MATT GENTRY The Roanoke Times

Virginia Tech fans rejoice as Dyrell Roberts catches the game-winning pass from quarterback Tyrod Taylor in the fourth quarter of the Hokies 16-15 victory over Nebraska at Lane Stadium on Saturday.

BLACKSBURG -- If Dyrell Roberts keeps this stuff up, it won't be long before everybody in town knows who he is.

Hours after snaring the game-winning touchdown pass that gave Virginia Tech a miraculous last-second 16-15 victory over Nebraska last Saturday at Lane Stadium, Roberts said he was hardly recognized when he hit the downtown party scene with some teammates.

"Believe it or not, people just really know us as numbers around here ... like numbers and last names," Roberts said. "Without all the equipment on the back, they really don't know what I look like.

"When I'm on the field, of course, if I've got my jersey on, they're like, 'Dyrell!' But when I'm out, I could walk right past the same person and they wouldn't even know who I am. So it's kinda crazy.

"Maybe they know me now, maybe they don't. The people who don't know me, I've got to help them know me, too."

The sophomore flanker from Smithfield, Va., is quickly winning that battle. In Tech's first three games, he's caught three passes for a team-high two touchdowns, plus returned a kickoff for a 98-yard TD against Alabama. Roberts has produced five of the Hokies' 21 biggest plays (more than 20 yards) so far, including kickoff returns of 98, 76 and 47 yards.

Roberts has returned six kickoffs for a 48.3-yard average, which ranks second in the country behind Stanford's Chris Owusu (52.8).

"I didn't even know that," Roberts said. "I knew I was first in the ACC, but I didn't know I was second in the nation. It's all right. We'll have to see what we can do about that."

Sounds like a guy who wants to be known.

Virgil expected back

No. 11 Virginia Tech expects to have cornerback Stephan Virgil in the lineup against No. 9 Miami on Saturday after he missed two games with a bruised left knee.

Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster said Tuesday night that Virgil's return will bolster a Hokies defense that has been plagued by missed tackles leading to big plays.

Virginia Tech (2-1) normally has one of the nation's top-rated defenses, but is ranked 77th in the country and has given up an average of 364 yards per game.

The Hokies are ranked 107th against the run, allowing an average of 200 yards rushing.

Early morning drill

The Hokies' players and most of their coaches spend the night before home games at Hotel Roanoke. Their Friday night's rest for the Nebraska game was interrupted at 2:12 a.m., when the hotel's fire-alarm system went off. Minutes later, most of the Tech party had evacuated the building and was standing outside as fire trucks arrived on the scene.

"Well, I don't know if getting up about 1:30 in the morning would be a distraction or not," Tech coach Beamer said Tuesday. "I was having a hard time sleeping, so it wasn't too bad for me. I was on the third floor and that's where the alarm went off, so I didn't have any trouble figuring it out."

John Ballein, Tech's director of football operations, estimated that about half the players left the building. Defensive coordinator Bud Foster was among the group that evidently slept through the alarm.

Former Nebraska coach and current athletic director Tom Osborne was among the dispatched mob, which included some 300 Husker supporters, standing outside the hotel, Beamer said.

"I wanted to see Coach Osborne, but I figured I would catch him later," Beamer said. "I saw him the next morning. He was having breakfast and I went in to say hello. And the first thing he said to me was: 'I sure hope that one of our guys didn't do that.' "

At eye of storm

Beamer now knows what it feels like to be stuck in the middle of a human mosh pit.

Seconds after the Tech-Nebraska game ended, a swarm of Tech students burst from the Lane Stadium stands and raced onto the field in celebration. Holly Rowe, a sideline reporter for ESPN/ABC, was attempting to solicit reaction from Beamer, but the interview was cut short after only one question when Beamer started hollering "no, no, no" to someone off-camera.

When asked what set him off, Beamer said Tuesday: "What happened was Holly came out, and kids were gathering around and they were kinda pushing and shoving. We just needed to settle down; I wanted to celebrate, too. But I didn't want anybody to get hurt. So that's all I was trying to do, to get the kids to calm down a little bit.

"She was trying to interview [me], and there wasn't any chance of that happening. I just didn't want anybody to get hurt."

Public hammering 'Canes

The 11th-ranked Hokies have won 10 straight games at home and carry one of the biggest home-field edges in college football. So what, the bettors say. Since opening as a 2-point favorite Sunday, Tech now finds itself in a rare home underdog role as heavy action has moved the spread to Miami minus-2 ¹₂ points.

The Associated Press contributed to this report