Below is our game-by-game previews on which players should be considered on your roster as well as which players you may want to stay away from.
Arkansas At Tennessee
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: Tennessee -7
O/U: 54.5
Arkansas
Team Expected Points- 25.0
WR- Drew Morgan- $5,700
Analysis:
Drew Morgan has turned into Arkansas’ number one receiver so far this season. While in the past this did not mean much, this year Arkansas is throwing at a much higher rate than in previous years. Tennessee has shown that if they can be beat it is through the air as they allowed 287 yards passing to Will Grier last week. Morgan is a guy who should put together a nice game and continue to show why he is the number one guy at Arkansas.
Recommendation:
Morgan makes for a nice cash game play as well as a GPP play as he does have the upside of putting up 155 yards and a touchdown last game.
TE- Hunter Henry- $3,200
Analysis:
Hunter Henry has been a bit of a disappointment so far this season as with the improvements that the team has made in their passing game he has not seen an improvement in his fantasy relevance. He has had 5 or less points in two of his four games which is not ideal as he has never been someone who has found the end zone often due to Arkansas running the ball heavily on the goal line.
Recommendation:
If you need to save money and can’t afford Hooper, Henry is a fine punt play, but we recommend going with Hooper.
Tennessee
QB- Joshua Dobbs- $8,000
Analysis:
Joshua Dobbs is starting to become hard to figure out. From a passing standpoint he has been absolutely awful this year only breaking 200 yards once in week 1 against Bowling Green who has one of the worst defenses in college football. However, just when we were about to write him off he had 136 yards rushing last week on 18 carries. This is more than the previous three weeks combined. Arkansas’ defense is pretty hit or miss as well, as they largely shut down Toledo and Texas Tech, but Kyle Allen put up 358 yards and two touchdowns last week against them. It is hard to know which pass defense will show up.
Recommendation:
Dobbs at this price is someone who could be avoided due to his inconsistency so far this season, combined with a price that is unfavorable. He does have the most upside of any quarterback in this slate, so if you’re looking to start him as a contrarian GPP play that is fine, the only issue you may run into is other people who are doing the exact same thing and the ownership percentage being driven up.
RB- Jalen Hurd- $7,500
Analysis:
Jalen Hurd has been a scoring machine this season scoring 7 touchdowns in just 4 games. Unfortunately Hurd is not catching as many passes as he previously did last year as he has just caught three passes this season for 19 yards. He still has the upside due to his ability to find the end zone as well as averaging 100 yards rushing so far this season. The issue is that his matchup is one of the most difficult in the nation as Arkansas has allowed only 93 yards rushing per game.
Recommendation:
Jalen Hurd is a GPP play only due to his ability to score multiple touchdowns, but due to the difficult matchup he is someone that cannot be trusted in cash games. He is a little overpriced for this matchup
Eastern Michigan At LSU
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: LSU -44.5
O/U: 58
Eastern Michigan
Team Expected Points- 7.5
If a team is expected to score 7.5 points, it is not recommended that you play anyone on this team.
LSU
Team Expected Points 52
RB- Leonard Fournette- $10,000
Analysis:
Leonard Fournette is one of the two best running backs in college football and while everyone is in love with him, lets slow down on anointing him as one of the best running backs of all time. However, in this matchup Fournette is going to be able put up as many points as he possibly wants. It is always difficult trying to predict carries from an elite running back, during Jeremy Hill’s time at LSU, in blowout situations he only had six carries and 11 carries, however that situation is not truly comparable due to Alfred Blue and Terrence Mcgee also splitting time with Hill.
Recommendation:
There is a decent amount of risk in this game, as LSU doesn’t need to play Fournette to win this game. We have not seen how many carries that Fournette will get due to the McNeese State game being cancelled in week one. With that said, with how good Fournette is and how poor of a team Eastern Michigan is it may only take ten carries for him to break two long touchdowns to win this game. Fournette is a GPP play only as at his price you are essentially hoping that Eastern Michigan keeps this game close. With how many good options there are at running back we advise you to go elsewhere.
Mississippi at Florida
Kickoff: 7:00 PM EST
Spread: Mississippi -7
O/U: 50
Mississippi
Team Expected Points- 28.5
QB- Chad Kelly- $8,400
Analysis-
Chad Kelly has thrown for 300+ yards in all three of his games this season. Yes, the team has played 4 games, but the first game of the season he only threw the ball 15 times against the FCS opponent Tennessee-Martin so we are going to throw that game out. He also has shown an ability to run the football especially towards the goal-line scoring in 2 of the 3 games (again not counting the Tennessee-Martin game in which he also ran for a touchdown). The matchup against Florida is not a great one, as they shut down both SEC opponents that they have faced so far from a passing standpoint. They have the best corner in college football in Vernon Hargreaves who will be a name you will want to remember on Sunday’s next season.
Recommendation:
Kelly has been great so far this season, so it is going to come as a bit of a surprise in that we are going to recommend him only for GPP’s. With this expected to be a relatively low scoring game, as well as facing one of the best secondaries in college football, there are better quarterbacks this week for your cash games.
Florida-
Team Expected Points- 21.5
Mississippi has one of the best defenses in the country and the quarterback situation at Florida is very unclear as Will Grier is dealing with an illness. We recommend that you go with other options this week.
Arizona State at UCLA
Kickoff: 7:30 PM EST
Spread: UCLA -13.5
O/U: 61
Arizona State
Team Expected Points- 24
RB- Demario Richard- $7,300
Analysis:
If there has been a bright spot so far this season for Arizona State it has been Demario Richard. He is the focal point of their offense, and should have another big game in this one. UCLA has been devastated by injuries on defense over the past few weeks losing Eddie Vanderdoes and Myles Jack which severely hurts their defense. UCLA gave up 358 yards rushing to Arizona last week, but that game was largely out of hand and Arizona was using a backup quarterback with limited passing ability. Richard is in a good spot, but UCLA still has significant talent, and at this point should be selling out to stop Richard.
Recommendation:
We expect UCLA is going to improve defensively, but Richard is still in a good opportunity to get yardage. Richard does have some risk as UCLA is a much better team historically than the way they have performed recently, but is one of the top plays in both cash games and GPP’s at this price.
UCLA
Team Expected Points- 37
QB- Josh Rosen- $8,800
Analysis:
Josh Rosen has been one of the best quarterbacks in college football this season and one of the best freshman in recent memory. He has largely been inconsistent as most freshmen are as he had only 106 yards passing in his third start against BYU. The good news for him is that he is facing an Arizona State team that is one of the worst teams against the pass in college football. This was evident last weekend when Cody Kessler threw for 4 touchdowns in one half.
Recommendation:
Rosen is a great GPP play, as he is someone who can have a great game against Arizona State. Unfortunately, he is a freshman so there is a significant amount of risk for him to have a poor game at any time, but this is one of the best spots that he will be in all year and should have a great game. He is one of the top quarterbacks on this slate.
RB- Paul Perkins- $7,700
Analysis:
Paul Perkins may be the most boom/bust running back in college football. One week he will run for 200+ yards and the next week he will run for less than 100. One game he will score 3 touchdowns and then he won’t score. It makes it very difficult to figure out on a weekly basis, but he is in a great position to have a big game this week. Arizona State has not faced a running back of the caliber of Perkins, so this will be a test for them in this game.
Recommendation:
Perkins is a GPP play every week. The matchup is likely average just due to a lack of data. He has the ability to score three touchdowns in a given week and has upside that is greater than any running back on this slate.
Mississippi State at Texas A&M
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Texas A&M -5.5
O/U: 63
Mississippi State
Team Expected Points- 28.5
QB- Dak Prescott- $8,300
Analysis:
Week in and week out, Dak Prescott shows why he arguably the most valuable player in college football. He has very little talent around him, and the burden is on him to make plays and step up to keep his team competitive. So far he has not had to face an offense that can put up points like Texas A&M, but this week in order for this game to be competitive Dak is going to have to put the team on his back and have one of those great games that we have become accustomed to seeing from him.
Recommendation:
Dak is a great cash game play as his usage rate will be higher than any other quarterback on this slate.
Texas A&M
WR- Christian Kirk- $7,300
Analysis:
Christian Kirk so far this season has been up there with Josh Rosen as the top Freshman of the year. Kirk has scored a touchdown in three of his four games, as well as had 100+ yards in three of his four games. Combining these will quickly be able to get him to the value threshold of 20-25 points. Texas A&M is always tricky because the spread the ball around to various wide receivers, but it seems that Kirk is going to be the primary receiver on this team. Mississippi State is a team that can be beat through the air, but their run defense is very strong. They allowed 300+ yards passing to a Southern Miss team that is not a great passing team.
Recommendation:
Kirk is a great play this slate for both GPP and a good play for cash games.
Notre DAme @ Clemson
Kickoff: 8:00 PM EST
Spread: Clemson -2
O/U: 50.5
We are recommending avoiding this game due to the weather concerns. Clemson is expected to get upwards of 3-5 inches of rain which will turn this game into a sloppy mess. With an over under of just 50.5, and there are better values on this slate it does not seem like a great play across the board. If you’re wanting to take a flyer on someone from this game, take it on C.J. Prosise as he should see an influx of carries in the rain, but the challenge is with the conditions being sloppy there may not be adequate footing for the running back.
Oregon At Colorado
Kickoff: 10:00 PM EST
Spread: Oregon -7.5
O/U: 70
Oregon
Team Expected Points-
RB- Royce Freeman- $8,100
Analysis:
Royce Freeman has been largely disappointing so far this season only eclipsing the 100 yard threshold twice, he still has the ability to have a huge game and Colorado’s defense is below average. With the loss of Byron Marshall Oregon is going to need Freeman to step up even more to salvage their season that has gotten off to a horrible start.
Recommendation:
Freeman isn’t one of our top two recommended plays (Perkins and Richard), but he is a close number three. He should see an increased workload and while he is expensive he should see a high usage rate and on this short slate you are just looking for safe points which he provides.
WR- Bralon Addison- $6,000
Analysis-
With Byron Marshall being out for the year, as well as Charles Nelson looking like he may not be able to go in this game, Addison is going to one of the only regular starters that Oregon has in this game. This is going to help Addison’s fantasy value tremendously, as typically they spread the ball around and rotate wide receivers.
Recommendation:
While there still is some inconsistency with Vernon Adams, and the offense could just go run heavy, Addison makes for a nice salary relief play, as he will have the most upside on this Oregon receiving corp. He is a great GPP play, and is a fine cash game play if you’re looking to save salary, just realize his floor is low due to the nature of the Oregon offense.
Colorado
Team Expected Points- 31.5
WR- Shay Fields/Nelson Spruce- $6,000/$6,400
Analysis:
Nelson Spruce is the obvious play here and we recommend him at his price due to being a focal point of the offense that is playing up in tempo against Oregon. The guy we like as a punt play is Shay Fields who so far this season has been consistent in getting receptions and should have the ability to take his game to the next level as Colorado is playing against one of the fastest tempo teams in college football meaning there are more snaps to go around for Colorado.
Recommendation:
Fields is a great punt play this week, while Spruce is a great play for both GPP due to his price/upside
Arizona At Stanford
Kickoff: 10:30 PM EST
Spread: Stanford -11.5
O/U: 60.5
Arizona
Team Expected Points: 24.5
RB- Nick Wilson- $8,200
Analysis:
Nick Wilson continues to show why he is one of the best running backs in college football as even in a loss last week to UCLA he was able to put up 136 rushing yards. The matchup is not as tough as it has been in the past, which creates a value situation, as Stanford has been vulnerable with their run defense allowing 134 yards in week one to Justin Jackson from Northwestern, and allowing USC to run for 5.5 yards per carry. Wilson is one of the best running backs in the country and will be leaned on by the Arizona Wildcats to keep this game close.
Recommendation:
At this price, Wilson is a good play on this slate, we will be using a lot of him in both cash games and GPP’s as there is a perception based on historical data that Stanford is a great run defense thus the lower priced salary, this is just not the case this season. There is always going to be caution when playing Stanford as they can revert back to that great D at any time.
QB- Jerrard Randall-$7,000
Analysis:
This one is going to be tough, as we are not sure if Randall is going to be the starter, but if he is ruled the starter, he is someone that you are going to want to put into your lineup as his running ability might be unmatched in college football. He is a player that last game ran for 128 yards and a touchdown, which has given him five rushing touchdowns on the season.
Recommendation:
Wait for more pending news, but consider starting him at that price if Anu Solomon is ruled out, as his running ability is unmatched.
Stanford
Team Expected Points: 36
QB- Kevin Hogan- $8,500
Analysis:
Kevin Hogan has finally turned into the player we have waited for him to turn into. He is dealing with an ankle injury that caused him to only throw the ball 14 times last game. However, he will be needed much more in this game as Arizona’s offense is more powerful than Oregon State’s. He should get close to 300 yards passing with a few scores assuming everything is good with his ankle which at this points all signs are positive.
Recommendation:
Hogan is a good cash game play this week, but we wish we knew more about the ankle injury as he is priced up with Rosen and Prescott who we prefer to Hogan.
RB- Christian McCaffrey- $7,800
Recommendation:
Christian McCaffrey is one of our favorite players in college football as he has really turned up his game now that Pac-12 play has begun. Last week he had 206 yards rushing and while the touchdowns are still an issue due to Remound Wright getting the goal line, McCaffrey makes up for that with his ability to catch the football out of the backfield. Arizona’s defense has shown that it has a decent run defense, holding Paul Perkins to just 85 yards last week, but McCaffrey is a different style of runner who likes to get out in space which should cause Arizona some issues.
Analysis:
McCaffrey is a good cash game play due to the amount of receptions and yardage that he will pick up. He is not a great GPP play as the upside is somewhat limited due to Remound Wright getting the goal line carries for Stanford.
TE- Austin Hooper- $4,000
Analysis:
Austin Hooper is the best tight end on this slate, find a way to fit him in if at all possible
