Exeter’s Leo Brown tops 42-year-old Berks record to earn rushing crown

By Mike Drago Last updated Nov 18, 2025

2025 Berks football coverage presented by

Utilities Employees Credit Union

Exeter fell short of returning to the district championship game but the Eagles do have a champion: Leo Brown.

The senior tailback became Berks County’s single-season rushing champ Friday when he passed David Gilmore’s long-standing mark in Exeter’s 42-0 loss to Bishop McDevitt in a District 3 Class 5A semifinal.

Brown needed just 9 yards to top Gilmore’s record of 2,403; he got it on the Eagles’ second possession when he broke off a 20-yard run.

That turned out to be Brown’s longest run on a difficult night that saw him limited to a season-low 49 yards on 17 carries.

Still, he finished with 2,444 yards, topping Gilmore’s 42-year-old record by 41.

“That record is definitely gonna be a big statement for the program, and I couldn’t have done it without my teammates,” Brown said. “They really pushed me to get to that point. I couldn’t ask for a better team.”

Interestingly, both Brown and Gilmore achieved their records in 13 games.

In his final game Gilmore led Central Catholic to the District 3 Class A championship with an overtime win against Littlestown. He ran for 156 yards on 34 carries in his final game.

Gilmore rushed for 100 or more yards in all 13 games his senior season.

Berks single-season rushing leaders

Leo Brown	Exeter	2,444	2025
David Gilmore	Central Catholic	2,403	1983
Jayden Zandier	Exeter	2,093	2024
Nick Singleton	Gov. Mifflin	2,059	2021
Cameron Small	Muhlenberg	2,051	2024
Tyler Emge	Fleetwood	2,000	2014
Angel Cruz	Conrad Weiser	1,885	2012
Jason Reinhart	Muhlenberg	1,883	1998
Joe Rys	Central Catholic	1,835	2010
Rodney Gillin	Wilson	1,829	2010

Brown topped 100 yards in 11 straight games before he was denied Friday. The only other time he finished with fewer than 100 yards was in the season-opener against Daniel Boone when he carried just four times for 91 yards. The Eagles were up 35-0 after one quarter and 64-0 at half; there was no need for him to touch the ball more than four times.

Gilmore topped 200 yards four times; Brown did it six times, including five times in the six weeks before facing McDevitt.

Each had his best game in a key league showdown. Gilmore went for 356 yards and six touchdowns in a midseason battle of Inter-County League unbeaten against Wyomissing. Brown went for 305 yards and two scores in a late-season Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 first-place battle against Conestoga Valley.

Gilmore had a much heavier workload: He had 30 or more carries four times, including in the final three games of the season: Against Holy Name in a battle for the Inter-County League title and against Annville-Cleona and Littlestown in the district playoffs. He averaged almost 26 carries per game.

Brown had 30 or more carries three times and averaged just over 21 carries per game. That average has been brought down by the fact that he had just five carries against winless Lebanon and 11 in an early season mercy-rule win over Pleasant Valley.

Brown averaged 8.7 yards per carry; Gilmore averaged 7.1.

Gilmore finished with a then Berks-record 37 touchdowns; Brown had 29.

Gilmore left with a Berks-record 4,288 career yards; it, like the most of his records, has been topped several times since, most recently by Governor Mifflin’s Nick Singleton.

Brown didn’t play football as a sophomore and didn’t get many chances as a junior because he was behind Jayden Zandier, a two-time All-State pick. Brown finished his career with 2,884 yards.

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of their seasons:

David Gilmore				Leo Brown
	Att.	Yards	TDs		Att.	Yards	TDs
Bish. Hafey	9	140	3	Boone	4	91	2
Reading	29	127	1	Boyertown	30	151	0
Hamburg	17	105	4	Pl. Valley	11	140	4
Exeter	23	257	5	Mifflin	20	206	3
Muhl.	26	123	2	Lebanon	5	122	2
Weiser	21	244	5	Ephrata	24	179	2
Wyom.	29	356	6	Muhl.	25	275	4
Kutztown	34	185	2	Hempfield	32	251	2
Boone	24	151	2	Con. Valley	29	305	2
Sch. Valley	17	158	3	Elizabeth.	30	156	2
Holy Name	34	171	1	L. Dauphin	22	269	2
A-Cleona	39	230	2	Con. Valley	28	220	3
Littlestown	34	156	1	McDevitt	17	49	0
	336	2,403	37		281	2,444	28