UVa coach Groh may not get another year on contract

Al Groh had to know it was coming.

It was a question that embattled coaches throughout the country have faced annually.

Yet, the Cavaliers’ nine-year coach ran from the topic of his job security with the season’s final game on the horizon Saturday with Virginia Tech.

“It’s really not about me,” Groh said. “It’s about the team and it’s about the players. You know, that’s all I’m really thinking about, so I don’t really have any thoughts on it.”

It will be about Groh, however, Saturday evening after the Cavaliers (3-8, 2-5 ACC) host the Hokies (8-3, 5-2) at Scott Stadium.

That is when athletic director Craig Littlepage will determine if an additional year will be added to Groh’s contract, which extends through the 2012 season. It almost certainly will not be added, as was the case last year after a 5-7 campaign.

It is widely expected that Littlepage’s season-end review of the program, one that he claimed would determine Groh’s fate, will lead to walking papers and a hefty buyout for Groh, regardless of the outcome of the in-state showdown.

For now, Virginia’s players remain committed to their coach. But they know, of course, that their opinion matters very little in the end.

“We as players choose not to get involved in that,” UVa outside linebacker Aaron Clark said. “Coach is a grown man. He is very smart. He is schooled in this world of football and jobs and coaching and everything, so whatever may happen, he’ll be successful in whatever he does.

“He’s a great guy and all we can do is play our hearts out for him. That’s what we try to do every week, so we’ll try to do that again Saturday.”

A loss would drop Groh’s record to 36-36 in league games in his UVa tenure. His overall record at Virginia is currently 59-52. He is 1-7 against Virginia Tech.

A passing grade

It was not a number that Jameel Sewell placed a great importance in surpassing.

Yet lost in the shuffle in a 13-point loss at Clemson, Virginia’s starting quarterback climbed the program’s passing charts.

Sewell, heading into his final game Saturday, now stands third all-time in passing yardage with 5,246 yards, having surpassed Scott Gardner and Aaron Brooks with a 160-yard passing performance against the Tigers.

“It only matters if we win or lose,” Sewell said after the Cavaliers dropped to 3-8. “I’m sure that will be nice to look back on down the road, but I am only focused about what helps this team most.”

Groh was also in the dark on Sewell’s latest accomplishment, a feat he was informed of on Monday during his final pre-game press conference of the season.

“Well, it says how important his production has been to our team over the years that he’s been our quarterback,” the coach said.

Sewell’s yardage total came in odd fashion — he was suspended from school during the 2008 season, losing a year of eligibility in the process. With another full season, he would have had the potential to leave school in better standing in passing yardage than the category’s leader, current Houston Texans starter Matt Schaub (7,502 yards).

“I hadn’t thought about it before, but yeah, clearly, those not only would have been yards that would have went on Jameel’s records,” Groh said, “but those would have been yards that would have moved the ball up and down the field for our team.”

Sewell also stands fourth in program history in total offense and would pass Gardner with 272 yards on Saturday.

Extra points

Virginia Tech is a 14-point favorite for Saturday’s game. … Virginia right tackle Will Barker will make his 49th career start against the Hokies, which ties the Pennsylvania native for second-most starts in program history with Clint Sintim, D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Will Brice. … The Cavaliers have lost the time of possession battle in the each of their past five games. … Vic Hall has recorded a touchdown in four different ways in his career — by returning an interception, catching a pass, throwing a pass and on the ground. He would have a score via punt return, but penalties called back would-be touchdowns at Middle Tennessee State in 2007 and earlier this season against Boston College.