Arabs in the traveling party, so therefore I think probably that the threat of our plane being hijacked is pretty remote". Both Groh and the president of the university, John T. Casteen III, apologized and recognized the inappropriateness of the remarks. Subsequent to the 2001 season, Groh was selected as the defensive head coach of the Gray team in the 64th Annual Blue–Gray Football Classic; Al Golden joined Groh on the Gray team's coaching staff. During Groh's second year as head coach, Virginia amassed a 9–5 record with a schedule ranked the 11th toughest in the nation by Jeff Sagarin of USA Today, and Groh was voted the ACC Coach of the Year. The 2006 Cavaliers were a young team with several new assistant coaches. The team experienced some growing pains, and a few games into the season, freshman Jameel Sewell earned the starting quarterback position, leading Virginia to a 5–7 season record. No Cavalier player made first team All-ACC team for the first time in 20 years. While Groh acknowledged that the year would be a rebuilding experience and a slow start upset some fans, Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage stated that, "Al will be our head coach" through at least the 2007 season. Littlepage, however, later refused to exercise an option to extend Groh's contract by one year stating that Virginia's expectations were higher than 5–7. Unlike past seasons, Groh only played one true freshman in 2006, which preserved the redshirt of true freshman. In the 2007 Virginia Cavaliers preseason, Groh was listed among the five worst coaches in college football by Sports Illustrated columnist Stewart Mandel. However, after Groh's 2007 Cavaliers lost their first game at Wyoming, they won their next seven games and started 4–0 in the ACC. After Virginia won their ninth game of 2007, Stewart Mandel stated "there's no question he's gotten every ounce out of that team", and revisited his preseason column by stating "I ended up going with Groh, and obviously he's the one who's most proven it wrong". The team finished the regular season 9–3 overall and 6–2 in the ACC, leading to the Cavaliers' fifth bowl game in the past six seasons. Subsequent to the regular season, Groh was voted the 2007 ACC Coach of the Year by the ACC Media Association. After leading the 2008 Virginia Cavaliers to a 1–3 start, including a 31–3 loss to a Duke team