The Blindside

I cannot wait to see this movie!! These types of true stories touch my heart in a big way.


Michael Jerome Oher (born Michael Jerome Williams Jr. on May 28, 1986) is an American professional football player for the Baltimore Ravens. He played college football at, and graduated from, the University of Mississippi (Ole Miss). His life prior to college is the subject of Michael Lewis's 2006 book, The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game, and a movie titled The Blind Side, scheduled to be released on November 20, 2009.


High school career
Michael Oher played football in his freshman year at a Memphis public school, but didn't play football again until his junior year at Briarcrest Christian School. His senior year, he took over at left tackle. In 2004, Oher was ranked the No. 1 offensive line prospect in high school, and it was also said that "Michael Oher's ability and his body — the only thing you could compare it to was Orlando Pace's."


College career
After receiving scholarship offers from the University of Tennessee, Louisiana State University, the University of Alabama, and North Carolina State University, among others, Oher ultimately decided to attend the University of Mississippi, the alma mater of Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy, with whom he was living at the time. His decision was not without controversy. The National Collegiate Athletic Association suspected that the Tuohys had taken Oher in and added him to their will in order to secure his services as a player for their school, but an investigation did not affect his eligibility. Oher's high school coach Hugh Freeze also created the appearance of possible impropriety by taking a job as UM's assistant athletic director for external affairs twenty days after Oher signed a letter of intent with the school. Freeze claimed that the offer was not an example of quid pro quo for encouraging Oher to attend Mississippi, but rather the result of a pre-existing relationship with Mississippi offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone. The NCAA later ruled that Freeze had committed secondary violations by contacting Memphis-area prospects on behalf of the school before he had officially become an employee.


Oher started in 10 games as a guard during his first season with Mississippi, becoming a first-team freshman All American. He shifted to the position of left tackle for the 2006 season, and was named to a variety of preseason All-Conference and All-American teams. He was named a second-team SEC offensive lineman after his sophomore season and a first-team SEC offensive lineman after his junior season.


On January 14, 2008, Oher declared that he would be entering the 2008 NFL Draft. However, two days later, he announced his withdrawal from the draft to return to Ole Miss for his senior season.


After the 2008-2009 college football season, Oher was selected to the AP All-American first team.

Professional career
2009 NFL Draft
The Baltimore Ravens drafted Oher in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Oher was the 23rd pick in the first round, a pick Baltimore received from the New England Patriots in exchange for the Ravens' 1st and 5th round picks. The Tuohy family was there to witness the moment.


(* represents NFL Combine)

Baltimore Ravens
On April 26, 2009, he was assigned the #74 jersey, which was his jersey number at Ole Miss. On July 30, 2009 he signed a 5 year, $13.8 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens. He started the 2009 season at right tackle, but was moved to left tackle after an injury to line-mate Jared Gaither. In week eight, he returned to right tackle. He currently has a listed height of 6'4" and a listed weight of 310 pounds. His 40 yard dash time is 5.32 seconds. Oher has thus far started every game for the Ravens this season.


Personal life
Oher was born to Denise Oher, who suffered an addiction to crack cocaine. As a result, he received little constructive attention during his formative years. He repeated both first grade and second grade, and attended eleven different schools during his first nine years as a student. He also alternated between time spent in various foster homes and periods with no fixed address until he was sixteen years old. Oher's estranged father was murdered while Oher was a senior in high school.


Oher applied for admission to a private school, Briarcrest Christian School, at the instigation of acquaintance Tony Henderson, with whom he was staying temporarily. Henderson was sending his son to the school in order to fulfill the dying wish of the boy's grandmother, and he decided that Oher might as well come along. Although the school's football coach was interested in Oher, school administrators did not feel that he was capable of handling the school's academic workload due to his scant educational background; however, he was admitted after he attempted to qualify for admission through a home-study program that removed him from the public education system.


A couple with a daughter at the school, Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy, allowed Oher to move in with them and began taking care of his needs after becoming familiar with his difficult personal circumstances. They also connected him with a tutor, who worked with him for twenty hours a week. He eventually brought his 0.9 grade point average up to 2.65. Later, the Tuohy family adopted him.