When I woke up Sunday morning aghast, recalling the 36-3 thrashing the Cavaliers had received at the hands of Florida State the night before, I started to reflect on the Virginia season to date.
I had jumped on the bandwagon, thinking the Cavs could actually go into Doak Campbell Stadium and beat the 'Noles, who had struggled against Syracuse.
It seemed as if the Syracuse game merely roused a sleeping giant, rather than expose its flaws. The way Florida State played, there were at most three teams across the country -- USC, Miami and Oklahoma -- who would have even had a chance of beating the 'Noles. As the deficit mounted in Tallahassee, disappointment ran rampant in Charlottesville. In the week leading up to the game, students had talked of a perfect season en route to a national title. Then, faster than Pete Gillen could call a timeout, the Seminoles burst Virginia's inflating bubble. On a national stage, the Cavaliers seemed to fall flat on their face.
But let's remember something here. No one expected Virginia to win that game at the beginning of the season. The Cavs are still 5-1, losing only on the road to a top-five team. Life could be worse. Look across the country. Clemson, picked 15th in the preseason poll, now sits at 2-4, with dim chances of even making a bowl game. Ohio State, 2002 national champion and preseason No. 9, is 3-3, and could very easily finish with five losses.
I, for one, optimistically foresaw a 9-2 season for Virginia, with losses coming against Florida State and Miami. And this is certainly still possible, if not likely, with the Cavs sitting right where everyone thought they would be in the standings at this point two months ago. So, what did we learn?
First, turnover-prone quarterback Chris Rix was holding this Florida State team back. The 'Noles are as talented as their title teams of the 90s, they just needed to be motivated.
Perhaps, the more important thing is what Virginia took away from the game. It was made clear that the Cavs aren't ready to compete for a national title now. But that doesn't mean they won't be able to soon. Remember, this is a program that has never finished a season ranked higher than 13th. From 1991 to 2000, Florida State did not finish one season lower than fifth.
Seminole coach Bobby Bowden has been bringing in top recruiting classes for decades. Groh has just three full ones. With that in mind, it is quite remarkable what he has done. A coach should be judged in his fifth year -- the first season for which he recruited the entire roster.
"Coach Bowden has been building his depth and recruiting to this particular system for 25 or 28 years," Groh said Monday. "It's like [Dallas coach Bill] Parcells says, 'If you ask me to cook the meal, then you ought to let me buy the groceries.' Well, they've gone to the grocery store 28 or 29 times. The pantry is pretty full. We've gone to the grocery store three or four times. I like the groceries, but there's still a few more places on the shelf."
By the way, Groh has proven himself as quite the shopper, almost fully stocking his 2005 cart with 22 high school seniors that form the nation's top recruiting class to date.
Groh has said several times that the goal was to be in the title hunt come Nov. 1. Well, if Virginia beats hapless Duke Saturday, it will control its own destiny to tie for the ACC title.
With the way Maryland is playing, the Cavaliers should be able to beat the Terps at home. That leaves the Miami game and road bouts against Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech, both of which are in very difficult venues.
Groh's teams characteristically finish strong, lending hope for a 2-1 finish. Assuming that, the Cavaliers would finish at 9-2, with a trip to either the Gator or Peach bowl likely.
Perhaps Virginia was, as the Seminole fans chanted, overrated. But road games in hostile territory are never easy tasks. Groh is building a championship-caliber program. This simply cannot happen overnight.
Three years ago, Virginia fans would have been thrilled to be ranked at all. Now, people react to a loss like the sky is falling. To them, I say wait until Groh has enough groceries to cook up a national championship meal.
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