Nation's No. 1 IOL, Five-Star LSU Football Target Set to Make Major Announcement

Richmond (Va.) St. Christopher School five-star offensive lineman Darius Gray has Brian Kelly's LSU Tigers firmly in the mix as he narrows his focus to a handful of schools.

Gray, the No. 1 interior offensive lineman in America, has locked in five finalists with the Tigers sitting alongside the South Carolina Gamecocks, Tennessee Volunteers, Clemson Tigers and Ohio State Buckeyes.

The 6-foot-2, 285-pounder took multiple official visits this summer with a final five now locked in as the summer months wind down.

Following an official visit to Baton Rouge this summer, Kelly and the LSU Tigers began gaining momentum for the coveted five-star prospect.

"Definitely Coach Davis. Coach Davis is one of the greatest humans that I’ve ever talked to," Gray told Tennessee Volunteers On SI. "He gives off a father figure.

"He hopes the kids grow as men, and that is very important with me coming into college at 18, so to have someone like that to help you develop as an NFL player, but also as a great human being, a great husband, a great father, and that is just something I want.

"LSU kind of speaks for itself. It’s a winning program. They do everything to develop linemen perfectly, so that’s good and they check all the boxes.”

But the South Carolina Gamecocks remain a force in his recruitment, a source tells LSU Tigers On SI, with both programs labeled contenders.

“They have been the longest relationship possible. I think the most important thing to me is how everyone remained the same," Gray said.

"You know way back, they were a five or six win team and now they are scratching the surface for playoffs and not once did they change anything that they are doing with their culture, so I think that’s been the biggest thing for me and Coach Beamer is an amazing people that you’d want to play for.”

LSU and South Carolina remain two schools to watch in Gray's recruitment process, but the Ohio State Buckeyes, Clemson Tigers and Tennessee Volunteers remain in the mix.

Now, Gray has an announcement to make, according to his social media.