. State - (L) 0-24
These State teams were very solid. But still, a shutout? Grade: 1

Wake Forest - (L) 30-34
Wake was still bad, and we had no business losing this game. Grade: 1

Georgia Tech - (W) 39-38
Hook and ladder! And this GT team was ranked. Grade: 5

Virginia Tech - (L) 17-31
We hung around for a while... Grade: 2

Penn State - (W) 20-14
This was a great win. Grade: 5

Season average: 2.58
Groh's first season at UVA was marked by some nice wins and some ugly losses. Up-and-down,
but the Penn State win left a sweet taste in the mouth, despite missing the postseason.


2002

Colorado State - (L) 29-35
Marques Hagans coughed up a fumble on the goal line, and we were upset by the Rams. Grade: 1

@ Florida State - (L) 19-40
Matt Schaub took over and played well, but this was just another blowout against the 'Noles. Grade: 1

South Carolina - (W) 34-21
This was a huge win at the time, as the Cocks were ranked in the low teens. Grade: 5

Akron - (W) 48-29
The Zips were in the game in the 4th quarter. Grade: 3

@ Wake Forest - (W) 38-34
Nailbiter against a sub-par Deacs team, but it was an awesome game. Nathan, Chuck, and I were in Winston-Salem for this game, so drunk I don’t remember the first half. Grade: 3

@ Duke - (W) 27-22
Too close for comfort! Grade: 3

Clemson - (W) 22-17
Awesome come-from-behind win! Grade: 4

North Carolina - (W) 37-27
Another dramatic comeback. Grade: 4

@ Georgia Tech - (L) 15-23
I honestly don't remember this game. At all. Grade: 2

@ Penn State - (L) 14-35
We had no answer for Larry Johnson. Grade: 1

N.C. State - (W) 14-9
We stopped Phillip Rivers on the goal-line in the mud and the muck. Grade: 4

Maryland - (W) 48-13
Hands down, one of my most beloved wins of the Al Groh era. Grade: 5

@ Virginia Tech - (L) 9-21
The wind disrupted the Schaub-led WCO passing game. We were ready to beat them that day, but like too often against Tech, it wasn’t to be. Grade: 1

West Virginia - (W) 48-22
Tire Bowl #1, and an amazing victory. Grade: 5

Season average: 3.00
This was an exciting, fun year to be a Hoo football fan. It was a great season, in which we tied FSU for the ACC crown. But still... losses to Colorado State and a so-so VT team were black marks on the record.


2003

Duke - (W) 27-0
This was a sound dismantling of a horrendous Dook team. Grade: 4

South Carolina - (L) 7-31
With Schaub out of commission, Anthony Martinez laid an egg. Grade: 1

@ Western Michigan - (W) 59-16
Marques Hagans stepped in and delivered a great performance. Grade: 4

Wake Forest - (W) 27-24
Bad News Hughes! Grade: 4

@ North Carolina - (W) 38-13
UNC sucked, and we took care of business. Grade: 4

@ Clemson - (L) 27-30 OT
Blecccch. Grade: 2

Florida State - (L) 14-19
I really, really thought we had 'em in this one. AP caught like 400 passes that night, but a bad snap over Schaub's head cost us the game late. Grade: 2

Troy State - (W) 24-0
We played Troy? I don't remember this one at all. Grade: 4

@ N.C. State - (L) 37-51
This was a Rivers/Schaub shootout. Grade: 2

@ Maryland - (L) 17-27
I hate, HATE losing to Maryland. Grade: 1

Georgia Tech - (W) 29-17
Nice win. Grade: 4

Virginia Tech - (W) 35-21
Al's only win over Cousin Eddie. Grade: 4

Pittsburgh - (W) 23-16
Tire Bowl #2 featured us shutting down Larry Fitzgerald. Grade: 4

Season average: 3.08
It was a good season, but we needed to beat Florida State for it to have been a great season. With most of the team returning in 2004, expectations went skyward...


2004

@ Temple - (W) 44-14
A nice bloodletting to open the season. Grade: 4

North Carolina - (W) 56-24
We're rolling... Grade: 4

Akron - (W) 51-0
Ha ha ha. “Zips.” Grade: 4

Syracuse - (W) 31-10
This was at the beginning of Syracuse's slide into suckdom. Grade: 4

Clemson - (W) 30-10
This Thursday night game featured Clemson taking an early 10-0 lead, and us storming back. Grade: 4

@ Florida State - (L) 3-36
I want to take a few minutes to talk about this game. This is the game that defines Al Groh's failure as our head coach. We were 5-0, poised at #6 in the nation, and were everyone's darling to win the ACC. All we needed to do was win a "statement" game on the road in Tallahassee... and we shit the bed. This game put the ceiling on how far Groh could take the Cavaliers, and in my opinion will prove to be the single most harmful loss in Groh's coaching legacy. If we had won this game, we might be a totally different program today. Grade: 1

@ Duke - (W) 37-16
Shaky bounce-back performance. Grade: 3

Maryland - (W) 16-0
I missed this game to be at (in) Kirk's wedding. But Ahmad Brooks dominated the game. I know because I watched it on VHS the next day. Grade: 4

Miami - (L) 21-31
We put up a decent fight against a good Miami team, but fell short. Grade: 2

@ Georgia Tech - (W) 30-10
It's never easy to win in Atlanta, and this was against a good GT squad. Grade: 4

@ Virginia Tech - (L) 10-24
We should have been more competitive in this game, one which we dominated early but couldn't seem to score any points. Grade: 1

Fresno State - (L) 34-37 OT
Ugly, ugly, ugly. Grade: 1

Season average: 3.00
This was supposed to be the season. We were stacked. AP and Wali Lundy running the ball, the defense led by Chris Canty, Ahmad Brooks, and Kai Parham, with Marques Hagans as the x-factor at QB. But we lost that game to Florida State, and the wheels fell off. The excitement that we all felt from the 2002 season had transformed into bitter disappointment. The bullshit loss to Fresno in Boise salted Groh's legacy of mediocrity. UVA went from a hot "up-and-coming" program to a middling, inconsistent, schizophrenic outfit. This is the season that began our well-chronicled road woes, and it was the beginning of the decline of our productive West Coast-style passing game. Al Groh's conservative style won out over Bill Musgrave's balls-out offense, and we fumbled away our identity as a team capable of roaring from behind with trick plays and razzle-dazzle.


2005

Western Michigan - (W) 31-19
This was a pretty shaky win over a much less talented team. Typical UVA football. Grade: 3

@ Syracuse - (W) 27-24
We won this game on a Michael Johnson kickoff return. Lucky win against a crap team. Grade: 3

Duke - (W) 38-7
Clockwork Dook blowout. Grade: 4

@ Maryland - (L) 33-45
We were down three touchdowns all game before rallying late. Grade: 1

@ Boston College - (L) 17-28
Terrible, gutless performance. Grade: 1

Florida State - (W) 26-21
Nice win, but a year too late. Grade: 4

@ North Carolina - (L) 5-7
I almost drove us off the road into a ravine on the way back from Chapel Hill that day. This was the worst football game I've ever seen. We ran the counter trey for 0.0001 yard gain at least 473 times. It was like watching an abortion in slow mo and high definition. Grade: 1

Temple - (W) 51-3
Ho-hum. Grade: 4

Georgia Tech - (W) 27-17
This was a big win, as it got us to bowl eligibility. GT was (as usual) rock solid that year. Grade: 4

Virginia Tech - (L) 14-52
If 2004 @ FSU is Al Groh's worst loss at UVA, this one is a close second. I remember considering suicide that night. Grade: 1

@ Miami - (L) 17-25
A game effort in the OB, but Deyon Williams wasn't quite enough to pull the W. Grade: 3

Minnesota - (W) 34-31
I was shocked at how well we played in this game, and frustrated that it took 11 games before this "good" version of 2005 UVA football came together. But still, a very good win in a decent bowl game. Grade: 5

Season average: 2.83
I don't have much to say about this season, other than it sucked. And 2006 was even worse...


2006

@ Pittsburgh - (L) 13-38
EPIC FAIL. Grade: 1

Wyoming - (W) 13-12 (OT)
This is the worst win I've ever been a part of or a privy to. A missed PAT in overtime won us the game… at home… against Wyoming. Grade: 3

Western Michigan - (L) 10-17
Yep, that's right. We lost to Western Michigan. At home. I tend to forget about this game when I think about Al Groh's record at UVA. I think many Vietnam vets can relate. Grade: 1

@ Georgia Tech - (L) 7-24
Calvin Johnson crushed us, almost single-handedly. Grade: 1

@ Duke - (W) 37-0
Yippee. Grade: 4

@ East Carolina - (L) 21-31
Horrible. Just horrible. But to be fair, this was at the beginning of ECU's ascension under Skip Holtz, and they had some explosive weapons that we couldn't contain. See also: Chris Johnson. Grade: 1

Maryland - (L) 26-28
We were up 23-0 at halftime. 'Nuff said. Grade: 1

North Carolina - (W) 23-0
Revenge... or something like it. Grade: 4

N.C. State - (W) 14-7
Solid, hard-fought victory over an equally uninspiring NCSU team. Grade: 4

@ Florida State - (L) 0-33
Bend over and take it, sez the Noles. Grade: 1

Miami - (W) 17-7
It was a good win. Sewell played his best game of the season in this one. Grade: 4

@ Virginia Tech - (L) 0-17
The score looks close, but this game was never in doubt. Tech dominated us. Grade: 1

Season average: 2.17
"5-7" doesn't look nearly bad enough to properly represent this season. We rolled in with Christian Olsen as our starting QB, which displayed a tremendous lack of ability to judge talent. Eventually, Jameel Sewell took over, and we were content to have him learn on the job. It paid off with wins over State and Miami, but overall this season was just ugly from start to finish. And the GROH MUST GO movement officially began...


2007

@ Wyoming - (L) 3-23
Joins 2004 FSU, 2005 VT, and 2006 Western Michigan among the top five worst losses of Al Groh's UVA career. Grade: 1

Duke - (W) 24-13
A win, but it was ugly. Grade: 3

@ North Carolina - (W) 22-20
I was shocked to see that we beat the Heels on the road, on the day Mark got married. (Why do so many of my friends insist on getting married on Saturdays in the Fall? Find a bye week, assholes!) Grade: 4

Georgia Tech - (W) 28-23
Good win in every way. This was the point where we started seeing the team really come together. Grade: 4

Pittsburgh - (W) 44-14
KABOOM. Gotta love those night games in the Hook. Grade: 4

@ Middle Tenn. St. - (W) 23-21
Peerman breaks his foot, but we escape with a narrow win against a team we should have annihilated. Grade: 3

Connecticut - (W) 17-16
This game cemented the 2007 team as the "Cardiac Cavs." Grade: 4

@ Maryland - (W) 18-17
This game directly led to the conception of my first-born child. Mikell Simpson was a revelation, a navy blue blur in a sea of evil red. Chris Long’s goodnight kiss sack into the end zone is forever ingrained in my memory. Grade: 4

@ N.C. State - (L) 24-29
I accidentally knocked over a table in BW3 during this game. I spilled lots of beer. Grade: 2

Wake Forest - (W) 17-16
Swank missed a field goal?!? Grade: 4

@ Miami - (W) 48-0
One of the best wins of the Groh era. Hands down. Grade: 5

Virginia Tech - (L) 21-33
We outplayed the Hokies, but were robbed by the refs. Still, I can admit they were the better team. Grade: 2

Texas Tech - (L) 28-31
Gator Bowl... we had this game on lockdown and then Lalich coughed it up after Sewell bid his typical mid 4th quarter injury-related adieu. This loss set the tone for the bad beginning to the 2008 season. Grade: 2

Season average: 3.23
In my opinion, Groh's best season at UVA, and he won ACC Coach of the Year for the effort. But still... we needed to beat Tech, and we needed to win the bowl game.


2008

Southern California - (L) 7-52
Anecdote: during the pre-game warm-ups, I turned to Joe and said, “DAMN, their o-line is HUGE!” To which he replied: “That’s number 85, 87, 83, and 80. Those are the fucking WIDE RECEIVERS.” Grade: 1

Richmond - (W) 16-0
We led this game 3-0 late in the 3rd quarter. Richmond is a very good FCS team, but there's no excuse to not blow them out. Grade: 3

@ Connecticut - (L) 10-45
UConn came in with 19 returning starters and revenge on their to-do list. I knew we'd lose this game, but to be blown out like this? Not good. Grade: 1

@ Duke - (L) 3-31
Okay, Duke is better under Cutcliffe. But it's still a four-TD loss to Duke. Unacceptable. Grade: 1

Maryland - (W) 31-0
One of my top five favorite wins of the Groh era. We walked to the game like we were walking to a funeral. Only about 35,000 die-hard fans were there for a night game. But it was still an electric environment. Grade: 5

East Carolina - (W) 35-20
Great win against a good ECU squad. Grade: 4

North Carolina - (W) 16-13 (OT)
We had no business winning this game, but we pulled through when it mattered the most. And Captain Averica captured the hearts of the fanbase. Grade: 4

@ Georgia Tech - (W) 24-17
Wow. A win in Atlanta against a very good Ramblin' Wreck team. Grade: 5

Miami - (L) 17-24 (OT)
We knew the letdown was inevitable. Grade: 2

@ Wake Forest – (L) 17-28
Wake is the toughest team in the ACC, now that Grobe has his system firmly rooted. We got behind early, and mounted a little bit of a rally before succumbing. Grade: 2

Clemson – (L) 3-13
This game was like holding sand. We kept clenching our fists tighter, but the sand just kept slipping through our fingers. This game was to get bowl eligible, and we let the opportunity escape against a thoroughly uninspiring Klem’s Son team. Grade: 1

@ Virginia Tech – (L) 7-14
Props to Al Groh for throwing the curveball and starting Vic Hall at QB. Curses to Al Groh for waiting so long to give the kid his rightful chance behind center. F-bombs to Al Groh for not allowing Vic to throw a pass in the game. Death to Al Groh for relieving Vic with Marc Verica late in the 4^th quarter, with the game on the line. Grade: 2

Season average: 2.58
Getting one more win and to a bowl game was absolutely imperative, but Groh proved a whole lot with the improbable four-game turnaround. He knows how to coach, and his players will follow his leadership and fight for him. That's a statement I wasn't prepared to make prior to the win in Atlanta, so that's a big deal... and part of the explanation for my flip-flop from the GROH MUST GO camp to being on the fence. But look at the facts – we lost by four touchdowns to Duke, couldn’t dig out a win when we needed it most, and have a 1-7 record against Virginia Tech under Al Groh.


So where are we now? The short answer is that 2009 is an intriguing “win-or-else” season for Al Groh, who managed to save his job (and cost Dave Leitao his*) by hiring Gregg Brandon as offensive coordinator and [seemingly] embracing the modern spread offense*. He added to the good will with a great 2009 recruiting class*, easily his best since that 2002 haul headlined by Ahmad Brooks. The ’09 schedule* is daunting, and the stakes are high. Win or lose, I can’t wait to see it all unfold.

(*Wahooze blog entries for another day.)