A look at Michael Oher's Ole Miss recruitment, the Tuohys impact and 'Blind Side' fallout

OXFORD, Mississippi — Michael Oher filed a petition in a Tennessee court Monday, creating drama with his stunning revelation that he never was legally adopted and including the explosive allegation that the Tuohy family — whose relationship with Oher inspired "The Blind Side" book and Academy Award-nominated movie — tricked him into a conservatorship before pocketing his royalties from the book and film.

Sean Tuohy's legal team vigorously denied the latter allegation during a news conference Wednesday, saying Oher received $100,000. But the existence of a conservatorship wasn't contested, and it's a fact that traces back to Oher's recruitment to Ole Miss football.

The conservatorship, according to patriarch Sean Tuohy and his lawyer, Randy Fishman, was designed to make Oher "part of the family," they said this week. In doing so, it cleared Oher's path to Ole Miss. The NCAA would not have allowed him to be eligible immediately for the Rebels without it, after defining the Tuohys as boosters of the program, the family said.

Sean Tuohy was a standout basketball player for the Rebels, and his family name adorns Ole Miss' basketball practice facility – which opened after Oher graduated ‒ after a significant financial gift helped make it possible.

Here's a look at the college football recruitment that inspired this week's drama and its fallout:

Michael Oher commits to Ole Miss football

Oher told The Memphis Commercial Appeal, now part of the USA TODAY Network, in July 2004 that he was "definitely a Tennessee fan growing up."

The Vols, then coached by Phillip Fulmer, seemed to be in pole position for Oher, who was entering his senior season at Briarcrest Christian in Memphis. Hugh Freeze, his high school coach at the time, would later say he thought Tennessee was the pick until shortly before Oher committed.

Ole Miss fired its coach, David Cutcliffe, after a 4-7 season in December 2004, replacing him with Ed Orgeron. After the news broke, Oher said he'd had a personal relationship with Cutcliffe and his offensive line coach John Latine.

"But if (Orgeron) is a good guy, something probably can get worked out," Oher said.

Nick Saban's departure later that month from LSU, another one of Oher's finalists, further complicated things. By January 2005, he said he was down to Memphis, Ole Miss, Tennessee and LSU. Oher said he'd "heard things" about Les Miles, Saban's replacement in Baton Rouge.

The first report emerged on Jan. 14 that Orgeron had offered Freeze a job on his staff. Oher said having Freeze around would be a "big factor" and would "help his decision a lot."

He verbally committed to Ole Miss on Jan. 18. Freeze was officially announced as Ole MIss' assistant athletics director for football external affairs a bit over a month later. He would go on to be the Rebels' head coach from 2012-16.

"When it came down to it, I had to follow my heart," Oher said. I just couldn't imagine myself trying to block my (Briarcrest) teammate Justin Sparks' field goals or having my sister, Collins (Tuohy), on the sideline cheering for a school that I am not playing for."

Tuohys, Oher emphasize that Ole Miss was his decision

In an interview with The Memphis Commercial Appeal on Feb. 3, 2005, Oher said the choice to attend Ole Miss was strictly his.

"It was crazy. It's still crazy," Oher said. "Everybody thinks I went to Ole Miss because of the Tuohy family. I did what I wanted to do. I made a decision myself."

Sean Tuohy frequently spoke to the press about the lengths to which he went to recuse himself from Oher's recruitment. He said he refused to discuss Oher's college decision with him.

Oher said he knew Tuohy would support him in whatever decision he made, adding that he had figured out how to arrange his schedule to be in Knoxville on gamedays if Oher had chosen the Vols.

"It was hard for him not to say anything," Oher said. "Deep down inside, I know he probably wanted me to go to Ole Miss."

When Oher made his commitment announcement, Tuohy said he wasn't prouder of him than he was for the "last two years" when he said Oher lived with him.

"Now I'm excited, because (Oher's) decision sure makes it easier on me," Tuohy said when Oher committed. "But I'd have been excited wherever he went."

Eligibility, NCAA Investigation and 'The Blind Side'

Orgeron told the media on July 27, 2005, that he was waiting for word on whether or not Oher would be eligible for the upcoming season.

Oher had well-publicized academic hurdles to clear before he could play for the Rebels. On Aug. 5, The (Jackson, Miss.) Clarion Ledger, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported that Oher had been ruled academically eligible.

Frequent mentions in the press of an NCAA investigation into the Tuohys and their relationship with Ole Miss began with the release of Michael Lewis' book: "The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game." In general, Oher has often looked to discredit the book, which portrayed him as lazy and unintelligent.

What we know: Michael Oher, Tuohy family at odds over legal petition, 'Blind Side' money

Who profited from Oher's life story?: 'The Blind Side' movie controversy explained

The book popularized the narrative that Oher had been adopted ‒ incorrectly, as it has been revealed this week. Instead, Oher signed a conservatorship – a way for someone to gain legal guardianship over an adult and their finances. The Tuohys say they took that route to allow Oher to play for Ole Miss, which he did, after the NCAA investigation found nothing to keep him off the field.

The Tuohys discussed the fallout of the investigation with the Associated Press.

"There's not very many secrets in my life anyway," Sean Tuohy said. "A lot of this, people in Dallas know about now. But the people in Oxford, they probably knew about 95% of it anyway.

"Hanging your underwear out on the line and stringing it across Poplar Avenue for two years is not a very wonderful process. But you know it's a great story, and it needed to be told. Sometimes you have to take one for the team."

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Michael Oher's Ole Miss recruitment, Tuohy impact, 'Blind Side' fallout