Michael Oher is an offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens, who selected him with the 23rd overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Oher, who played collegiately at the University of Mississippi, is the subject of Michael Lewis's 2006 book "The Blind Side". Oher withdrew from the 2008 NFL Draft two days after declaring, but was eligible for the 2009 NFL Draft after exhausting his four years of eligibility at Mississippi.

Oher didn't play football until his junior year at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, TN. In his senior season, he took over as the starting left tackle, and quickly became one of the top prospects at the position. He didn't allow a sack in his two seasons and was credited with 200 pancake blocks. Oher earned first team All-America honors from USA Today and played in the US Army All-America Bowl. After receiving scholarship offers from Tennessee, LSU, Alabama, and NC State, Oher signed with Mississippi.

Michael Oher's decision to sign with Ole Miss was investigated by the NCAA, due to Sean Tuohy's pre-existing relationship with the school, where he had played basketball. Oher's high school coach, Hugh Freeze, also took a job at Ole Miss. The NCAA eventually ruled that Ole Miss had committed no NCAA violations in its recruitment of Oher, but did find Freeze guilty of secondary violations for contacting Memphis-area recruits prior to joining the Ole Miss staff.

Once he was cleared for eligibility, Oher played 11 games as a freshman at Mississippi, starting the last 10 games of the season at right guard. Oher was a first team Freshman All-America selection by The Sporting News and a first team Freshman All-SEC selection.

As a sophomore, Oher moved to his natural position of left tackle. His blocking helped Mississippi running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis run for 1,000 yards, becoming just the third 1,000-yard rusher in school history. He was a second team All-SEC selection. Oher was one of only three sophomore offensive linemen selected to an All-SEC team that season.

Oher once again started every game at left tackle as a junior, paving the way for Green-Ellis to run for 1,137 rushing yards, the second-most in school history. Oher was a consensus first team All-SEC selection, leading him to declare for the 2008 NFL Draft. However, two days after declaring, Oher changed his mind and chose to return to Mississippi for his senior season.

As a senior, Oher helped Mississippi improve to an 8-4 regular-season record, their first winning season since 2003. The Rebels earned a berth in the Cotton Bowl, the first Bowl appearance of Oher's career and the first for Mississippi since the 2003 season. Oher was again a consensus first team All-SEC selection and was a first team All-America selection by the Associated Press. He was a finalist for the 2008 Outland Trophy, but lost to fellow SEC standout Andre Smith of Alabama.

Oher was selected in the first round (23rd overall) of the 2009 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens. He did not report for Ravens training camp on the rookie reporting date (July 27, 2009), but agreed to a five-year/$13M contract two days later. The contract includes $7.82M in guaranteed money.

Oher started all 16 games as a rookie for the Ravens, playing primarily at right tackle but also seeing time at left tackle. Oher helped the Ravens reach the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

Oher's biological mother is Denise Oher, but he is the adopted son of Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy. Due to the early death of his biological father and the drug abuse of his biological mother, Oher spent most of his childhood in various foster homes. He moved in with the Tuhoys when he was 16. Oher received tutoring once he moved in with the Tuohys, allowing him to improve his grades enough to be admitted to Briarcrest Christian School and eventually attend college.

Oher's turbulent upbringing was the subject of Michael Lewis's 2006 book "The Blind Side", which detailed his path from foster child to college football star. The movie rights to the book were purchased by 20th Century Fox. The movie was released on Nov. 20, 2009. It was directed by John Lee Hancock, the director of the 2002 Disney movie "The Rookie", which told the true story of former Tampa Bay Devil Rays pitcher Jim Morris. The movie stars Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Tuohy, Tim McGraw as Sean Tuohy and Quinton Aaron as Oher. The movie earned $34.5M at the domestic box office in its opening weekend, setting a record for a sports drama. It was the eighth-highest grossing movie of 2009, earning more than $200M at the domestic box office.

Oher's adopted father, Sean Tuohy, played basketball at Ole Miss in the 1980s, and was drafted by the New Jersey Nets in the 10th round (218th overall) in 1982. He still holds SEC records for most assists in a season and career.