Four years ago I saw the film
"The Blindside" with Quinton Aaron and Sandra Bullock.
The movie was excellent, and as
usual - it shows a miniscule portion of what actually
happened, and is completely inept at representing the book.
This book reveals so much more, and it's not useless details - its important
back story.
The movie starts with Sandra Bullock
explaining Lawrence Taylor. Her one minute speech covers about five chapter
of the book.
The author explains
the history of the Left Tackle, and then the physical aspects of Michael Oher. Michael wasn't just big. He was
HUGE. He was bigger as a sophomore in High School than most NFL
lineman.
And he wasn't just big. He was
fast. Michael Oher didn't want to be a football player. He wanted to
play basketball, and he wanted to be a GUARD. When coaches would put him
under the basket and ask him to rebound and block shots - he would sneak back
outside and play like a guard. He was nimble, quick, and faster than
anyone else on the basketball court or the football field.
There are lots of big kids.
Finding HUGE kids that are also quick is truly rare. THAT is why he was
noticed by NFL coaches when he was a high school student.
He wasn't good at football. He
didn't know the game. He was on the track team and was told in school
that he might make a world class Discus thrower.
His physical build and ability were
amazing - but without Big Tony (who acted like a father for years) and then the
Tuohys, he never would have had the chance.
The movie shows a little bit of how
the Tuohy's helped him. Everything in the movie actually happened - from
Michael carrying the lineman clear off the field to try to take him to the bus
- to Leann having the coaches cell phone number and calling him during the game
to tell him how to coach, to Leann finding a fake baby picture of Michael since
none existed.
But there is so much more.
Even after living with the Tuohys, and having a private tutor, Michael could
still didn't have enough credits to graduate from high school. Sean
found out that BYU offered on-line classes for high school credits.
Michael took a course a week after his senior year, and by August he had enough
passing grades to graduate and go to college.
One last thing. The Tuohys
aren't just a rich family. They are the richest alumni of Ole Miss
EVER. They have a private jet and fly to NBA games across the nation for
fun on a Saturday night. They are REALLY REALLY rich. They had
helped many kids over the years - buying them clothes, or lunches at school, or
other things like that. Michael is the only one they ever brought in to
their own home and treated like their own child, but the Tuohys were used to
helping out the poorer kids in town. That's just who they are.
This book has two interweaving
story lines. First is the story of Michael Oher and the people who gave
him a chance. It's about the compassion and love and caring of people who
have no obligation and no obvious connection to this young man - but they
choose to get involved anyway. It's about the inner city, the separation
between black and white, rich and poor, the haves and the have- nots.
The second story is the one skipped
over by the movie. It is about NFL lineman. It's about the slow mental
shift about lineman - who they are and what they are worth. Lineman
go from being seen as interchangeable and not too valuable, to having very
specific roles and positions and having amazing worth. It shows how
Left Tackles gained recognition as the most useful and thus the highest paid
players on the field after the quarterbacks. The author shows the exact
physical build that is ideal for a left tackle, and why Michael Oher was perfect
for the role.
The Blindside is heart touching and
also thought provoking. This book can be enjoyed by the serious football
fan and the football naive reader alike.
I recommend it.
