Now: They're All-Stars. Next: They're Hokies

BLACKSBURG

Nick Dew looks a lot like Virginia Tech football's ideal defensive recruit: 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, quick, explosive, physical. Most important, versatile.

The recent First Colonial High graduate played receiver, running back, defensive end, linebacker, both safety spots and returned kicks for the Patriots. He'll join the Hokies as a freshman this weekend - after playing in tonight's Virginia High School Coaches Association All-Star game.

"It's the stuff the Hokies love; he can do anything," First Colonial coach Bill McTyre said. "His first step is the quickest I've ever seen. They saw so many possibilities with him and felt like they could mold him into whatever they want."

King's Fork graduate Dominique Patterson will join him on defense - tonight and for the next four or five years.

He, too, fits the mold of a perfect Hokies prospect: 6- 2, 215 pounds, fleet feet, diverse skills. Patterson played both ways for the Bulldogs and helped the basketball team win a state championship as a junior.

He and Dew likely will roam the secondary together tonight - in some interchangeable combination of strong safety, free safety and outside linebacker - before moving into their dorm as roommates at Tech on Saturday afternoon.

The duo became fast friends during a visit to Blacksburg in March. Now they talk at least twice a week by phone and often hang out at the beach.

"We had a connection," Dew said. "We play the same way and we've got kind of the same personality. Being in this All-Star game with him is exactly what I hoped would happen. We're going to get some practice time together and get a feel for what it will be like playing together."

While their paths are suddenly converging, their careers to this point have taken different tracks. Dew waited before choosing the Hokies over more than a dozen scholarship offers.

He was rated the No. 6 prospect in Virginia, the No. 15 safety in the country and one of the nation's top 250 overall prospects by rivals.com. He was selected to play in the Under Armour All-America game, where he flashed his dazzling playmaking ability.

Patterson, meanwhile, waited just two days to pick Tech after receiving a scholarship offer at one of the Hokies' recruiting camps last July. It was his lone offer to play major college football.

"I think I could've had a lot of other schools' interested if not for the injury," said Patterson, who broke his left wrist in the first game of his junior football season at King's Fork. "That kept me under the radar, so I could be a sleeper in this class."

In fact, the Hokies' coaches - and more than one recruiting guru - have called Patterson "a steal" among the 2010 in-state prospects. With his size, speed and frame, Patterson could either play strong safety at his current weight or bulk up and play linebacker.

"They told me I could try both and whichever position I feel more comfortable at, that's where I'll play," he said. "Nick and I are both long and athletic enough to play multiple positions. We're their kind of guys."

Aaron Rouse was that kind of guy back in 2002. A rangy, versatile standout at First Colonial, Rouse blossomed into a vicious-hitting safety at Tech. He has since started 18 games in three NFL seasons.

Dew looked up to Rouse and has followed closely in his footsteps.

"He tried to style a little bit of his game off Aaron's," McTyre said, "but I think Nick is a little better defensively at the same stage."

Because of his elite speed, Dew could play anywhere from cornerback to free safety to whip linebacker - the Hokies' playmaking position that is a safety/

linebacker hybrid. He said he has no preference.

"Tech does a great job with guys like Nick," McTyre said. "It's like putting together pieces of a puzzle. They really get a lot of those multi-talented kids and then fit them into the perfect position."

Kyle Tucker, (757) 446-2374, kyle.tucker@pilotonline.com