This week, we saw the tides begin to shift a little bit in college football. Not only did we see the return of MACtion on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the first College Football Playoff rankings were released. This signals a changing of the times where the discussions turn from “Who’s going to win?” to “Who’s in?” This week also signals the end of the regular season in Underdog Fantasy’s CFB Best Ball formats, so all of your teams that you drafted on there will either advance to the playoffs or be dead after this week. To quote the ever-so-popular Marvel Cinematic Universe, “We’re in the endgame now.”
Quarterback
Thomas Castellanos, Boston College, $6600
I’ll be honest, I don’t understand why this salary is so low on DraftKings. While he is far from polished as a passer, Castellanos presents immense rushing upside, averaging over 12 rush attempts per game. He’s also in a game environment where his team is implied to score 28 points, and he is the entire engine for this offense. DFS Hero rates Castellanos as the top value play of the slate at the QB position.
Chandler Morris, North Texas, $9400
This one is a little bit more of a risk when you consider the opponent (Army) and the price tag (expensive). But I think Chandler Morris is a great play. Simply put, you don’t run the ball on Army – they are statistically the nation’s top rushing defense. And honestly, North Texas may not even try to run, as they rank 6th in the nation in pass rate. Chandler Morris has thrown 40 or more passes in every game in which he wasn’t pulled early for a blowout. And with his team implied to score 29 points in this one, and no run game to speak of, I like the chances of a Morris ceiling game.
Check the status: Haynes King, Georgia Tech, $8500
We currently have no idea if King will start for the Yellow Jackets this Saturday, but if he does, I like him as a sneaky play. King has had 3 of his 6 starts turn into 26 DraftKings points or more this season, and he averages over 50 rushing yards per contest. We have seen this Miami team get caught up in shootouts, and Vegas seems to think that could be a possibility here, with this game having the highest total on the slate.
Others receiving votes: Brendan Sorsby, Cincinnati, $7900
Running Back
Kanye Udoh, Army, $5900
To put it bluntly, the Army offense in this game represents an unstoppable force going up against a VERY moveable object. North Texas gives up 193 rushing yards per game, which ranks 108th in the nation, which is great news to an Army offense that runs the football at the highest rate in the nation. Quarterback Bryson Daily is still banged up, and if the team wants to lighten his workload the simple solution is to just give Udoh more carries. Udoh ranks as DFS Hero’s number one value play of the slate.
Darius Taylor, Minnesota, $8700
On a slate with a lot of great RB options, my bet would be on Taylor to lead all of them in scoring. The Rutgers defense this year is not what it has been in the past, giving up 196 rushing yards per game. And what makes Taylor such a great play is that he sees a ton of usage in the passing game. He’s Minnesota’s 3rd leading receiver on the season and averages over 5 catches per game.
DFS Hero’s Number TWO Value Play: Quintrevion Wisner, Texas, $5000
Others receiving votes: Tahj Brooks, Texas Tech, $8400
Wide Receiver
Josh Kelly, Texas Tech, $6000
The leading WR for the Red Raiders is coming off of an insane 18-target game against Iowa State. Can we expect that ridiculous volume again? Probably not, but schematically, it makes sense that he should have another great performance. Iowa State is a defense that looks to funnel the ball inside and short in the passing game, which is Kelly’s specialty. Colorado very much does the same, with Travis Hunter lurking on the outside. And the good news for Kelly is that he doesn’t travel outside, he operates in the slot. Kelly ranks as DFS Hero’s number two value play at the WR position.
Xzavier Henderson, Cincinnati, $6700
I’m thinking a little outside the box here with a WR that I have not heard many people talk about this week, but makes sense statistically. Henderson is clearly the Bearcats’ WR1, averaging almost 8 targets per game. This week, he draws West Virginia, who not only gives up 255 passing yards per game (106th in the country) but gives up a lot to WR1s specifically. Tetairoa McMillan, Jayden Higgins, and Luke Grimm all topped 19 DraftKings points against WVU, with McMillan ending with nearly 40.
DFS Hero’s Number 1 value play: Antwane Wells Jr, Ole Miss, $3800
I would assume this is contingent on Tre Harris, Jordan Watkins, and Cayden Lee missing the game, which would leave Wells as the primary pass-catcher for a Rebels offense that will likely be unable to run and playing from behind.
Hail Mary: Bryant Wesco, Clemson, $3100
The highly-touted but oft-injured freshman made his return to the lineup last week against Louisville, catching 7 passes for 53 yards and scoring 12.3 DraftKings points. This was atypical of the profile that Wesco had made for himself as a low-volume big-play threat. If this guy, with this talent, is going to catch 7 passes every game, he’s very likely to end with well over 12.3 DraftKings points. He could honestly score that on one catch.
The Field Goal: 3 props to consider (Underdog)
Aidan Warner LOWER 80.5 1H Passing Yards
Dymere Miller HIGHER 46.5 receiving yards
Jeremiah Smith HIGHER 30.5 longest reception
