My ‘3 Stars’ selections now that Week 7 is tucked neatly in bed …

Kriss Brown, Wilson – What a game for the Bulldogs’ speedster, who rushed for 229 yards on 15 carries (15.3 per pop) and scored five touchdowns in Wilson’s 61-19 runaway win over cross-town rival Reading. Brown’s TD runs covered 5, 32, 33, 50 and 14 yards, respectively, as the ‘Dawgs took a major bite out of Reading in their final L-L League Section 1 meeting before the Knights jump ship to Berks I-C Section 1 next fall. Wilson ended up leading the L-L League series 19-5. Brown has been a major find for Wilson, which needed to find a No. 1 RB to replace Zacc Groff, who graduated after a bust-out senior season last fall. Brown had been sharing a majority of the load with Nick Greth – who continues to get plenty of touches and yards for Wilson – but he’s been a standout the last several weeks. Three weeks ago he rushed for 119 yards and a TD against Cedar Crest, and two weeks ago he rushed for 116 yards against Hempfield. Last Friday, Brown capped his outstanding three-week clip with 229 yards and five scores vs. Reading. Through seven games, he leads the team with 633 rushing yards (on 56 attempts) and 8 TD runs. And Brown leads the L-L League in yards per carry (11.3), among back with 300 or more rushing yards.

Austin Hartman, Cocalico – The Eagles’ slug-it-out junior FB was up to his old tricks on a rain-slick field last Friday night against Elizabethtown. With All-Star QB Matt Carty nursing an injury, Hartman took the ball 34 times and rushed for 200 yards and four TD in Cocalico’s 26-6 win over the Bears. Hartman also added a 2-point conversion run, meaning he accounted for all 26 of Cocalico’s points. The 200-yard effort inched Hartman closer to his second 1,000-yard season in a row as the Eagles’ full-time FB. Through seven games, Hartman is up to 949 yards on 147 carries (6.5 per touch) and he’s scored 14 TD. The 949 yards are second-most in the L-L League (CV’s Kevin Kelley has 1,350) and the 14 TD runs are second-most in the L-L League (Kelley has 18 for the Buckskins).

Kyle Smith, Lancaster Catholic – The Crusaders’ senior QB enjoyed the Monday Night Football stage at Northern Lebanon, where he picked apart the Vikings’ secondary while moving up the list on a couple of state records. Smith clicked on 12-of-18 attempts for 263 yards and he tossed five TD passes in Catholic’s 59-17 win. He was not picked off. Through six games (don’t forget, he missed the Manheim Central game with a high ankle sprain in Week 3), Smith is completing 61 percent of his throws (64-of-105) for 1,125 yards and a league-best 21 TD tosses against just two picks. His TD passes against Northern Lebanon covered 60 yards to Tyler Purvis, 5 yards to Andrew Millay, 26 yards to Purvis, 64 yards to Rhys McCall and 8 yards to Purvis, respectively. Smith has also marched up the passing charts: He’s now alone in 4th place in career TD passes and he’s alone in 10th place in career passing yards in state history.