Mike Vick

Michael Vick turns 28 today, June 26th.

Here’s some stuff about the convicted felon you didn’t know:

Vick was the second of four children (including older sister Christina (”Niki”) and younger siblings Marcus and Courtney) born in Newport News, Virginia, to Brenda Vick and Michael Boddie, then unmarried teenagers.  His mother worked two jobs, obtained some public financial assistance, and had help from her parents, while his father worked long hours in the shipyards as a sandblaster and spray-painter. They were married when Michael was about five years old but the children elected to continue to use their “Vick” surname.

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During the early years of his family, Michael Boddie’s employment required a lot of travel, but he taught football skills to his two sons at an early age. Michael Vick was only three years old when his father, nicknamed “Bullet” for his blinding speed during his own playing days on the gridiron, began teaching him the fundamentals. He also taught younger brother Marcus.

As he grew up, Michael Vick, who as a child went by the nickname “Ookie”,  also learned a lot about football from a second cousin four years older, Aaron Brooks. Vick and Brooks both spent a lot of time as youths at the local Boys and Girls Club.  As a 7-year-old throwing three touchdown passes in a Boys Club league, his apparent football talents led coaches and his parents to keep a special watch over Vick. [wikipedia]