ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, April 19, 1996 TAG: 9604190015
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
VIRGINIA QUARTERBACK Mike Groh relies on his dad, Al, an NFL assistant coach, for advice as the NFL draft approaches.
It isn't every National Football League hopeful who can pick up the phone and find out exactly where he stands on a particular team's draft list.
That's one of the advantages Mike Groh enjoys as the son of an NFL assistant.
``Of course, that's only one team,'' said Groh, whose father, Al, is defensive coordinator of the New England Patriots. ``Still, he's got some information he can pass along.''
Groh said he is rated among the top 10 quarterbacks on the Patriots' list, although draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. rated him 17th in his NFL Draft Report.
``That was early,'' Groh said. ``I understand he's moved me up to the top eight or nine.''
That's a quantum leap, especially considering where Groh was two years ago, fighting for the backup quarterback job at Virginia.
``It's only been the past few years that I've thought about playing in the NFL,'' said Groh, whose father was the head coach at Wake Forest from 1981-86.
``Growing up, I always wanted to play in college, get a scholarship, start for my college team and play in the stadiums where I had been going to games.''
Groh did not become a full-time starter at Virginia until midway through his redshirt junior year, but finished third in career passing yardage for the Cavaliers. He threw for a school-record 2,510 yards and 15 touchdowns this past season.
Groh had eight touchdown passes of more than 50 yards, including an 82-yard bomb to Pete Allen in the Peach Bowl, despite the perception he does not have a strong arm.
``Thanks to Coach [George] Welsh, I've always been labeled as a guy who couldn't throw long,'' Groh said. ``Once something like that gets in print, it tends to get passed on.
``That's one of the things people question about me, but once I get in there on a team and throw every day, I think they'll be a little surprised.''
Groh sounds like a man who expects to play in the NFL, although he isn't sure he will be drafted.
``You tend to see quarterbacks drafted in the first round,'' Groh said. ``Those are the guys who have the greatest chance to play [the following] year. If you're not drafted in the first round, teams are going to push you back farther and farther.
``They're going to try and get you as late as they can, and hopefully as a free agent, so they can pick somebody with a better opportunity to play that season. The third quarterback probably isn't going to play unless there is an emergency.
``That's why there are a lot more free-agent quarterbacks in the league than there are, say, wide receivers. You will have some quarterbacks drafted early, and then there will be a gap until as late as the fifth, sixth or seventh round.''
Groh has watched the draft in past years, ``but I don't know how much I'll watch this year,'' he said. ``I may wash my car. There's no point in sitting in front of the TV and making myself miserable.''
``I don't know if it's something that will make a difference in the long run. It would be nice to say I was drafted, but my chances of making the league as a free agent are equally good as they would be if I were drafted.
``If I'm a free agent, I'm not going to sign with a team that's drafted a quarterback.''
Groh, whose age (24) is seen as a benefit by some teams and a detriment by others, has no inkling what teams are most likely to draft him. He knows one place he probably won't go - New England.
``I don't think that's a scenario that's going to play out,'' he said. ``They already have four quarterbacks; plus, the fact that my father is on the staff would tend to eliminate me.''
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: DON PETERSEN/Staff Quarterback Mike Groh did not becomeby CNBa full-time starter until midway through his redshirt junior year,
but finished third in career passing yardage at Virginia.