By Zach Berman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, September 18, 2008 10:32 PM

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- An ice storm bombarded Rocky Mount, N.C. in 2005, and Virginia Tech Coach Frank Beamer and two Hokies assistant coaches gambled their safety on the driving ability of Richard Virgil, father of eventual Hokies cornerback Stephan Virgil.

Along North Carolina Route 97, school buses and cars pulled to the side of the road. Richard Virgil drove his sports utility vehicle. For a moment on the 11-mile ride from Rocky Mount High School to the local airport during Stephan's senior year of high school, Richard lost control. Beamer, sitting in the passenger seat in the front of the car, initially revealed a worried look.

"Wow," Beamer said as Richard recovered. "You can really drive this truck, can't you?"

The Hokies' coaching staff was aware of the type of player Stephan Virgil could become, and would not allow an ice storm to prevent his recruitment.

"We can't worry about that," said associate head coach Billy Hite, who sat in the back seat on the ride to the airport. "That kid's a hell of a football player. We knew that."

Now a junior, Stephan Virgil starts for Virginia Tech. In the season-opening loss to East Carolina, Virgil stood out for the Hokies with a 30-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown, a returned point-after attempt for two points, and six tackles.

The game occurred in Charlotte, on the other side of North Carolina from Rocky Mount. On Saturday, Virgil and the Hokies again play in his native state when they visit North Carolina.

When Richard Virgil drove the coaches to the airport, Stephan vacillated between playing for Beamer at Virginia Tech or attending UNC. He cited the coach's devotion to continue the recruiting trip during the ice storm as an indication of their interest and a signal of their loyalty if he came to Blacksburg.

He also wondered about the future of then-North Carolina coach John Bunting, who spent his last few seasons in Chapel Hill under scrutiny. Virgil's instincts were correct; Bunting was replaced following the 2006 season with Butch Davis, formerly the head coach of the NFL's Cleveland Browns and the University of Miami. Davis is known as one of college football's top recruiters. He already reversed the fortunes of UNC to the point that Saturday's winner will be viewed as the early favorite for the Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal division.

Had Davis coached the Tar Heels during Virgil's recruitment, Virgil's decision would have become more complicated.

"It would have made my decision a little tougher if they were where Virginia Tech was," Virgil said. "I based my decision on where the program was going and where the coaches were going."

Virgil knew Beamer likely was not going anywhere. The closest Beamer came to leaving Blacksburg was 2000, when North Carolina pursued the longtime Hokies coach.

Virgil is now the one who will not leave. On Sundays -- Virgil's lone day off -- he walks around the stone-and-grass Virginia Tech campus, takes a seat and calls his family in Rocky Mount with the same sentiment each time: "This feels like home."

He has a two-year old daughter who lives with his parents and his girlfriend's parents. Virgil's parents were steadfast about him staying in Blacksburg instead of transferring closer to home. If he remains in school, Virgil will become the first member of his family to graduate a four-year college.

"This is done now," Sandra Virgil, Stephan's mother, told him at the time. "Stay in school. We can do what we can now. You're better off with a degree."

Virgil speaks to his daughter almost every night before she goes to sleep. When he's home in Rocky Mount, he will not go out with friends until he's given her a bath and put her to bed. When she watches Virginia Tech on television, she identifies which player is "Daddy."

After the East Carolina game, students around campus also identified Virgil. He did not answer his cell phone for two days after the game because it continued ringing. He shuffled through 100 friend requests on Facebook, a social networking site.

It was his first start, and one that came only after Virgil spent the offseason elevating his grades in effort to remain eligible. A summer internship at an apartment complex coincided with his apparel, hosing and resource management major and provided the grade he needed to play this season.

Virgil's assignment on Saturday is North Carolina star receiver Brandon Tate in front of friends and family only a little more than 80 miles from where his father drove his coaches to the airport in the ice storm.

The game might affect whether Virginia Tech can continue pilfering North Carolina for prospects. The Hokies have 13 players from North Carolina, including five from their most recent recruiting class. It creates a confluence of influences for a matchup that might not dictate just who plays for the ACC title, but whether players like Virgil will continue helping the Hokies on the football field.

"Obviously [Davis is] going to recruit that state, but we have such a great name now, too," Hite said. "Maybe years ago we couldn't go down there and get a kid, but now we can."