Wake's Grobe, 2 ex-Cavs aides cited as Groh successor

By Doug Doughty

Hampton High football coach Mike Smith was hardly shy about broadcasting who he supports as the next head football coach at Virginia.

He called Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage on Monday to back Wake Forest head coach Jim Grobe and Richmond head coach Mike London as possible successors for Al Groh, fired Sunday after nine years as the Cavaliers' head coach.

"I was calling on behalf of the Virginia High School Coaches' Association," Smith said, adding that there had been no vote of any kind by the group. "I'm the executive director. I make executive decisions, just like Al Groh."

Suggesting London, a former Virginia assistant who took Richmond to the Football Championship Subdivision title in his first year last season, is hardly surprising. He gets mentioned in virtually every conversation about a potential Groh successor.

Grobe, though, is a less obvious name, and he's seen as a less viable candidate because of the $2 million buyout he would have to pay for breaking a 10-year contract extension he signed with Wake in 2007.

"They've got plenty of money," said Smith, aware of a $4.33 million settlement the Cavaliers made with Groh. "They could go halvsies with him. There isn't anybody I know who doesn't hold Jim Grobe in the highest esteem."

Grobe played at Virginia from 1973-74 and has numerous in-state connections.

At this point, though, speculation about names is just that. If U.Va. has a list of names, no one is talking about it.

Sonny Randle, who coached Grobe at Virginia and later hired Grobe at Marshall, said a possible hang-up for anyone considering the job would be the upcoming retirement of U.Va. president John Casteen. Randle, who lives in Staunton and does radio commentary, thinks many coaches would be wary of taking over a program where the identity of the president is unknown.

"Jim Grobe would be a great, great hire for them," Randle said. "He would be the answer. I don't think there's any question about that.... (Fellow analyst) Doc Walker said, 'Nobody in the league can touch him.' "

Randle has said on numerous occasions, however, that he doesn't think Virginia can get Grobe, 57.

Most speculation has centered on London, 49, and 40-year-old Temple University head coach Al Golden, primarily because of their U.Va. ties. Both were on Groh's original U.Va. staff in 2001, Golden as defensive coordinator and London as recruiting coordinator.

London left following the 2004 season to become the Houston Texans' defensive-line coach, only to return 15 months later after the dismissal of the Texans' staff. Golden took the Temple job after the 2005 season and has put together a 19-29 record. However, the Owls won nine games in a row this year after an 0-2 start and are bowl-eligible at 9-3.

Shawn Moore, the ACC Player of the Year for Virginia in 1990, said he would like Virginia to take a look at one of his former teammates, 41-year-old Derek Dooley, the head coach and athletic director at Louisiana Tech.

Dooley, who worked with Nick Saban at LSU and with the Miami Dolphins, took over a Louisiana Tech team that went 3-10 in 2006 and had the Bulldogs in the Independence Bowl two years later. However, Louisiana Tech is 3-8 this season.

Moore would be happy with London, as well.

"He'd be like Jim Tressell," said Moore, referring to Ohio State's coach, who previously had worked at Division I-AA Youngstown State.

The advantage that London and Golden have is that they have recruited in Virginia. Regaining credibility in in-state recruiting is one of the major challenges facing U.Va.'s new coach.

"Every year, if you look at northern Virginia and the Tidewater area, we have some of the top kids in the country playing right here in the state," Moore said. "And if those kids aren't considering Virginia or not taking visits to Virginia, that's got to be corrected."