1986 where his record was 26–40. NFL In 1987, Groh made his NFL debut as the special teams and tight ends coach of the Atlanta Falcons. After a brief return to the college ranks in 1988 as the offensive coordinator for South Carolina, Groh joined the New York Giants coaching staff. He served as the Giants' linebackers coach from 1989 to 1990 and as defensive coordinator in 1991. Groh's expertise in linebackers led to Bill Belichick hiring him as an assistant with the Cleveland Browns in 1992. Groh then reunited with Parcells in New England from 1993 to 1996 as the defensive coordinator, following him to the New York Jets as the linebacker coach from 1997 through 1999. Groh served as head coach of the New York Jets for the 2000 season, taking over after the intended successor to Bill Parcells in Bill Belichick quickly resigned. The Jets won five of their first six games, which included the "Monday Night Miracle", a 40–37 victory where the Jets scored thirty points in the 4th quarter. However, the Jets lost three straight games to close out the season in which they needed just one victory to reach the playoffs. He resigned after the year to pursue the job at his alma mater at the University of Virginia. Virginia Cavaliers Groh was named the head coach of the Virginia Cavaliers football team on December 30, 2000, succeeding George Welsh, who retired as the winningest coach in school and Atlantic Coast Conference history. At Virginia, Groh became known for his implementing a 3-4 defense, rare for college football; and for maintaining his NFL mentality. After a 5–7 record in 2001, Groh led Virginia to four consecutive winning seasons and three bowl victories before another 5–7 campaign in 2006. He was named the ACC Coach of the Year in 2002 and 2007. Groh's first year as Virginia's head coach contained struggles both on and off the field. The 2001 Cavalier team posted a 5–7 record, and Groh, a native of New York City and Long Island, was involved in controversy surrounding comments regarding the September 11, 2001 attacks in his hometown. In response to a reporter's question about whether he and his team should be afraid to fly their charter plane to Clemson soon thereafter, Groh stated "I'm not saying this to make light of it by any means, but I'm not planning on having