Part of what makes Marcus Mariota so remarkable was on display here this past week, and it wasn’t his open-field running ability.

Nor was it the ability to throw a tight spiral into the waiting hands of a receiver amid tight coverage.

In what was a brief, week-long interlude at home between the ending of minicamp in Nashville, Tenn., and a return to the mainland Saturday for preparation for the opening of training camp, Mariota was, next to the Kilauea eruption, probably the most photographed subject in the state.

In photo sessions spread over four Walmart stores from Mililani to Keeaumoku Street, where some fans waited more than two hours in advance and lines often snaked up and down the aisles, he totaled more than six hours of photo-taking.

If you’ve ever seen Pro Bowl participants or others at en masse public photo opportunities, you know that after the first 15 minutes, no matter how well-intentioned their start, the players’ smiles invariably tend to droop. Glances at their watches or phones become more frequent and getting to the beach or golf course is a goal that takes on urgency.

Not so with Mariota, who often had a high-five ready and followed it up with a greeting and dialogue. When somebody in a walker or wheelchair was up next, Mariota was in motion to go to them.

As one of Mariota’s Tennessee Titans teammates, offensive tackle Taylor Lewan, has put it, “You’d think they were doing him the biggest favor being there.”

Not a favor so much, perhaps, as allowing him to pay forward what Jerry Rice did for him.

Mariota is paid a fee for personal appearances, some of which is said to help support the work of his Motiv8 Foundation.

“We still have the miniature helmet from when he was really young that (Rice) signed,” said his mother, Alana Deppe-Mariota. “I think we bought a ticket for that and waited a while.”

Marcus said, “What I remember is the interaction with him (Rice is) that he took the time to talk to me.”

Marcus’ father, Toa, stood nearby. When Marcus pulled out the silver and black Raiders helmet for Rice to sign, Mariota recalls, “My dad kind of gave me a ‘What are you doing?’ look. He thought I should have had him sign a San Francisco helmet. So, Jerry Rice looked at me and said, ‘I think your dad wants me to sign something different.’ ”

They laughed and talked, briefly.

For Mariota the experience was less about the emblem on the helmet and more about the face-to-face interaction and sharing a genuine moment.

“He was stoked,” his mother recalls.

Mariota said, “For me, it was cool just to meet him and having him talk to me, that meant a lot. Those are the kind of things, as a kid, that you remember. That’s why whenever I have an opportunity to influence, share and, hopefully, serve, I want to do it. I actually enjoy it.”

Mariota and Rice now share a business representative and Mariota said he had an opportunity to meet Rice again after turning pro.

“I told him about that (first meeting),” Mariota said. “He said he remembered.”

Tony Silva, of “Da Braddahs” comedic fame, plays a coach opposite Mariota in the Island Insurance TV commercials, and amid long sessions, such as Thursday’s eight-hour shoot, has gotten to know the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner.

When people ask Silva about the “real” Mariota, “I tell them that the Marcus Mariota you see on television is exactly who he is.”

The proof of that being Silva said he was donating his fee from Thursday’s shoot to Mariota’s foundation. “I feel honored to know him, to work with him.”

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.