Tuohy married his wife, Leigh Anne, in the mid-1980s and the couple have two children together, and are also the adoptive parents of Michael Oher. In addition to Michael Oher, the Tuohys are parents to daughter Collins Tuohy (December 1986), who was a state champion at the pole vault and Cheerleader, and son Sean Tuohy Jr. (July 1993), who played guard for the Loyola Greyhounds. Tuohy and his wife live in Memphis, Tennessee.

Tuohy led the Ole Miss Rebels to their first SEC Men's Basketball Tournament championship in 1981. As a player at Ole Miss, Tuohy was named All-SEC in each of his four seasons. He was named to the All-Century SEC team and is the only basketball player in the history of the SEC to lead a statistical category for four years, as he did with assists. Tuohy holds the record for single season assists in the Southeastern Conference with 260. Tuohy is only the fourth basketball player ever chosen to the Ole Miss Sports Hall of Fame. Drafted by the NBA’s New Jersey Nets with the 218th pick (Round 10) in 1982, he opted to continue his career overseas before returning to the U.S. to be with his father in his final days.

Tuohy has also been a broadcaster for the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA since 2001. He has seven years of experience as an analyst for radio broadcasts at Ole Miss, as well as national broadcasts for Westwood One and CBS Radio.

Tuohy, his wife Leigh Anne, and his family are a subject of Michael Lewis' 2006 book, The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game, and its 2009 feature film adaptation, The Blind Side, where he is portrayed by Tim McGraw. The book and subsequent film are based on the Tuohys' raising of National Football League player Michael Oher, who was recently released by the Carolina Panthers.

Tuohy and his wife are also the co-authors of the book, In a Heartbeat: Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving, which was released in 2010.