2009.11.07
UVa post-game analysis
For about the past 10 days, Al Groh has had the bearing of a man whose days as Virginia’s head coach are dwindling to a precious few.
Normally, after a performance comparable to Virginia’s in a 52-17 loss at Miami, Groh would have been seething. Instead he took a look at his post-game surroundings in the Land Shark Stadium “Field Club” and cracked a one-liner.
“Field Club?” Groh said. “I thought that’s where you went to have fun.”
Groh didn’t have much fun Saturday. His offense had a season-low 149 yards, his defense gave up a season-high 515 yards, his special teams gave up a punt return for a touchdown.
It was the third loss in a row for the Cavaliers (3-6 overall, 2-3 ACC) and it’s hard to see them winning again. A Boston College team that was picked for last in the ACC’s Atlantic Division comes to Scott Stadium for a 3:30 p.m. as a legitimate championship-game contender at 6-3, 3-2.
Boston College also has a chance to exact some payback for first-year head coach Frank Spaziani, fired as Virginia defensive coordinator following the 1991 season. It will be Boston College’s first visit to Charlottesville since beginning ACC play in 2006.
Defense is Spaziani’s forte and he should have little problem corralling the Cavaliers, who are worse in their first season with Gregg Brandon as offensive coordinator as they ever were with Groh’s son, Mike, as coordinator.
Who knows how much of that is Brandon’s fault? He was hired to install the spread offense and it appeared that UVa had a couple of spread-ready quarterbacks in Jameel Sewell and Vic Hall, but, as it turned out, UVa had no blocking.
Either Groh or Brandon made the decision before the third game to narrow the line splits and go with a more conventional offense, but that wasn’t going to upgrade the talent level. On a squad that has numerous mediocre or worse units, the O-line is easily the worst.
Dave Borbely is a good guy and everybody seems to like him, players included, but this much we know: He’s not a miracle worker. When Tom O’Brien was UVa’s offensive line coach in the 1980s, you always knew that Virginia would have a good offensive line because O’Brien was the O-line coach. That hasn’t been the case with O’Brien.
But, it’s time to move on. This season can’t be salvaged. I’m not sure that next season can be salvaged. Who’s going to play quarterback? If I hadn’t seen Marc Verica pass for 200 yards or more in six straight games last year, I’d swear he wasn’t a Division I-A quarterback.
He has no receivers, at least nobody with the ability of a Kevin Ogletree, John Phillips or even Maurice Covington. If there’s one thing that has doomed the Al Groh regime, it’s a lack of talent. The Cavaliers simply haven’t recruited well enough, but, at some point, you have to say that the coaching hasn’t been very good either.
So, who’s the next coach? Mike London’s Richmond team suffered its first loss of the season today. Jim Grobe lost in overtime at Wake Forest. Derek Dooley’s team had a respectable 45-35 loss to Boise State but his Louisiana Tech team is 3-6. East Carolina’s Skip Holtz lost to Virginia Tech.
Temple won its seventh straight game for one-time UVa defensive coordinator Al Golden, but the Owls were lucky to hold off a 1-9 Miami of Ohio team, 34-32. It’s almost a kiss of death just to be mentioned in the same breath as the Cavaliers.
It seems that for years, to be one of the 64 Division 1-A teams (out of 119 or so) to go to a bowl game was considered evidence of an outstanding season at UVa by UVa fans! Suddenly, that changed once Groh stopped making UVa one of those 64 teams.
But why was that ever considered an achievement in the first place?!
Comment by Nelson — November 8, 2009 @ 12:25 am
What about Terry Bowden?
Comment by Original Greg — November 8, 2009 @ 7:53 am
Bueller?????? Bueller????? Bueller????.......
Comment by David Falls — November 8, 2009 @ 4:27 pm
I would say Grobe is the only one on the list that could turn things around fairly quickly, but he is up in age and may want to finish it out at WF where he is appreciated and would not have have pressure and the weight of a gorilla on his shoulders.
Comment by Tony in Roanoke — November 8, 2009 @ 5:12 pm
U.Va. has little to offer an established Division 1A head coach other than the opportunity to fail. The in-state recruiting wars are regularly lost to Va Tech for whatever reason. Craig Littlepage needs to do the hard work of looking for and finding an up and coming assistant coach in a successful program at a higher level. Bring in a guy who has energy, grounding in a winning program, and the ability to recruit including the opportunity to steal few recruits already on somebody else's radar. If that means a coach who uses U Va as a stepping stone for a more prestigious program later on, so be it. Littlepage has to stop the bleeding. Be creative and bold in the next head coach choice and stop looking for a reincarnation of George Welch. Go find a good, young assistant and give him the chance we both need.
Comment by Joe Wallen — November 9, 2009 @ 1:54 pm
Poindexter, a three-year contract, and Welsh as QB coach and program advisor to Poindexter. "Up and coming" assistant coach from anywhere else is wrong to do. It's wrong. And it is the kind of move that reinforces deeply held perceptions that don't need reinforcing. Yes, there is a risk of failure. A real risk. But there is also ample evidence of exceptionalism and potential brilliance. A lot of pluses against a few minuses. Three years is enough time for the risk/reward proposition to be tested. We know that he loves the school, as evidenced by his record of personal sacrifice to "finish what he started" as a player. We've seen him get kids to play inspired, determined hard-nosed football both as Running Backs coach and now as Secondary Coach. Groh's premature failure should not come at cost to Poindexter -- this program can get right with him at the helm. He's earned a shot. Please hold off just once on the usual carousel of candidates and please let Virginia, at least this one time, reward one of its own and send a clear and inspiring message throughout the Commonwealth recruiting territory that UVA remains the most dynamic grounds in-state.
Comment by theo '85 — November 9, 2009 @ 2:36 pm
Theo '85, I enjoy your usually insightful posts, but this no time for sentimentality. Sure AP bleeds Orange and Blue but that is not enough. If he can do x's and o's, recruit, instruct, inspire, organize, and schmooz all at a high level then he should be a leading candidate for the job. I suspect that he is not ready yet. You seem to indicate that by saying that he needs to lean on GW. I am not against AP, but this decision needs to be made with the head not the heart. Maybe it will be AP, maybe it won't. But UVa needs to conduct a broad search for AG's replacement, not just tap somebody already on the staff because everyone loves the guy.
Comment by Joe Wallen — November 9, 2009 @ 3:40 pm
AP is a great guy, however; without any experience at even the coordinator level it is hard to pitch him as a viable candidate. I think our best bet may be Golden. What he has done at Temple is very impressive and I think he could quickly make UVA a contender in the ACC. He also would most likely retain AP.
I hope there is interest on his side.
Comment by Joe — November 10, 2009 @ 11:31 am