The Blind Side

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie The Blind Side. I think it is among one of my favourite movies of all time. It is based on a true story. Almost all Hollywood true stories have a number of discrepancies with the truth. This one seemed to come pretty close.

From some online articles about The Blind Side

Why is the movie called The Blind Side? As diagrammed with the Joe Theismann/Lawrence Taylor footage at the beginning of the movie (see below), Michael Oher's position on the football field is left tackle. It is the left tackle's job to protect the quarterback's blind side.

What happened to Michael's father? Like in The Blind Side movie, Michael Oher's birth father was murdered. He was shot and killed, then thrown off an overpass on the west side of Memphis. Michael didn't learn of his father's death until three months after it happened, partially because it took time for his father to be identified. Tony Henderson, who helped Michael get into Briarcrest, called the school office with the news of Michael's father's death. Michael's father hadn't been around when he was growing up.

Why did the filmmakers change the name of the school to Wingate for the film? In the movie, the Christian school that Michael attends is named Wingate and is the home of the Wingate Crusaders football team. Through our research into the Michael Oher true story we discovered that the real name of the school is Briarcrest, home of the Briarcrest Saints. "It wasn't adversarial, there were just concerns," Briarcrest president Mark Merrill said. He noted that there were several school administrators who were concerned over instances of "artistic license" in the original script that stretched the truth.

Did Michael Oher really encounter Leigh Anne Tuohy on the side of the road? "There were a few artistic liberties taken in that scene," the real Leigh Anne Tuohy told Mike Huckabee during a Fox News Channel interview. Unlike the rainy nighttime scene in the movie, The Blind Side true story reveals that Leigh Anne's encounter with Michael on the side of the road really happened on a cold morning during Thanksgiving break. She and her husband watched Michael get off a city bus in the snow wearing only cutoff blue jeans and a t-shirt. Like in the movie, Michael was on his way to the school gym in order to escape the weather and find warmth. In reality, Leigh Anne didn't offer Michael a place to stay immediately. Instead, their encounter on the side of the road on that snowy November morning in 2002, prompted her to pick Michael up at Briarcrest the next day and take him shopping. 

Was the Tuohy family the only family that Michael Oher stayed with while attending Briarcrest? No. In reality, it took months after the roadside encounter before the Tuohy family welcomed Michael into their home. For months, Michael actually continued staying with Tony Henderson (aka Big Tony), the mechanic whose son also attended Briarcrest Christian School. And for months after that, at least five different families, both white and black, provided Michael with a place to stay after his coaches realized that he didn't have a home. This eventually included the Tuohy family. "He'd stay here once in a while and then he'd leave," says Sean Tuohy, "and then he seemed more comfortable to stay." (20/20) With regard to the Tuohy family, the real Michael Oher said, "When I moved in with Leigh Anne and Sean, I felt loved, like part of a family. In the other houses I didn't feel like part of the family. I didn't feel like they wanted me there." 

Did Michael Oher really have to learn to play football when he first joined the high school team? No. This was grossly exaggerated in the movie. Michael did not have to learn how to play football, and Leigh Anne never walked onto the practice field to inspire Michael by telling him to protect his team as if he was protecting their family. The film's suggestion that he needed to be taught how to play football upset the real Michael Oher,

Did the Tuohy's son S.J. really help teach Michael about football? No. As the real Michael Oher stated above, he already knew how to play football. When Michael Oher was taken in by the Tuohy family, the Tuohy's son S.J. (Sean Jr.) was 8-years-old at the time. Michael and S.J. did play sports together recreationally, but S.J. didn't have to teach him anything.

Did the library scene really happen with Leigh Anne's daughter Collins? No. The real Collins Tuohy never had to overcome taunting at school because of Michael staying with her family. "My friends were very open to Michael," Collins said. "They were very sweet to him and we all got along really well." After investigating The Blind Side true story, we discovered that the reality of Collin's support of Michael was actually much more profound than what is seen onscreen. Collins Tuohy, an honor student, rearranged her entire class schedule in order to help Michael. She dropped all of her AP (advanced placement) classes to be in Michael's English and math classes, so that she could understand what his assignments were. She spent several hours at night helping him with his homework.

Did a gang member really taunt Leigh Anne when she visited Michael's mother? No. Gang members never taunted Leigh Anne. However, once when she was dropping Michael off after taking him clothes shopping, he did tell her to stay in the car like his character does in the movie.

The real Tuohy family Christmas card photo vs. the movie photo (inset).

Was Michael really included in the family Christmas card like in the movie? Yes. The actual photo is shown above. Like in the movie, Leigh Anne says that her cousin called her to ask her about the photo. "He said, 'I'm not trying to be rude or anything. Who's the black boy in the Christmas card?'" 

Did Michael really get in a fight when he was waiting to see his mom? No. Michael did not get into a fight with gang members in his old neighborhood. However, after researchingThe Blind Side true story, we discovered that while he was in college at Ole Miss, Michael got into a fight with teammate Antonio Turner who had visited the Tuohy's home. At some point after his visit, Turner called Michael a cracker for living with a white family. Antonio also made comments to Michael suggesting that he was going to have sex with Michael's white sister and white mother (similar to the comments made by the gang member in the movie). This infuriated Michael who chased after Antonio and eventually tracked him down hiding at the study hall where the football players studied with their tutors. Michael threw the 230 pound Antonio into the ground, picked him up by the throat, beat him in the face and threw him across the room. In the process, the 3-year-old son of one of the tutors was knocked to the floor and suffered a bad head wound.. At Sean Tuohy's urging, Michael eventually turned himself in to the campus police. Michael ended up making apologies and was given ten hours of community service. 

Did Michael Oher ever graduate college? Yes. Michael graduated from the University of Mississippi (aka Ole Miss) after playing football for the Ole Miss Rebels for four years. While attending Ole Miss, Michael made the dean's list.

How long did Michael live with the Tuohy family? Michael was a sophomore when he came to Briarcrest. He began staying regularly at the Tuohy's in the fall of his junior year, 2003. He remained with the Tuohys until he left for college at Ole Miss. Officially adopted by the family, Michael returned often to visit, sometimes bringing players from the Ole Miss team with him (Evolution of a Game).

Leigh Anne Tuohy congratulates Michael Oher at the 2009 NFL Draft.

When did Michael Oher enter the NFL? In 2009, Michael was selected as the 23rd pick in the first round of the NFL draft by the Baltimore Ravens. The entire Tuohy family was with him at the draft, in addition to his tutor Miss Sue and his older brother Marcus. He entered the league as a starting lineman on the Ravens team.

On April 26, 2009, he was assigned the No. 74 jersey, which was his jersey number at Ole Miss. On July 30, 2009, he signed a five-year, $13.8 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens.

Michael Ohr played in the Superbowl on Feb 3, 2013 and helped the Baltimore Ravens to a 34-31 win against the San Fransisco 49ers.

On March 14, 2014 Oher signed a 4 year, $20 million contract with Tennessee Titans.

The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game

Tackle the real story as author Michael Lewis presents Oher's journey without the Hollywood sugarcoating, revealing certain less flattering details about Oher's path to college football and eventually the NFL. This isn't to say his experience isn't inspiring; the book just does a better job at disclosing every aspect of the story.

Maybe this book is one that should be on my 'to read' list.

Along with the other 3,000 that I will get to one day : )