BLACKSBURG -- Like Borat Sagdiyev, I have been the itinerant traveler this fall as I have covered all 12 of Virginia's football games. I have put just under 2,000 miles on my car and have racked up nearly 2,700 frequent flier miles to view mediocrity up close week after week.
What have I learned? Not much. I mean, what is there to say after a game like Saturday's loss at Virginia Tech? What is there to say after an entirely forgettable season like this? Once again, not very much, but I'll try.
The Al Groh era has come full circle. The Cavaliers finished 5-7 his first year in Charlottesville in 2001 and now have finished 5-7 in his sixth year in charge of the program. In between those two bookend years, Virginia went 32-19 and won the illustrious Continental Tire Bowl twice as well as the Music City Bowl last year. Not a terrible four-year run there, but also not exactly "Uncompromised Excellence."
2007 will be put up or shut up time for the Al and Mike show. Given the high percentage of players returning as well as the large number of talented redshirt and true freshmen coming into the program, eight wins has to be the minimum benchmark in 2007. Anything less should have Al calling his old NFL buddies looking for a coordinator position next winter and son Mike trying to get back into the world of banking.
Speaking of next year, the conventional wisdom seems to be that Jameel Sewell will have at least one more year as the starting quarterback while highly touted recruit Peter Lalich redshirts a year to learn the system. I'm not so sure that that should be the case. Yes, Sewell has shown some flashes of solid potential this year. But he also seems to have trouble with reading coverages on everything but rather simple short passing plays. If Lalich shows that he can quickly learn the playbook, he should be given every opportunity to challenge Sewell for the starting job in 2007, not 2008.
Saturday, the offensive play calling was so atrociously predictable that it seemed as if the offensive coaching staff was just running through the motions, hoping next year would come that much quicker.
Memo to Mike Groh: that "esteemed" stretch running play for no gain or a loss of one yard is only useful when setting up something other than more stretch running plays. Elton Brown and D'Brickshaw Ferguson are no longer on the offensive line to get outside and make that play work occasionally.
Kudos, however, must be directed to the defense for making Saturday's game interesting for most of the first half. Thanks also have to be given to defensive ends Jeffrey Fitzgerald and Chris Long for making the parts of the season where Virginia's defense was on the field enjoyable to watch. Maybe if defensive coordinator Mike London also coached the offensive unit, Virginia would have been better off this season.
Al Groh may be just as good at getting opposing coaches fired as he is at keeping his own job. Three of the five teams that Virginia beat this season have since fired their head coaches (North Carolina, Miami, N.C. State). Overall, Virginia's five vanquished opponents finished with a record of 18-42. The Cavaliers' four ACC wins came over schools that combined for a 7-25 mark in conference play.
Virginia may well return to par next season, winning between seven and nine games. But for those waiting for the Cavaliers to reach a BCS bowl game under Groh, I would say this: Anything is possible, but don't hold your breath.
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