BLACKSBURG -- When he decided to play college football at Virginia Tech, Marcus Vick was well aware of the pressure he would face.

Following his older brother, Michael, who had left Tech two years prior as the most famous player in the program's history, Marcus Vick knew it wouldn't be long before the comparisons began.

"Hey, I've always been in Michael's shadow," said Marcus, who arrived at Tech in 2002. "I've been playing behind him my whole life, just trying to meet my and everybody else's expectations. So it really wasn't something new to me."

Hit the fast-forward button.

Three years later, Marcus Vick has yet to start a college game. There's no comparison there with Michael, who after three years on campus was packing his bags to become the No. 1 overall pick in the 2001 NFL draft. The Atlanta Falcons' quarterback is now one of the NFL's marquee names.

"Yeah, Michael is a celebrity, he's a superstar," said Marcus, without a hint of jealousy.

"Me? I'm no celebrity. I haven't done nothing yet."

When asked if that's about to change, the second quarterback in the Vick family grinned and replied, "Yeah, absolutely."

Marcus Deon Vick is 21 now and says he's finally grown up. He wants the rest of the headlines to be about his on-the-field performances, not the off-the-field woes that nearly wrecked his career last year.

"There was a time when I thought I had blown it," said Vick, referring to his suspension from school last fall for a pair of scrapes with the law. "But while I was away, I kept talking to my coaches and they gave me thoughts to believe I'd be back, and I'm here."

Since returning to Blacksburg in January, Vick has stayed focused as a student and an athlete. His coaches say he's been attending all of his classes. His teammates unanimously agree he's become a leader for a team that carries national-title aspirations.

"Marcus will be a damn good leader for us on the field," senior offensive tackle Jimmy Martin said. "I never really thought he was that bad of a guy. He's come back and he's definitely more mature, he definitely doesn't have the wide eyes out there. He knows what he's doing and he's confident. After sitting out last year, he must be itching to get out there in games and prove what he can do because he's got the talent to get it done."

Sophomore receiver Eddie Royal said: "I see a guy who is hungry, a guy who's ready to play, a guy who is ready to prove to everybody how good he is. I've seen it. I can't wait to get out there and play with him."

Senior tight end Jeff King, who arguably is the most no-nonsense guy on the team, is totally sold on Vick.

"There aren't any question marks about that guy," King said. "Pressure? Shoot, he's been handling pressure his whole life. I have no concerns whatsoever."

Neither does Frank Beamer. In fact, the Tech coach sees greatness on the way.

"Yeah, Marcus made some questionable decisions there, but there are a lot of things exactly right about Marcus," Beamer said. "I think he understands that this team is dependent on him, he needs to be the leader, the take-charge guy, and that's what I'm seeing. If he does what I think he's going to do, I think he's going to have a fantastic year."

Life in a fish bowl

Since returning to Tech, Vick has made certain there won't be any outside-of-football problems.

He no longer is the youngster who was easily distracted, the young buck who used to carouse the town's nightclubs.

"I've learned how to sit in the house," said Vick, who elected to live alone in an off-campus apartment since his return to school.

"I understand now that you really got to watch what you do out in the public. You've really got to keep your eyes open, watch who your friends are. I know there are a lot of eyes out there watching me."

One of Vick's closest friends, senior cornerback Jimmy Williams, said his pal has become a "hermit."

"Marcus is such a home boy now," said Williams, laughing. "He hardly ever goes out.

"People don't really realize with that name comes a lot of stress. Man, he's probably handled it the best I've ever seen, even with the trouble and everything going on. I can see he's changed. He knows what's going on. I think he's put it past him. I know we [his teammates] have put it past us."

Most nights, Vick said he simply stays at home and plays video games with teammates such as senior tailback Mike Imoh, wide receiver and fellow Newport News native Brenden Hill, and Williams.

"They come to my house a lot. I don't have too many away games," said Vick, laughing. "I hold my own in the video games. In fact, I'm the hunted right now. Everybody is always hunting for me on the video games.

"They feel like they're not winning until they beat me. I'm the man, absolutely!"

Vick, who can thank his brother's wealth for a BMW 745, said he can't go anywhere in Blacksburg without being recognized.

"Somebody will always recognize me and say, 'Hey, you look like Michael Vick,' or, 'You must be his brother,' " he said. "But I don't really mind too much. That's just like if I were to see Michael Jordan out somewhere ... I'd be saying, 'That's him right there.' "

Vick said he's never thought about going out in disguise so he wouldn't have to deal with the average Joe.

"Now Michael does," he said. "Sometimes he'll throw on a hat or a hood. But I'm me. I really don't care if people know who I am or what."

Vick said he gets plenty of autograph requests.

"I get hit up at Wal-Mart a lot. Like I could be walking through Wal-Mart, and I'll see somebody come up with two footballs or they'll be going back to the sports section to get two so I can sign 'em."

Vick confessed he used to toy with such autographs hounds by darting from one aisle to the next to allude them.

"I used to do that when I first got here ... it was fun," he said. "But you know what? I'm all out of games now."

Well, not entirely.

He's got two seasons of football games left at Virginia Tech to write the ending to his college career.

"I'm hoping that story has a great, great ending because he's a good person and there a lot of people who want to see him do very, very well," Beamer said.