OXFORD, Miss. — NFL.com analyst and former Dallas Cowboys personnel director Gil Brandt has met and evaluated thousands of players in a career that has spanned more than five decades.Few have inspired him like Mississippi left tackle Michael Oher, who’s a few months away from completing a journey to the NFL most never thought possible.”His jersey hangs in my office because it makes me understand what you can do if you have the will to do it,” Brandt said.Seven years ago Oher was essentially a homeless teenager on the very mean streets of west Memphis, Tenn., without strong family ties, an education or much of a chance. But when opportunity came — thanks to a gargantuan physique perfectly suited to playing left tackle and an ability to move his feet like a basketball player — Oher grabbed on and wouldn’t let go.Oher was proclaimed the next big thing by recruiting experts, scouts and every major football coach in the country. Tom Lemming said he was the best left tackle coming out of high school since Orlando Pace, the St. Louis Rams’ perennial Pro Bowl selection.Yet he could barely read, had little formal education and was the longest of shots to enter college. His story, chronicled in Michael Lewis’ book, “The Blind Side,” is a little like “Great Expectations” crossed with “Friday Night Lights.”And the happy ending is almost here.He’s everybody’s all-American and set to graduate on time next spring, but the NFL will likely put those plans on hold. Oher is expected to go somewhere in the top 10 of April’s draft and maybe as high as No. 1.There were six left tackles taken in the first round of the draft last April, including top overall pick Jake Long of Michigan, who went to the Miami Dolphins. Five of the six are starters (Chicago’s Chris Williams was injured and is out for the year).”I think he’s on par with Jake Long and I think he’s better than the other four who are starters in the NFL right now,” Brandt said.The one knock against Oher has been that he’s not as physical as he should be. He’d rather pass block than get down and dirty on run plays. When new coach Houston Nutt took over last year, he set a goal for Oher to start roughing up the opponent.”I think every scout that has come in has said that he is more physical, sees how much harder he is playing with the speed and the tempo at which he plays,” Nutt said.At 6-foot-5 and 320 pounds, Oher is no hulking tower of blob. He’s cut like a sprinter, runs on the balls of his feet and forces running backs to sprint when he’s pulling ahead of them. But he’s more than just a physical specimen. Oher will be making his 45th straight start when the Rebels play at No. 18 LSU on Saturday, and he’s been tested by fire in the Southeastern Conference.He can check off the big names he’s successfully faced who have gone on to the NFL. Derrick Harvey, Charles Johnson, Quentin Moses, Quentin Groves. He’ll face arguably his toughest challenge of the season in Baton Rouge, where four NFL-ready defensive ends will rotate over to his side during the game.”This is the SEC, man. It’s rough,” Oher said. —-Contact The Daily Reveille’s sports staff at [email protected]