Though he ran cross-country for the Rams as a freshman, after graduating from Fordham Prep, Ed Gilleran soon retired his running shoes and took to the typewriter as a sports writer for the school newspaper, The Ram. After serving two years in the Army in Europe during World War II, including D-Day in Normandy, Ed returned to Rose Hill and assumed the responsibility of Sports Editor of the Ram in 1946-47.

In addition to numerous articles on Fordham football, Ed published a historical review of the Fordham football program of the 1930's and early `40s; They Won Their Laurels Bright in 1981. The book is in the library of the College Football Hall of Fame in Ohio.