Tech-U.Va.: The best of times, the worst of times

What a lousy league" has been the mantra this season regarding ACC football.

But if the ACC plays crummy football, what does that say about other major college football conferences?

Nothing good.

The ACC has five teams in the top 25 of the BCS standings, more than any other conference.

So the Virginia Tech at Virginia game Saturday is a contest between two teams from one of the best football conferences in the country.

Insert laugh track here.

Virginia Tech-Virginia captures much of the good and bad of college football.

The elephant in the room is that Virginia coach Al Groh probably will be fired next week.

The Cavaliers will have to absorb about $4 million to do so.

But the record from the past two seasons, 5-7 in 2008 and 3-8 so far in 2009, the dramatic dropoff in attendance -- 41,000 in a 65,000-seat stadium -- and the feeling that the program is in decline, make the money seem worthwhile to Cavalier fans to start anew. "It's not really about me," Groh said. "It's about the team and the players."

Groh deserves credit for his composure this week. He has made a successful effort to talk about his players instead of his situation.

Monday, he joked that since the Cavaliers can't surprise the Hokies by putting Vic Hall at quarterback this year, a trade had been made that will bring Brett Favre to the Cavaliers.

That got a laugh from the media. It does nothing to appease Virginia fans.

Dismissing Groh is not a laughing matter.

If Groh goes, his severance, combined with the $2.1 million buyout to men's basketball coach Dave Leitao last year, means Virginia will pay people almost as much to go away as it will pay some to stay.

It's difficult to believe this type of excess is what Mr. Jefferson had in mind when he laid out the grounds for the university.

Jefferson would have enjoyed the atmosphere around Saturday's game, though.

Few sporting events are as enjoyable as a major college football game, surrounded by tailgaters who turn stadiums into ear-shattering venues with their passion.

Among those present Saturday will be Dewey McClain, a scout for the Chick-fil-A Bowl.

Virginia Tech is a candidate for that New Year's Eve game in Atlanta.

The ACC will send teams to seven bowls this year, three more prestigious than the others.

The ACC champion, either Georgia Tech or Clemson this season, goes to the Orange Bowl.

If Clemson loses to Georgia Tech, will the Tigers be more attractive to the Chick-Fil-A Bowl than the Hokies?

If the Hokies are nudged out of the Atlanta game, will they go to the Gator Bowl? Or will that berth belong to North Carolina?

If Virginia Tech is bypassed for the these games, it suddenly is looking at the prospects of the Champs Sports Bowl, the Music City Bowl or the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Merit has little to do with who goes to what bowl. This can get embarrassing.

Lacking a playoff system, there at least should be some type of defined system for bowl selection.

Only one thing is certain about all this bowl talk. The Cavaliers would like to have such problems.

It will be a while before they do.

Contact Paul Woody at (804) 649-6444 or . Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/World_of_Woody