The second day of the 2023 Texas State 7-on-7 Tournament in College Station is in the books, with the Division II and Division III champions crowned and Division I pool play done and dusted. The Dave Campbell's Texas Football staff was all over the event, seeing teams from every corner of the state. Here's what we noticed.

No surprise: superstars dazzle in College Station

Greg Tepper, managing editor

We've talked all week about the star power that's going to descend upon College Station, and sure enough, the Brazos Valley was overwhelmed by individual playmakers as the Division I teams took the field.

It's hard to miss Lake Belton receiver Micah Hudson, who displayed remarkably smooth route-running and sure hands to pace the Broncos. In the same vein, I came away very impressed by Austin Westlake quarterback Kadyn Leon, who dropped some wildly impressive throws for the Chaps. San Antonio Johnson quarterback Ty Hawkins is worth the price of admission, as is DeSoto quarterback DJ Bailey. And on the defensive side, I came away really impressed by McKinney cornerback Ashton McShane, who looked like top-end playmaker throughout pool play.

Poth gets hot late; parity reigns in Division I

Matt Stepp, high school insider

Repeat champions in Division III (Miles) and Division II (Hitchcock) were the story in the morning, but Poth’s turn-around in Division III really caught my eye.  The Pirates were 0-3 on Thursday and they rallied in a major way with a run to the championship game before falling to Miles. Although Hitchcock was the story in Division II, two other teams showed me quite a bit in Silsbee and Anna. Silsbee ran all the way to the semifinals before falling to Anna in a close game, and Anna who finished the tournament 7-1 went toe to toe with Hitchcock in the championship game. 

The story of the day in Division I was parity across the board, no team in my view really took the mantle as a dominant team after pool play. There were several teams who looked good and went 3-0 (North Crowley, Frisco Wakeland, Austin Westlake and Dripping Springs all were strong), but all looked potentially beatable as well. I am thinking we may have some real surprises early on Day 2. 

Defense takes center stage in Division I

William Wilkerson, digital director

Enough about all these high-flying 7-on-7 offenses, let's talk some 7-on-7 defense.

A couple that really stood out to me on Friday were San Marcos, Round Rock, Pearland Dawson and Byron Nelson.

Byron Nelson held Coppell and Vista Ridge to 12 points a piece in victories, while giving up only 18 in its lone loss to Hightower.

In a defensive slugfest, Dawson held a supremely talented McKinney squad to just a single score in a 12-6 win. 

Round Rock held Rudder and Spring to 13 and 6 points respectively, while San Marcos overwhelmed Timber Creek and Cy Falls with its physicality. 

Willis QB DJ Lagway lives up to the hype

Greg Powers, director of recruiting

Willis four-star quarterback DJ Lagway has long been the No. 1 QB in the state in the DCTF ratings, but after what we observed today you can go ahead and add him as a candidate to move up into the five-star category.

Technically, his status as No. 8 in the state already puts him in that category, but he is No. 8 and rising as far as I am concerned. His raw ability as a passer has always been there but his attention to detail in the offseason has helped him progress as a passer.

His footwork has improved in the pocket and his delivery is more repeatable and consistent, which helped him lay the ball right in his receiver's hands when he dialed up power shots in the deep passing game.