Matt Gentry | The Roanoke Times

Danny Coale, a redshirt freshman for Virginia Tech from Lexington, is getting a chance to show what he can do this spring.

Matt Gentry | The Roanoke Times

Frank Beamer and his staff will get one more look at the Hokies in today's spring football game.

BLACKSBURG -- Like most any kid who had grown up as a staunch follower of University of Virginia athletics, Danny Coale would have labeled any idea of him ultimately winding up at Virginia Tech as utter hypocrisy.

Crossing the fence and joining forces with UVa's archrival? You've got to be kidding, right?

"Danny was always pretty much a Virginia kind of kid," said Coale's father, Jimmy. "He grew up kind of more interested in Virginia and just never really thought a lot about the Virginia Tech thing."

That all changed one summer day two years ago. After attending several college football camps, including one at UVa, and failing to attract a scholarship invitation, Coale decided it was time to step out of the box and accepted an offer from Tech to show up at its one-day summer camp.

"I had no idea what would happen here," Danny Coale said. "I just remember I walked in and I loved it. I really felt at home. And, boy, my first trip to Virginia Tech ended up being a great one."

No kidding.

"Yeah, it was a big day for us," said Jimmy Coale, who has served as VMI athletics strength and conditioning coach since 1979. "We had been to a couple of other schools and I thought that Danny had performed very well, and according to the coaches there, he had done very well, too. We felt pretty good about that, but we weren't getting any [scholarship] offers or anything.

"And when Tech invited him down, I talked to Coach [Bud] Foster, who had recruited Danny, I had said, 'that's good, I just want to know that if Danny comes down is he going to get a legitimate look?' I just wanted to know up front that if he's got a shot or he doesn't have a shot, just tell us and then we'll move on. Coach Foster said to me, 'Jimmy, if he comes down and does what he's supposed to do, he'll have an offer from us.'"

The younger Coale made certain it would happen with an impressive audition. After watching the 6-foot, 200-pound wide receiver run a 4.44-second 40 and catch everything thrown his way, the Tech coaches met at the end of the day.

It didn't take them but a minute or two to decide to offer Coale a scholarship on the spot.

"The ride back home ... it's kind of hard to put into words how excited and grateful and happy we were," Jimmy Coale said. "To see how hard Danny had worked to get to that point, it was absolutely a great day for us."

A week later, Danny Coale, with his mother, Kathy, in tow to meet the Tech coaches, was back in Blacksburg to offer his commitment to the Hokies.

Ironically, Coale left a scholarship offer from UVa -- in lacrosse, not football -- on the table when he said "yes" to Tech. Plus, Coale's older brother, Andrew, is a senior midfielder on UVa's lacrosse team.

"Now, I'm here, it's crazy," said Coale, standing in Lane Stadium earlier this week. "In the end, though, football was my passion. I think lacrosse was more Kevin's thing. We don't need more than one lacrosse player in the family. This makes things a lot more interesting, I think."

Coale, a redshirt freshman, has turned a lot of heads in Tech's spring workouts that conclude with the Maroon-White game at 2 p.m. today at Lane.

He's currently listed second on the depth chart at split end behind redshirt sophomore Zach Luckett.

"I've been impressed with Coale," quarterback Sean Glennon said. "He's not the fastest guy in the world, but he catches the ball and gets to where he's supposed to be. Without having blazing speed, he's done a good job of being productive. And that's all that counts in this game."

Wide receivers coach Kevin Sherman knew Coale from his days at VMI, where he served as the Keydets' recruiting coordinator from 1993-97 on ex-coach Bill Stewart's staff.

"Danny was just a little kid when I was at VMI, but I've watched him throughout his high school career," Sherman said of Coale, who attended Episcopal High School, a private boarding school in Alexandria.

"He's smart, he's got good hands, he understands, he's instinctive," Sherman said.

"I think once the game slows down for him, that he's going to be a good player for us. I think he can help us some [this] fall. I think the sky is the limit for him. We've got a long way to go, but we've got some time to get there."

Coale, an all-state performer in football and lacrosse at Episcopal, has hit it off with his Tech teammates.

Some already are comparing Coale to Tim Dwight or Wes Welker, a couple of wideouts who have made their marks in the NFL despite not possessing prototypical frames.

"I've heard it a lot," said Coale, laughing. "It's funny to hear. But it's great company to be linked with."

Speaking of such, what about all his ties with UVa?

"Definitely, most of my friends go to UVa ... my brother is there," he said.

"Sure, it's definitely a little different culture. But they're both great schools and football and lacrosse are both great games. So I'm trying to fit in here."

So far, so good. From all accounts, these Hokies are glad to have him on their side.