CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Danny Aiken might never realize his dream of playing one of football's "skill" positions, but at least now he's wearing a skilled player's number.

After wearing No. 66 for his first two seasons at Virginia, Aiken was assigned No. 80 this year.

However, don't look for Aiken to reprise his old role as a Cave Spring High School tight end.

"I changed numbers because coach [Ron] Prince didn't like No. 66," said Aiken, referring to the Cavaliers' special-teams coach. "To be honest, I don't know [why]. I was just told, 'You're changing numbers.' And I said, 'Yes, sir.' "

Aiken was a playmaker at Cave Spring, where he was the quarterback for the Knights that finished 10-2 in 2005. At Virginia, he has been more of a facilitator, serving as the Cavaliers' deep snapper for three seasons.

That role changed a little bit when Virginia went to a "shield" formation for punts. Aiken's responsibility is to thread the snap between three blockers serving as the punt's shield, then take off down the field in coverage.

Highlights for Aiken in his new role have included a fumble recovery at North Carolina and downing a punt at the Georgia Tech 1-yard line.

The Cavaliers went to the "shield" prior to the 2007 Gator Bowl and have not yielded a blocked punt since.

"It's definitely different from my first year," said Aiken, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound junior. "Then, it was a mind-set of 'block first, then get down the field.' Now it's get down the field and try to be one of the first guys there."

Aiken was a snapper at Cave Spring, but a career in special teams wasn't what he had in mind when he went to Fork Union Military Academy in the fall of 2006. He was hoping for exposure as a tight end and when he was pressed into special-teams duty, he initially served as the FUMA punter.

When it looked as if 2006 UVa deep snapper Tyrus Gardner might not be available for a fifth year, UVa suddenly was in need of a replacement and liked what it saw from Aiken at a combine. It was a classic case of being in the right place at the right time.

Since then, Aiken unofficially has snapped the ball 321 times for the Cavaliers -- 76 punts, 49 field goals and 196 punts. Aiken has become so indispensable that, when he underwent oral surgery to extract wisdom teeth last spring, the Cavaliers did not attempt any placements in their spring game.

His only poor snap of note came in Virginia's home opener against Texas Christian, when holder Vic Hall was unable to handle Aiken's high ball on a field-goal try by Robert Randolph. Coach Al Groh later acknowledged that, had Hall not been incapacitated by a hip injury, he might have been able to corral the snap.

Aiken's career got off to a shaky start when he had three wayward snaps in his second game, a 24-13 victory over Duke at Scott Stadium in 2007. The Cavaliers (3-5, 2-2 ACC) wished they had been so lucky Saturday, when they fell to the Blue Devils 28-17 as speculation over Groh's future intensified.

"I feel like those rumors have been flying around for quite a while," said Aiken in anticipation of the Cavaliers' visit to No. 16 Miami (6-2, 3-2) for a noon Saturday game, "and they were flying around my first year.

"Now, you don't think much of 'em because you're so unified as a team and you learn to block it out. It's not of any type of importance to us."

One of Virginia's former deep snappers, Ryan Kuehl, was a starting defensive lineman for the Cavaliers who later spent 12 years in the NFL as a snapper exclusively. Aiken said that thoughts of snapping professionally "definitely" have crossed his mind.

During the summers, he works on the speed of his delivery, but there's no discounting the mental aspect of his trade.

"You don't get a lot of recognition if you do what you're supposed to do," he said. "The only time you get recognition is if you don't do what you're supposed to do.

"As a quarterback, you could always come out and make up for the play that just happened. With so much riding on one play, it took a lot of getting used-to, but I've gotten a lot more comfortable as the years pass."

Aiken frequently will work on his snapping when he comes home for the summer, often with his younger brother, Matt, as the recipient. Matt Aiken is a wide receiver the Naval Academy Prep School.

"I've also got friends from high school who will come out and catch snaps," Aiken said, "and, if all else fails, there's always my dad."