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The Daily OrangeOher emerges from chaotic childhood
By Didier Morais
Posted: 9/18/08, 1:27 AM EST Section: Sports
Michael Oher has come a long way from being homeless on the streets of Memphis. Back when he bounced from home to home, hauling along a garbage bag as a suitcase.
Growing up, the Mississippi senior offensive tackle never experienced a normal childhood. He had no friends, no family and no living accommodations. In fact, the odds were stacked against his own survival.
"Basically, I didn't have anything to eat or any places to stay," Oher said. "I was learning from the streets, so I had to find my own places to stay."
Now considered by some scouts as a potential top 10 pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, Oher has come a long way from his chaotic childhood.
When Oher was born, his father walked out on him, leaving the caretaking responsibilities to his mother. But during Oher's childhood, she became a cocaine addict and neglected her son.
As a result, for the first 16 years of his life Oher alternated between foster homes and for periods of time had no official address. He also encountered harsh difficulties in the classroom. He abandoned his work and repeated both first and second grade.
To make matters worse, Oher's erratic lifestyle forced him to constantly move and change schools. During Oher's first nine years as a student, he attended 11 different schools, which included an 18-month span in which he did not attend school at all.
Still, Oher continued to find motivation amidst his troubling surroundings.
"I mean I knew there was a better life, and it motivated me to know that my life could be better than what was," Oher said. "I just kept working hard and trying to reach a point in my life where I knew I could be successful."
At the age of 16, Oher moved in with a friend, Tony Henderson, sleeping on his floor every night. One day, Henderson decided to enroll Oher at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, along with Henderson's son, Steven Payne.
The school initially rejected Oher's application due to his poor academic records. But the school's football coach urged the school administration to reconsider and allow him to attend. Briarcrest agreed, but under one condition - Oher could not participate in football activities until he improved his academic record.
Growing up, the Mississippi senior offensive tackle never experienced a normal childhood. He had no friends, no family and no living accommodations. In fact, the odds were stacked against his own survival.
"Basically, I didn't have anything to eat or any places to stay," Oher said. "I was learning from the streets, so I had to find my own places to stay."
Now considered by some scouts as a potential top 10 pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, Oher has come a long way from his chaotic childhood.
When Oher was born, his father walked out on him, leaving the caretaking responsibilities to his mother. But during Oher's childhood, she became a cocaine addict and neglected her son.
As a result, for the first 16 years of his life Oher alternated between foster homes and for periods of time had no official address. He also encountered harsh difficulties in the classroom. He abandoned his work and repeated both first and second grade.
To make matters worse, Oher's erratic lifestyle forced him to constantly move and change schools. During Oher's first nine years as a student, he attended 11 different schools, which included an 18-month span in which he did not attend school at all.
Still, Oher continued to find motivation amidst his troubling surroundings.
"I mean I knew there was a better life, and it motivated me to know that my life could be better than what was," Oher said. "I just kept working hard and trying to reach a point in my life where I knew I could be successful."
At the age of 16, Oher moved in with a friend, Tony Henderson, sleeping on his floor every night. One day, Henderson decided to enroll Oher at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, along with Henderson's son, Steven Payne.
The school initially rejected Oher's application due to his poor academic records. But the school's football coach urged the school administration to reconsider and allow him to attend. Briarcrest agreed, but under one condition - Oher could not participate in football activities until he improved his academic record.
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