Littlepage: Groh will be back next year

CHARLOTTESVILLE — University of Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage was emphatic last night when asked about the 2009 football season.

“Al Groh will be our head coach,” Littlepage said in an exchange of e-mails with the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

That will be the case, Littlepage confirmed, even if UVa loses its final two regular-season games to finish with a losing record for the second time in three years.

Groh “and his staff have done a good job and our team has responded well,” Littlepage said. “We have great wins against ranked teams and we’re in the mix for divisional and conference championships.”

After losing three of its first four games this season, Virginia won four straight to take over first place in the ACC’s Coastal Division. UVa’s victims during that streak — Maryland, East Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia Tech — all have been nationally ranked at some point this season.

Since then, however, the Cavaliers have dropped two in a row to fall to fifth in the Coastal.

This is Groh’s eighth season as coach at his alma mater. His record with the Cavaliers is 56-42 overall and 34-28 in ACC games. He’s twice been named ACC coach of the year, most recently in 2007. After finishing 5-7 in 2006, Virginia went 9-4 last season.

Groh’s contract runs through the 2011 season. It would cost UVa more than $5 million to dismiss Groh, 64, after this season.

Virginia (3-3, 5-5), off this weekend, hosts ACC rival Clemson (2-4, 4-5) at Scott Stadium on Nov. 22. UVa closes the regular season against Virginia Tech (3-2, 6-3) at Lane Stadium on Nov. 29.

As the Cavaliers’ coach, Groh has a 1-6 record against the Hokies, and the losses often have been one-sided.