Greensboro's African American Community Newspaper since 1967
CHICAGO — In its 39th year of honoring the nation’s most elite high school athletes, Gatorade recently announced that Le’Ezra Brown of Dudley High School is the 2023-24 Gatorade North Carolina Boys Track & Field Player of the Year. Brown is the first Gatorade North Carolina Boys Track & Field Player of the Year to be chosen from Dudley High School.
The award, which celebrates the nation’s top high school athletes for excellence on the field, in the classroom and in the community, distinguishes Brown as North Carolina’s best high school boys track & field player. From CEOs and coaches to star athletes, Gatorade Player of the Year winners showcase the power of sport, touting an all-star group of alumni that includes Alan Webb (2000-01, South Lakes High School, Va.), Kerron Clement (2002-03, Laporte High School, Texas) and Grant Fisher (2014-15 & 2013-14, Grand Blanc High School, Mich.).
The 6-foot-1, 170-pound hurdler/sprinter won a national championship in the 110-meter hurdles this past season, clocking a time of 13.72 seconds to earn All-American honors. Brown was even faster in taking bronze at the USATF U20 Championships, crossing the line in 13.49, which ranked as the No. 6 time nationally among prep boys competitors in 2024. He won his signature event at the Class 3A state meet and added titles in the 100 dash (10.43) and the 300 hurdles (personal-best 37.44)—each of the latter times ranked among the nation’s Top 60 this spring— leading the Panthers to the team title.
A member of the school’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Brown has volunteered locally at his church assisting in clean-up projects and with church services. “Harnessing both the speed on the open flat and technique over the barriers, Le’Ezra Brown will undoubtedly have college recruiters abuzz next year,” said Rich Gonzalez of PrepCalTrack. “It’s not often that an athlete will win the national title in the 110 hurdles at one meet and challenge for the crown in the open 100 at another, but he’s a special talent.”
Brown has maintained a 3.02 weighted GPA in the classroom. He will begin his senior year of high school this fall.
The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which leverages experts including coaches, scouts, media and others as sources to help evaluate and determine the state winners in each sport.
Brown joins recent Gatorade North Carolina Boys Track & Field Players of the Year Rocky Hansen (2022-23 & 2021- 22, Christ School), Spencer Williams (2020-21, Davie County High School) and Cameron Rose (2019-20, Hickory Ridge High School), among the state’s list of former award winners.
As part of Gatorade’s commitment to breaking down barriers in sport, every Player of the Year also receives a grant to donate to a social impact partner. To date, the Gatorade Player of the Year program has provided more than $4.9 million in grants to winners across more than 1,900 organizations.
