Ever try to talk to two typically precocious 16-year-old twins simultaneously?

On the phone?

And keep straight which is which?

Not recommended, if you're a stickler for accurate identification.

But the boys - Dylan and Cole Sprouse, better known as Disney's Zack and Cody Martin - seem to take it all in stride, with their dad noting matter-of-factly that "no, you will not be able to tell who is who."

Ah, well, then.

What say we just go with a cumulative "Co-lyn," assuming that what goes for Cole goes for Dylan.

The reason for this complex strategy: a chat with the Sprouse lads, making a much-heralded U.S. Cellular Coliseum personal appearance at Saturday night's PrairieThunder game (6 to 9 p.m., in the outer concourse; autographs but not photographs allowed).

As the stars of two wildly popular Disney Channel series, "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" (2005-8) and its ongoing sequel, "The Suite Life on Deck," the Sprouse boys are bona fide tween 'throbs.

Of their fans, Co-lyn admit that "it really depends on the person - a lot of the times the kids are actually shy and intimidated when they come up to us. It's the moms who get wild and crazy!"

Moms gone wild?

"Yeah! Really!"

Breaking down their fan base, Co-lyn says it varies along gender lines.

"The girls range in age from about 6 to 20, and the guys are usually from 6 to around 12 or 14."

Childless elders may remember Co-lyn less for their "Suite Life" gigs than as the foundling taken in by Adam Sandler 10 years ago in the comedy hit, "Big Daddy."

Or perhaps as the adorable toddler Patrick Kelly through the five-season run of the hit sitcom, "Grace Under Fire."

Doing the math, we see that the boys, born Aug. 4, 1992, were barely 12 months old when the series began.

Because of that, they confess that most of the "Grace Under Fire" experience has been lost to the mists of time.

And even their shared experience as an Adam Sandler co-star has grown a little vague (they were barely over 5 when it was filmed).

"We do remember a bit of it here and there," they say.

Momentarily distinguishing themselves from each other, Dylan reveals that it was Cole who originally auditioned for the part of Julian, the orphaned tot taken under wing by Sandler.

"So he wound up doing most of the scenes," says Dylan. "I was sort of the stunt twin, the one who got beat up."

The twins' thespian saga is credited to their grandmother, Jonine Booth Wright, a drama teacher and actress who suggested that the lads get a taste of the profession early.

As in 8 months old.

Their debut (now it must be told): a diaper commercial.

After ABC's "Grace Under Fire" came "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody," a series written with the Sprouses in mind.

"We were 11, and they pitched us the show," says Co-lyn with the acumen of a true show biz veteran. "And we really liked it."

So did the fans: The sitcom, a variant on Disney's venerable "Parent Trap" ploy, charted the adventures of two carbon-copy boys living in a swank hotel, where their single mom worked as a lounge singer.

After three seasons, a sequel was debuted, "The Suite Life on Deck," in which mom gets a gig on a cruise ship, and the boys get to play their identity games at sea.

Different series, perhaps, but in name only, say the Sprouses.

"It feels like the same show - it's filmed on the same stages with the same cast and crew, and it feels like the fourth season of the original show instead of the first season of the new one."

Outside the show, the Disney duo share a love of video games and two dogs, named Bubba and Curry, who the boys refer to as "our siblings."

"And boy does it make us angry when they steal our video games and go play with them," adds one Sprouse or the other.

We're not sure which.

And we're not sure it really matters.

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At a glance

What: Disney's Zack and Cody

When: 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Prairie- Thunder vs. Kalamazoo Wings game

Where: Outer concourse of U.S. Cellular Coliseum, 101 S. Madison St., Bloomington

Tickets: Free with paid game admission ($13 to $21)

Box office number: (866) 891-9992

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Which is which?

Following is a sampling of Dylan and Cole Sprouse's acting credits, with dual roles separated from those in which they both played the same character:

1 character

• "Grace Under Fire" (TV series, 1993-98)

• "Big Daddy" (movie, 1999)

• "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" (movie, 2001)

• "The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things" (movie, 2004)

2 characters

• "The Suite Life of Zack and Cody" (TV series, 2005-8)

• "A Modern Twain Story: The Prince and the Pauper" (movie, 2007)

• "The Kings of Appletown" (movie, 2008)

• "The Suite Life on Deck" (TV series, 2008)