Marcus Deon Vick was born to Brenda Vick and Michael Boddie on March 20, 1984, in Newport News, Virginia. His parents married approximately two years later, by which time they had four children, Christina (Marcus’ older sister), Michael (Marcus’ older brother), Courtney, and Marcus. Although their parents had wed, the children decided to continue using their mother’s surname.

Prior to the 2004 collegiate season, Vick had several run-ins with the law which resulted in misdemeanor convictions. According to an article in the Washington Post, the convictions triggered a review by Virginia Tech Athletic Director Jim Weaver under the school’s Comprehensive Action Plan, which was put in place in 1997 after 22 arrests involving 19 football players during a 15-month period.

In 2003, Vick played in seven games, splitting time with Bryan Randall. The highlight of his season came during a 31–7 upset win over #2 Miami. Despite completing only one pass, Vick’s exceptional running ability and the outstanding play of Tech’s defense contributed to one of the biggest wins in the history of Virginia Tech football. In Virginia Tech’s loss in the Insight Bowl to the California Golden Bears, Vick racked up 82 receiving yards, including one touchdown reception.

Following an incident which occurred on January 27, 2004, he was arrested and accused of having sexual relations with a 15-year-old girl. The age of consent in Virginia is 18. With the others, he was also charged with unlawfully providing alcohol to three underage girls who “claimed” to be college students.

The 2005 season, however, saw more controversy surrounding Vick. On October 1, 2005, Vick angered fans in Morgantown, West Virginia with a display of his middle finger to the crowd during the game at West Virginia University. Vick later apologized. During the 2006 Gator Bowl on January 2, he stomped on the leg of University of Louisville defensive end Elvis Dumervil. Dumervil was in a defenseless position trying to get back up after a play. Vick claimed the incident was accidental and asserted he apologized to Dumervil after the game; Dumervil said that no apology was made. Virginia Tech Athletic Director Jim Weaver issued a statement from the university on the incident:

Vick lost his privilege to drive a motor vehicle in Virginia as the result of traffic convictions, including reckless driving. On December 17, 2005, he was charged in Hampton, Virginia with speeding, and for the second time, with the more serious misdemeanor charge of driving on a suspended or revoked license. These offenses brought the total of his traffic arrests to nine in Virginia while he was enrolled at Virginia Tech.

Beamer initially announced that Vick would enter the 2005 season as the team’s third-string quarterback, but he quickly won the starting role after impressive spring practices and scrimmages. 2005 was Vick’s most successful season, which saw the Hokies contending for a national championship and culminating in an 11–2 record, an ACC Coastal Division title, an appearance in the inaugural ACC Championship Game, and a win in the 2006 Gator Bowl.

On January 6, 2006, Virginia Tech announced his permanent dismissal from its football program “due to a cumulative effect of legal infractions and unsportsmanlike play”.

Vick declared his eligibility for the NFL draft on January 7, 2006. After the 2006 NFL Draft, he told ESPN’s Michael Smith that he considered himself a better quarterback than Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler.

The Dolphins released him on September 2, 2006 to reach the regular season roster limit but re-signed Vick two days later, assigning him to the practice squad. On October 17, 2006 the Dolphins signed him as a wide receiver/kick returner/quarterback. He was moved from the practice squad to the active roster for the team’s Week 7 game versus the Green Bay Packers. He was listed as the No. 3 “emergency” quarterback on the depth chart. His first action in the NFL was a regular season game against the New York Jets on December 25, 2006. He played the wide receiver position for the 4th quarter but had no recorded receptions. After the season, his contract expired and the Dolphins opted not to re-sign him.

On January 9, 2006, Vick was charged with three counts of brandishing a firearm, a Class One misdemeanor, in Suffolk, Virginia. A police report alleged that he pointed a gun at a 17-year-old in the parking lot of a McDonald’s in Suffolk after Vick’s girlfriend had an argument with three people. Vick claimed that the gun in question was a BlackBerry cell phone and that his accusers were trying to blackmail him.

On December 14, 2006, a 17-year-old girl from Montgomery County, Virginia, filed a civil lawsuit against Vick accusing him of molestation of a minor, fraud, and additional charges. In the lawsuit, seeking $6.3 million, the girl claimed that when she was 15 (below the legal age of consent in Virginia), she was forced into a sexual situation with Vick, who was 20 years old, over a nearly two-year-long period. She also alleged that Vick offered to provide her alcohol and marijuana and forced her to have sex with other men. On September 15, 2008, the parties agreed to a settlement in the lawsuit.

On June 13, 2008, a bicycle officer in Norfolk approached a couple arguing in a car. When asked for identification, Vick allegedly took off, driving the car at high speed. When another officer spotted the car and stopped it, Vick failed a sobriety test. He was charged with DUI, misdemeanor eluding police, driving on the wrong side of a street, reckless driving, driving on a suspended license, and was taken into custody. Vick was living at the time in his brother Michael’s riverfront mansion in Suffolk and Michael’s condominium in the South Beach section of Miami Beach. He was released on bond later Friday morning. On October 20, Vick pleaded guilty to DUI. He was sentenced to 12 months in jail, which the judge suspended, a fine of $250, and his Virginia driving license was suspended for a year. He was also convicted of eluding a police officer and driving on the wrong side of the road, and fined $280 on those charges.

In August 2009, a judge ordered him to jail for probation violations including failure to complete an alcohol education program, testing positive for marijuana, missed appointments, and failure to pay court costs and fines. Vick was freed on a $25,000 bond and appealed the decision.

In January 2013, a judge sentenced Vick to five days in jail for failing to produce adequate documentation about his financial status by a court-ordered deadline. On December 30, Vick was arrested in Forsyth County for a second DUI, driving without a license, and driving with an expired car registration.

On April 5, 2016, Vick was charged with assaulting a police officer who was arresting him on a contempt charge in Virginia. On July 11, Vick pleaded guilty in Newport News, Virginia to the resisting arrest charge and was ordered to serve one month in jail.

On October 8, 2016, Vick was again arrested on drug possession charges. An officer reportedly detected an odor of marijuana coming from an apartment as they approached it. This odor became stronger after the door was opened by a man inside, who was later identified as Vick. In September 2017, Vick accepted a plea deal and received one year of supervised probation and five years of good behavior.

On March 20, 2017, Vick was arrested in Norfolk, VA. In July 2017, Vick pled guilty to a felony drug possession count in connection with this arrest and was sentenced to two years in jail with the full sentence suspended. He was also sentenced to three years of supervised probation.