Catching up with state's top prospect LaBryan Ray, who gives latest on recruiting

James Clemens defensive end LaBryan Ray made his fourth trip to an SEC school over the weekend when the four-star recruit saw Tennessee beat Florida in Knoxville.

If the No. 1 player on the AL.com A-List is leaning to any school, he's not giving up any hints.

Ray has made unofficial visits to Auburn (vs. Clemson), Alabama (vs. Western Kentucky), Ole Miss (vs. Alabama) and recently Tennessee.

The 6-foot-4, 270-pound defensive end played a big role in the Jets' 28-6 win at Clay-Chalkville Friday, one week after he had 17 tackles against Sparkman in a 40-15 win. Ray's highlights this season also include recovering his own blocked punt for a score.

"This guy right here played well too, and they were holding him all night," James Clemens coach Wade Waldrop said. "It's impressive. Between Monty (Rice) and LaBryan, they've gotten better since the beginning of the year. They've been working hard all year."

For now, Ray could take two official visits during the season. He's planning an official visit to Florida the weekend of Oct. 8 when the Gators host LSU. He said his official visit to Alabama could be for the Iron Bowl.

The other schools in Ray's top six are Mississippi State, Auburn, Tennessee and Ole Miss. Auburn is in Ray's top group after originally not being in his top 12. Here's what he said about the four schools he's visited so far.

Tennessee: "Tennessee, I'm very high on. They were one of the first schools to recruit me. I've got a good relationship with a bunch of the coaches on the coaching staff, like (defensive line) Coach (Steve) Stripling especially. I am pretty high on Tennessee."

Ray added this on Sunday about his visit: "It went really well. Talked to all the coaches including coach (Butch) Jones. Really enjoyed myself. It was a awesome atmosphere and definitely a great game."

Ole Miss: "(The visit went) very well. My grandma and my aunt got to go.They got to see what it was like on a game day with the wild fans. It was a great environment. They enjoyed it."

Alabama: "I still like Alabama, definitely. They've made some plays defensively. They turned the game around in the Ole Miss game."

Auburn: "They started to recruit me really hard. I remember when they offered me, a couple of weeks later I went to visit and it's gone up from there.

"Their (defense is) good. I went to the Auburn-Clemson game and the defense was legit, even more so than I expected."

Ray's recruitment is still expected to go late in the process, maybe even all the way to National Signing Day.

"All of the schools are making me feel like a priority," Ray said. "They said that they want you and they need you. There's a spot there if you want it. Now, it's finding the best spot for me and my family."

Check out some highlights of Ray against Clay-Chalkville.

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