Vick’s Younger Brother Is Dialed In

Michael Vick’s brother, Marcus, is a senior quarterback at Warwick High in Newport News, Va.

He might look like just another high school hotshot, “if it weren’t for the two-carat diamond earrings in each ear,” the Washington Post reports.

Marcus Vick, 17, could prove to be just as good as his brother, who became the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft in April after leaving Virginia Tech following his sophomore year.

Telling the two apart when they call can be a challenge, even for their mother, Brenda Boddie.

“If I’m not at a phone where I can see the caller ID, I never know which one of them it is,” said Boddie, who has called Michael “Ookie” since he was a toddler. “It drives Ookie crazy. I’ll say, ‘Who’s this?’ and he’ll say, ‘Mom, it’s me!’ But that doesn’t help me any! They are very much alike in a lot of ways.”

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Trivia time: Laffit Pincay Jr. and Bill Shoemaker have won more races than any other jockeys. But who is No. 3?

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Food for thought: Howard Richman of the Kansas City Star recently interviewed Kansas State receiver Taco Wallace and learned that Wallace’s real first name was Lawrence, which happens to be the name of city where hated rival Kansas is located.

“I don’t think anybody’s called him Lawrence since he’s been here,” Kansas State sports information director Doug Dull said.

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Add Wallace: Wallace played last season at Mount San Antonio College. He was recruited by the likes of Nebraska, Oregon State and USC, which happens to be the Wildcats’ opponent Sept. 8. Wallace had no reservations about bypassing a chance to be a Trojan.

“I want to win,” he said. “Here, they win.”

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Underhanded shots: Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News wonders how Rick Barry will go over as the new midday host on radio station KNBR.

Barry is known “as much for his jackhammer personality as he is for his Hall of Fame basketball career,” Kawakami writes.

“And hey, edgy, sulky Bay Area sports figures need peers in the sports-radio business too, don’t they? So here’s a show that ought to draw the fond attentions of Barry Bonds and Al Davis, though there is a danger the remaining 99.9% of the population may not be so receptive to Barry’s sometimes undetectable charms.”

Barry’s response: “I don’t have to prove anything.... I’m going to be who I am. Like me or not, that’s your problem. If you don’t like me, that’s OK. I like myself, that’s more important.”

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National Passed Time: In 1937, when Gallup began asking Americans to name their favorite sport to watch or follow, baseball was the runaway winner with 34%. It peaked at 39% in 1948, the Associated Press reports.

This year, the game reached an all-time low--12%, a distant third behind football and basketball.

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Trivia answer: Pat Day. Pincay, Shoemaker and Day are the only jockeys with more than 8,000 victories.

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World’s highest green fees: Fancy playing one hole with Tiger Woods in China? That will cost $80,000.

Mission Hills, a golf club in southern China, is offering a chance for duffers and experts alike to pit their skills against Woods during his two-day visit in November, if they have the cash.

The $80,000 price tag includes a membership at the golf club, Asia’s largest, which can be sold within six months without transfer fees, a spokeswoman for the club said on Friday.

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And finally: President Bush, golfing on vacation in Texas, hit his tee shot into the woods on the first hole at Ridgewood Country Club.

When Bush teed up another ball, a man waiting behind said he planned to retrieve the president’s first ball as a souvenir.

“If you can find the first one, you’re a pretty good bird dog,” Bush said.

But apparently, he is as likely to misspeak on the golf course as anywhere else.

When a member of the entourage mentioned a West Coast vacation, Bush asked teasingly, “Brie and cheese?”

Uh, Mr. President, sir.

Brie is cheese.