It’s the new charming Al Groh (until Virginia week)
It turns out new Tech assistant Al Groh has a sense of humor. (Johnny Crawford/AJC)
Al Groh walked into his first formal meeting with the media at Georgia Tech Friday, wearing a particularly large ring on his right hand: a Super Bowl ring from his days with the New York Giants.
Was this standard accessorizing for him?
“No,” he said “Not very often. I usually just wear it for other people’s entertainment.”
Press conferences?
“No. Recruiting.”
This ring was from Groh's second Super Bowl with the New York Giants.
Full disclosure here: Groh, while long regarded as a top defensive coach, never has had a reputation of being a charmer with the media. But I figure that working for Bill Parcells all of those years is bound to make anybody miserable.
But Groh seemed at ease Friday when discussing his new role as Georgia Tech’s defensive coordinator, and even cracked a few jokes. When asked about the possible difficulty of going from being a head coach at Virginia to only an assistant again, he said: “You mean, am I going to have to let go of being responsible for players going to class, coming to the Monday press conference, talking to you all after games, meeting with the administrators, justifying our GPA – am I going to miss all of that? Yeah. I don’t know how I can do without it.”
Thank you. Try the veal.
It certainly has been stated enough times in this corner before: Paul Johnson made a terrific hire in Groh. For as much as Groh fizzled as a head coach at Virginia (8-16, including 5-11 in the ACC, in the last two seasons), he long has been regarded as one of the finest defensive coaches in football. But it’s clear there is some lingering bitterness remaining from his exit in Charlottesville and he’s greatly looking forward to the Tech-Virginia game next season. Here’s a few comments that stood out to me from the news conference:
♦ On still being bothered by how things ended at Virginia: “Sure. At one time we had some real good teams, and a lot of people contributed to that. So we were disappointed that our teams weren’t as good at the end. I think I understand the reasons why. But it doesn’t make any difference now . It is what it is. It’s all in the past and we’re looking forward.”
♦ On next year’s Virginia game: “It would be disingenuous to say that it’s not a different type of game. But if I was overly sentimental coaching against teams that I was formerly associated with, then I’d be coaching with tears in my eyes every week. … I hope there’s a lot of people [in Virginia] who feel we did a pretty good job. But one of the things inside of [coaches] is the awareness that you have to prove yourself every week and every year.”
♦ On his playing days at Virginia: “I didn’t have any talent. So all I could be was tough.”
♦ On adjusting back to being a head coach (seriously): “For the last 10 years, pretty much everything that we’ve done is what I wanted ti do. That’s not my role any more. I’m not the head coach, I’m not trying to be the head coiach, I don’t want to be the head coach. Paul Johnson has one of the best records percentage wise in the history of college coaching. He doesn’t need much help from me. It’s my role to adjust to how things are done around here. It’s my job to make the transition seamless, not have other people adjust to me.”
Our Doug Roberson will be posting a story later, and he’ll get more into the aspects of the Jackets’ switch to the 3-4 defense. I just wanted to give you a feel for Groh’s public debut. Early impressions: Positive.
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201 comments Add your comment
Senior Citizen Discount
January 22nd, 2010
7:46 pm
Also… how does Saban get so much credit for his stout defense when he is head coach @ Bama but Groh doesn’t get the blame for his porous defense @ Virginia?
Senior Citizen Discount
January 22nd, 2010
7:47 pm
Hey Supersize, are you comparing Monte to Al? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Senior Citizen Discount
January 22nd, 2010
7:49 pm
Hey Supersize, are you comparing the ACC to the SEC? BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
7:51 pm
yeah, Discount, I AM comparing Al to Monte, and you will learn soon enough just why. As far as comparing the ACC to the SEC, so what if the SEC has two, possibly three excellent teams; all the rest are middle of the road, at best, and the (according to you) inferior ACC has won more games against those middle-of-the road SEC teams than vice versa over the past couple of years, including the.split between Tech and UGAG.
Train that terrorist, techie
January 22nd, 2010
7:51 pm
MWC > ACC
Senior Citizen Discount
January 22nd, 2010
8:01 pm
Monte Kiffin is by far a better defensive mind than Groh. Heck, even fans of other teams in your conference are happy to see Groh land inside the ACC. Stop dropping the urine colored Kool-Aid if you think that the Tech defense will be any better when you lost your two best D players.
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
8:04 pm
Discount, you want to see what the rest of the country thinks of Al versus Grantham? Check out the following link, posted earlier by Tron.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/fp/flashPollResultsState?sportIndex=ncf&pollId=84764
The only state in the entire union who thinks that UGAG got the better DC is Georgia. The rest of the country agrees with Tech fans that UGAG is totally irrelevant.
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
8:07 pm
Discount, I bet the majority of you mutts had never even heard of Grantham before three weeks ago. Hell, on the day when Groh was officially announced, one of your stupid posters called Groh’s 3-4 defensive scheme a “fluke defense.” I wonder what that jerk had to say later that same day when Grantham was announced, and it was revealed that he too would be installing a 3-4 defense. That just proved to me how ignorant most of you mutts really are.
DDT
January 22nd, 2010
8:46 pm
Supersize that order, mutt, in year 2 Mark Richt had his 1st SEC Championship, WON a BCS bowl, and finished #3 in the nation. Now tell us again what Paul Johnson did in his year 2. Dumbazz!
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
8:51 pm
And what has Richt done since then, DDT? Not a whole helluva lot now, has he, at least not in the past 2 years. I have no doubts whatsoever, that Tech under Johnson will continue to improve, while UGAG under Richt will become more and more irrelevant. And thanks for the infantile name-calling (i.e., “Dumbazz”); you just corroborated everyone’s opinions of you mutt fans.
Get back to your cubicle Supersize that order mutt
January 22nd, 2010
8:52 pm
Don’t you have some CADS drawings to catch up on Supersize? Are you ever going to earn that 12.50 and hour your boss wastes on your sorry butt.
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
8:52 pm
cubicle, I am very comfortably retired, thank you very much. Maybe after 40 or 50 years serving up french fries, you will be able to say the same.
DDT
January 22nd, 2010
8:58 pm
Just won another SEC title, played for another, WON another BCS bowl and played in 1 more. Finished in the top ten 6 times. That’s all Supersize. Now tell us again what Paul has done other than get his azz beat in 2 bowls 63-17 with his offense scoring a grand total of 10 points and going 1-2 against bowl eligible SEC teams. So who would you say has accomplished more moron?
todd grantham
January 22nd, 2010
8:58 pm
jeff, looks like al is doing the “comb over” to cover up a bald spot. wonder if that will apply to his defenses. heh heh
DDT
January 22nd, 2010
9:02 pm
Oh, and let’s not forget that even Richt’s 2008 team finsihed #10 in the AP final poll. And you Tech fans seem so proud of that #13 finish after going 1-2 in your last 3 games. GT’s 15 minutes of fame is up and you guys know it. You’re Tech. Success is always fleeting.
DDT
January 22nd, 2010
9:05 pm
MY bad…it was #10 in the Coaches poll. You know. Those guys that get paid to know football. Maybe one day GT will sniff a top 10 finish. Unfortunately for GT though that season’s end choke thing will always get in the way.
Kay
January 22nd, 2010
9:07 pm
For good, interesting article on Groh go to: http://isportsweb.com.
Get back to your cubicle Supersize that order mutt
January 22nd, 2010
9:11 pm
Yeah right Supersize, and I’m the president. Do something productive and maybe one day you’ll get to that 15.00 per hr. plateau.
Hired from the Scrap Heap
January 22nd, 2010
9:14 pm
Thanks Tech for giving me a second chance of screwing up another ACC program. I’m glad you were impressed with my 59-53 record while @ UVA. I’m glad you overlooked my embarrassing loses to William AND Mary, Duke, Southern Miss, UConn, Wyoming, Western Michigan, East Carolina, Colorado State. Yet at the same time I was 6-3 against Tech. Does that say less about me or my new employer???
Jack Nicholson
January 22nd, 2010
9:17 pm
Old DDT hit Supersize that order, mutt with what hurts the most. Facts and the truth. When faced with facts and truth old Paul doesn’t look quite so great now does he. 63-17 in 2 bowls and that sorry record against bowl eligible out of conference teams says it all. Big fish in a minnow pond but just chum outside the kiddie pool.
Jack Nicholson
January 22nd, 2010
9:18 pm
YOU CAN”T HANDLE THE TRUTH, can you Supersize that order, mutt.
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
9:29 pm
All I can say, mutts, is wait and see who’s still talking after CPJ has been at Tech for 10 years. Until then, none of your rantings mean a thing, nor, to be fair, do mine. Although I HATE LIKE HELL that we blew it against UGAG this year, the fact is, regardless of end-of-season rankings, I guarantee you that Tech fans are far happier after the past two years than are any of you mutts. And that’s the truth that you guys can’t handle. If you weren’t so insecure about the state of things, you wouldn’t be on a Tech blog posting crap. And furthermore, cubicle, why would I lie about being retired. I am a senior citizen just like Groh, and I’m proud of it. Maybe one day you will be there too, if you don’t drink yourself to death first or die from disappointment over your delusions.
John 8:32
January 22nd, 2010
9:30 pm
Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. Or in the case of Tech fans make you mad.
Jack Nicholson
January 22nd, 2010
9:32 pm
Of course you are happier Supersize that order, mutt. The bar is a lot lower at Tech. Finishing #13 in the country is like getting to the top of Mt. Everest for you ACC posers.
Dan Gates
January 22nd, 2010
9:34 pm
I’ve seen you on plenty of the UGA blogs Supersize, so don’t even go there.
.
January 22nd, 2010
9:37 pm
Age hasn’t got sh!$ to do with it…its what you got to sell that makes the deal and Groh knows what he’s selling…amen. Forget the old crap!
RCH
January 22nd, 2010
9:40 pm
Based on your miserable football history I would say the evidence points to you GT fans as being the delusional ones here. You can’t keep a coach. You can’t win consistently and you can’t beat your in state rivals more than about 10% of the time of late, but you are all that? I would say the above facts point to you being the delusional one Supersize. The facts and the history don’t work to your advantage.
GT Fan
January 22nd, 2010
9:41 pm
At least at GT winning a cross State non conf. game is not our # 1 goal, like it is at UGA. What the hell would you have had to be proud of other wise?
John 8:32
January 22nd, 2010
9:45 pm
If you think Paul Johnson will be at Tech 10 years you are certainly delusional. Of course if he continues getting his butt handed to him in bowls and by occ opponents nobody else will want him. And who’s to say after he keeps getting beat by UGA that you nats won’t fire him and move on to your next victim. That’s what GT does.
Supersize this, beayotch
January 22nd, 2010
9:48 pm
Which program gave out rings for beating their in-state rival?
John 8:32
January 22nd, 2010
9:49 pm
Tell us just what Tech has to be proud of GT Fan. Your annual season’s end choke is still your curse. Like Jack said above, when a fan base crows about a #13 ranking after the said choke against UGA and another bowl loss, obviously your team hasn’t done much for a long long time. It must really suck to be a Tech fan and know it’s always just 15 minutes of sunshine before eternal winter sets back in. My condolences.
2 cokes, 2 hot dogs, 2 tix
January 22nd, 2010
9:51 pm
and still can’t sell out your joke of a stadium
RCH
January 22nd, 2010
9:52 pm
When you nerds can finish the drill come back and talk smack. Until then you just sound stupid. The joke by the coke will always choke and you miserable techmites know it that as sure as the sun rises in the east.
Jerry M
January 22nd, 2010
9:54 pm
I watched the Orange Bowl at Rocco’s Pub in Marietta and after about 10 minutes every Tech fan in the place knew they were going to lose. It’s like GT fans expect to ultimately fail when it counts the most. The most common sentiment in the pub was SOS.
The Sad Truth
January 22nd, 2010
9:58 pm
is that there were more people at Rocco’s Pub than actually at the orange bowl.
Supersize that order, mutt
January 22nd, 2010
10:10 pm
Dan Gates, you have NEVER seen me on a UGAG blog. I have absolutely no interest in anything that is said there. I know there are a few Tech fans who post there, but I AM NOT ONE OF THEM. As far as the rest of you guys go, I’m watching Spartacus now, so I won’t bother to take the time to respond to any of you. But suffice it to say, in the history of the two programs, Tech has a far more illustrious past than does UGAG. That, unfortunately, has not been the case recently, but if you really want to live in the past, then go back and look. Until Dodd retired, the Jackets pretty much owned UGAG and, other than Alabama, the other southern schools as well. And by the way, make up your minds—is CPJ so bad that he will be fired after 3 or 4 years (HA!!!) or so good that other schools will want him? You jerks talk out of both sides of your mouths. And do you want to tell me which other schools have ever come knocking on Richt’s door hoping to get him from UGAG? I can answer that one for you—-NONE!!!!!
Leroy
January 22nd, 2010
10:11 pm
You will probably hear a lot of that’s your fu__ing fault from Coach Johnson, and the most will be directed at his new DC, Al Groh….Look for those 2 to clash…It will be hysterical!!!
Delbert D.
January 22nd, 2010
10:14 pm
Why all this teeth-gnashing about “Richt has 2 SEC titles” “Johnson has 1 ACC title” “Tech is 1-9 against Georgia in the last 10 years” blah-blah-blah. The only thing pertinent to Tech-Georgia *now* is the “common era” concept. Johnson has been at Tech for the last 2 years. Only those two years are relevant to Richt vs. Johnson. It’s 1 – 1, with Georgia having the current honors.
For goodness sake, keep Dodd and Butts in their graves, and don’t drag Gailey, Donnan, Lewis and Goff into any intelligent discussion of Georgia vs. Tech in current football terms. History has been writ, and let it remain mementos to be cherished or despised, but don’t confuse it with the here and now.
Naval Academy Grad
January 22nd, 2010
10:15 pm
When PJ first left Navy it was disappointing. Not now. We are actually a better football team under Coach N. Coach N has installed a very effective short and medium passing attack that he can run from the shotgun or a mainstream spread option. PJ would never have done that. And he never will at Tech. After 2 years of Coach N most Navy fans and grads are glad PJ is gone. PJ will win some at Tech but will eventually hit the wall. PJ will never modify that offense to compete with good out of conference teams. He’s too stubborn. To do what Coach N did would in PJ’s mind constitute failure and would be an admission that he can’t win it all the way he does it now. Paul’s a good coach but his ego is his worst enemy and you Tech fans will see that eventually. And when you start complaining about it he will leave you.
wahoomark
January 22nd, 2010
10:23 pm
groh talks a good game, and he may do a decent job as your defensive coordinator, but the guy is a arrogant jerk, who talks a bunch of crap, if u like bend but dont break defenses, giving up lots of yards, then u will like groh as your dc, he ruined what george welsh had built at uva. good riddance to him
Wha?
January 22nd, 2010
10:27 pm
Naval Academy Grad, you’re a Dawg poser. I’ve never heard anything but positives from Navy fans about CPJ, so please cut the bull.
Cleveland Browns fan
January 22nd, 2010
10:28 pm
Yeah, well if you ask me, Georgia got sold a bill of goods on that Grantham guy. He was with Crennel for one year, and he was so bad they got rid of him fast enough to make your head swim.
George R.
January 22nd, 2010
10:32 pm
Delbert D. the point of all that was that all you GT fans were crowing look what Paul has done in just his second year”. Compare Richt’s second year to PJ’s and there is no comparison. PJ has really done nothing until he can stop the traditional choke at the end of every GT season. Maybe you Tech fans should drop all the Johnson is God lunacy until he actually does something outside the ACC. Until then it’s still same old Tech, different coach.
Naval Academy Grad
January 22nd, 2010
10:44 pm
I said nothing bad about PJ Wha. Everyone that knows coach knows he has that ego and is going to live or die by his offense just the way it is now. He won’t change it. I just said we are more than happy with Coach N. Now that PJ is gone we have someone to compare him to. I can state with truthfulness that while all of us from the Academy respect PJ for what he did at the Academy nobody is going to start a petition to get him back. That’s all I’m saying. Coach N is our guy now.
Dawg76
January 22nd, 2010
10:49 pm
Wha you dumbazz, All the man did was point out the obvious. Navy is better and more diverse. And just because most things said about PJ are positive it doesn’t mean they want him back now. But if you insist on your man love for Paul that’s your business. To each his own.
Jack Nicholson
January 22nd, 2010
10:50 pm
I’ll bet that “bill of goods” stuffs that TO up your little techmite butts next November Cleveland Browns fan.
Jack Nicholson
January 22nd, 2010
10:53 pm
wahoomark being an arrogant jerk makes Groh a perfect fit at GT.
AARP
January 22nd, 2010
11:16 pm
That old guy out at Iowa that stuffed that triple option offense up Paul Johnson’s butt proved that age doesn’t matter.
Wha?
January 22nd, 2010
11:17 pm
The offense is the last problem we’ve had, you ineducably mentally retarded Dawgs. You SEC experts keep on with the ‘Triple Option won’t work, triple option won’t work’ crap. We scored 56, 49, 42 and 39 this year, oh, and 45 on you ‘tards last year. The offense isn’t what needs work. It’s the defense that gave up 31, 44, 31, 34 and 42 in the games with the aforementioned offensive results. I don’t know how good Groh will be, but anything’s better than Wommack. Losing two bowl games is just that . . . two games. The Iowa game had nothing to do with the ‘time to prepare’ myth. It had to do with a 260 lb. converted TE trying to block that beast Clayborn. CPJ has already recruited better OL than Gailey ever did. 9-4 and 11-3 vs. 10-3 and 8-5. Even you cow college idiots can do the math. We’re improving and you’re getting worse.
Wha?
January 22nd, 2010
11:22 pm
Pro-style offenses get it stuffed up theirs too sometimes. Just like that pile of manure Okie St defense that regularly gives up 40+ in the Big 12, but somehow held the mighty Dawgs and all their 5 star stud recruits to 10 points.