Lausanne running back Eric Gray wins Gatorade player of the year award

The honors keep rolling in for Eric Gray.

Just days after leading Lausanne to its second consecutive state championship, the junior running back was named Gatorade player of the year for the state of Tennessee on Monday.

The trophy will sit nicely next to the second straight Mr. Football award he picked up on Nov. 28.

Gray — who has offers from a host of major colleges — ran for 3,151 yards in just 13 games while leading Lausanne to its second straight undefeated season. He scored 45 touchdowns on the ground and 49 in total, setting a Shelby County single-season record.

Over the past two years, the 5-10, 190-pounder has run for 5,366 yards and scored 91 touchdowns for a team that has won 27 games in a row.

"Eric Gray is the real deal," said Franklin Road Academy coach Bill Whittemore in a statement. "He's one heck of an explosive running back. His vision and agility make him one of the best I've seen."

Following Lausanne's 41-13 victory over Chattanooga Notre Dame in the BlueCross Bowl Division II-AA championship game on Dec. 2, Fighting Irish defensive coordinator Curt Jones said, "He's the best runner I've seen since (former Alabama player) Santonio Beard. He's got extraordinary vision and his ability to cut back and find a seam and break arm tackles is something we haven't seen."

Gray is now a finalist for Gatorade's national player of the year award, which will be announced later this month. He's the third Memphian to win the state award this decade, joining Whitehaven's Mark Dodson (2012) and White Station's Dillon Mitchell (2016).

Reach John Varlas at john.varlas@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @johnvarlas