Some people might have spotted Virginia football coach Al Groh on the stage Saturday at Radio City Music Hall and thought nothing of it.

"I was the only college coach who was there," said Groh, who joined the family of first-round NFL Draft pick D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

Actually, there were two college head coaches there, Groh and Kansas State's new head coach, Ron Prince.

Prince was Ferguson's offensive-line coach for four years at Virginia.

"D'Brickashaw invited his high-school coach [Russ Cellan], his college coach and his college position coach," Groh said. "It's just another measure of D'Brickashaw. His appreciation speaks to his humility and how grounded he is."

Groh has been a college head coach for 11 seasons at Virginia and Wake Forest, and he was a college assistant for a decade before that. None of his players ever had invited him to the draft before.

"The thought of being there never crossed my mind till he invited me," Groh said.

It was not unfamiliar territory for Groh, who in 2000 served as head coach of the New York Jets, the same team that used the fourth pick to select Ferguson.

"It's almost become custom that the Jets fans are going to razz their pick," Groh said. "It seemed like he got a very positive response."

And the cheers didn't turn to boos when Groh took the stage.

"I was able to stay pretty anonymous," he said.

Ferguson's selection, the highest for a Virginia player since 1942, came 15 months after a meeting between Groh and Ferguson's parents after the 2004 season.

"The two players who've done the best job of taking all the information given them and making good decisions were Heath Miller and D'Brickashaw," Groh said. "I told Heath, 'You're welcome to stay, [but] I think you're ready to go, I think you're going to play well. I think you're ready to handle that lifestyle.' "

Miller, the nation's top tight end in 2004, was drafted in the first round by the Pittsburgh Steelers last year and now wears a Super Bowl ring.

Groh said the Ferguson family asked him to come to Freeport, N.Y., last year to discuss whether or not Ferguson should return to UVa for his senior year. Groh felt Ferguson who never was redshirted, was still a young player who needed to get bigger and stronger.

"He dramatically improved his game," Groh said. "He probably made himself $5 or $6 million by staying."

The decision that few people could understand this year, in hindsight, was Kai Parham's decision to pass up his final season of college eligibility. Parham, a first-team All-ACC linebacker, failed to crack 5.0 seconds for 40 yards at the NFL combine and went undrafted.

Groh did not advise Parham to go pro but said it would come off as sour grapes if he second-guessed the decision now. Parham ended up signing a free-agent contract with Dallas -- no coincidence, as it turns out. Cowboys head coach Bill Parcells and Groh were longtime NFL coaching associates.

"I didn't have to call [Parcells] after the draft," Groh said. "He routinely calls me before the draft and asks about our players."

Groh said he was pleased that all of his nine NFL-bound players were going to good situations. That included free agents, a number that grew to five when linebacker Bryan White signed with the Jets.

White, who turned heads when he ran a 4.69 40 at UVa's pro timing day, and Ferguson weren't the only UVa players to go to the Jets. Defensive end Brennan Schmidt, who like White has a background in the 3-4 defense favored by new Jets coach Eric Mangini, also signed as a free agent.