Snatch ‘Em Up Now
If they weren’t already drafted in your league, these guys will be hot commodities on the wire this week.
Quarterbacks:
Kevin Jennings, SMU – Jennings is really settling in as QB1 for SMU, with 28 or more fantasy points in each of the last three games. Two of which have been dead bodies in Florida State and Stanford, but this SMU offense has been clicking the last three weeks.
Sawyer Robertson, Baylor – The Baylor beat writer called this offense an Air Raid now with 30+ passing attempts in each of the last three games. Tough not to want to throw the ball with how Robertson is playing with 11 passing touchdowns now in that span. There could be some shootouts in the coming weeks with Oklahoma State and TCU up next.
Spencer Petras, Utah State – We said Baylor is an Air Raid now. Utah State takes that to another level as Petras is averaging 48 attempts per game over the last month. New Mexico was a gimme matchup, but Petras threw three touchdowns against both UNLV and Boise State who could be in the College Football Playoff conversation. Shouldn’t be deterred from playing Petras against a middle of the road defense like Wyoming.
Running Backs:
A.J. Turner, Marshall – Next Rasheen Ali? Finally, the last two weeks or so the Marshall coaching staff has given Turner the bulk of the carries in the backfield and the moved paid off spades with 177 yards and three touchdowns on the ground, while also adding another touchdown on a 30-yard reception. Sounds very Ali like, doesn’t it? Turner is still averaging over 10 yards per carry for the season. Only downside here is that Turner is on a bye week.
Isaac Brown, Louisville – Last chance to add Brown to your roster if you can as one of the most electric freshmen in college football. Will have to double-check his status this week as he did suffer an injury in the second half, but I don’t think it was serious.
Rahsul Faison, Utah State – Five touchdowns in the last four games for Faison who is dominating the backfield market share as the RB2 isn’t involved much at all (although Utah State has a talented dynasty option for 2025 in Herschel Turner who had 54 yards on four carries).
Tre Wisner, Texas – Pretty simple. Tre Wisner had 15 rushing attempts. Jaydon Blue had zero. Wisner is RB1 moving forward.
Wide Receivers:
Eric Rivers, Florida International – I wouldn’t expect 30 points a game from Rivers if picking him up off waivers, but you cannot deny his consistency. Six straight games now with double-digit fantasy points and five straight of at least 90 yards receiving.
Amare Thomas, UAB – Thomas started cooking secondaries once Jalen Kitna became QB1 for UAB. 31 targets and four touchdowns in the last three games, and we know UAB is likely to be trailing in most contests with their season in a spiral. Good for passing game scripts.
Worth A Look
If you have the roster room, these prospects are worth a look.
Quarterbacks:
Jake Retzlaff, BYU – I had to double check multiple sites to make sure that it was accurate, but Retzlaff has thrown for exactly 218 yards in each of the last three games. Three times in the last five games Retzlaff has scored over 30 fantasy points, and now faces the 12th ranked pass defense in the B12 in UCF that allows 250 yards per game through the air.
Cedrick Bailey, NC State – We’re seeing a freshman QB mature before our eyes with each passing week as Bailey had his best game of the year with 306 yards and two scores vs. California, giving him 20+ fantasy points in three straight games. Juicy matchup against a horrid Stanford secondary is next up.
Ben Wooldridge, Louisiana – Talent has really never been the issue for Wooldridge, but he’s struggled to remain healthy the last few years. He’s healthy now, scoring 28 or more fantasy points in four of the last five games. We’ll see what projections look like this coming week, as it will be against a decent Texas State defense that allows just 18 FPPG to opposing quarterbacks.
Jackson Arnold, Oklahoma – Not sure what the game plan for OU will be moving forward, but Arnold did burn his redshirt now by coming into the game on Saturday. And after watching both Arnold and Michael Hawkins play football, it’s very evident who is the better player. If OU sticks with Arnold, and the WR room gets healthy, maybe a renaissance for the Sooner offense in the second half.
Colton Joseph, Old Dominion – Joseph isn’t there as a passer just yet, but a dynamic dual-threat with 70 or more rushing yards in each of the last four games. Season-high 114 yards and three scores on Saturday against a good Texas State defense. Joseph faces Georgia Southern this week who allows almost a touchdown more per game than Texas State does.
Jacurri Brown, UCF – The UCF passing game is completely broken, so Brown isn’t a major priority, but his running ability makes him a fantasy asset. 51 combined fantasy points in the last two games against two pretty good defenses in Cincinnati and Iowa State.
Running Backs:
Elijah Gilliam, Fresno State – Doesn’t sound like we’ll be seeing Malik Sherrod in at least another week or so, and the running game has been fine with Elijah Gilliam stepping in his place with three rushing TDs in the last two games. We love the volume with 20 attempts against both Washington State and Nevada.
Josh McCray, Illinois – Kaden Feagin will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing surgery this week, meaning McCray will be RB1 moving forward with 33 carries in the last two games. Won’t start him this week against Oregon but could be a rotational lineup option down the line.
Savion Red, Nevada – Wasn’t 24 carries like he had against Oregon State in Week 7, but another productive week for Red who found the end-zone on 13 attempts, giving him seven rushing scores in the last four weeks.
Justice Ellison, Indiana – All the guy does is run for touchdowns. Aside from the opener against Florida International, Ellison has at least one rushing touchdown in each of the last six games. Volume is low, which is why Ellison is not a must-add, averaging right around 10-11 carries per game.
Delbert Mimms, Eastern Michigan – 20+ rushing attempts in three straight games for the NC State transfer. Faces the 11th ranked run defense in the MAC next week in Akron.
Jadan Baugh, Florida – Five rushing touchdowns for the true freshman in place of the injured Montrell Johnson against one of the better run defenses in the country in Kentucky. Why isn’t Baugh higher on the list then? Johnson is expected back at some point, and the next two opponents for Florida – Georgia and Texas. Yikes.
Wide Receivers:
Darius Lassiter, BYU – Lassiter has turned into a legitimate WR1 for the Cougars, now with double-digit targets in four of his last five games, with as many receiving touchdowns in that span as well. Strong matchup upcoming against a poor UCF secondary.
Tru Edwards, Louisiana Tech – Look what happens when Louisiana Tech has a capable quarterback. Edwards was getting volume, averaging seven targets per game through Week’s 3-5 but the results didn’t show for it. Last two games with Evan Bullock throwing the rock, Edwards is showing out with consecutive 100-yard receiving performances and three touchdowns.
Isaiah Horton, Miami – Of course, Horton didn’t hit his over on his prop line the week I bet on him, but the sophomore still found the end-zone Saturday on seven targets. Usage wise, Horton is the WR2 seemingly behind Restrepo. The issue is that Miami really spreads it around outside of the slot receiver.
Kaden Prather, Maryland – Double-digit fantasy points in each of the last five games for Prather who has seen increased volume in the last two weeks with a combined 23 targets. Two things working in favor of Prather moving forward. (1) Maryland can’t run the football, and (2) centralized target between he and Felton who combine for 53% of the team’s total targets.
Trent Walker, Oregon State – Not sure why Walker has just 4% ownership as he’s been one of the most consistent receivers in college fantasy, in particular in full-point PPR formats. Double-digit fantasy points in five of seven games this season. The Oregon State offense is starting to diversify a bit more now too, throwing the ball 28, 42 and 37 times in the last three games.
Tight Ends:
Terrance Carter, Louisiana – Close to a must-add if looking for a tight end at this point in the season. Back-to-back 100-yard performances with a combined 21 targets in the last three weeks.
Jack Endries, California – Great week if you need a tight end filler on your roster. With Corey Dyches injured, Endries has 17 receptions on 20 targets in the last two games and consecutive 100-yard receiving performances.
Dorian Fleming, Georgia State – Tough to deny the volume Fleming is getting of late, with 32 targets in his last four games. Season-high eight receptions on 10 targets vs. Marshall last week.
Blake Bosma, Western Michigan – 85 yards and three touchdowns on seven targets vs. Buffalo this week, giving Bosma five TDs in the last four games.
Longshots
Need to see more from these guys before pulling the trigger unless you are in the deepest of leagues.
Quarterbacks:
Evan Bullock, Louisiana Tech – It wasn’t five touchdowns, but Bullock had another productive showing with 233 yards and two scores. Sure, it was against New Mexico State, but path forward is free and clear, facing a UTEP defense that is allowing 33 PPG.
Tayven Jackson, Indiana – There was no drop off when Jackson came in for the injured Kurtis Rourke, completing 7-of-8 passes for 91 yards and two scores in the rout of Nebraska. It was announced Sunday morning that Rourke would not play this week for the Hoosiers, resulting in Jackson getting the nod vs. Washington. Intriguing as a streamer option but if he’s available in dynasty formats, I might look to add this week as well. Maybe Indiana hits the portal again this offseason for a QB, but Jackson could go a long way to cementing his QB1 status for 2025 with a strong performance. And we know at this point that Curt Cignetti is a QB whisperer.
Michael Van Buren, Mississippi State – Another true freshman quarterback making the waiver wire list this week as Van Buren has scored 58 combined fantasy points in the last two games against Top 20 opponents. Next two games are against opponents that are nowhere close to the top 20 in Arkansas, followed by UMass.
Ethan Crawford, Southern Mississippi – Crawford started in place of the ineffective Tate Rodemaker, and the play-calling leaned into what he does best – running the ball. 100+ yards on 20 carries with two scores, in addition to 187 yards through the air. Could do worse if you’re in desperate need of QB depth.
Running Backs:
Elijah Young, Western Kentucky – The numbers don’t jump off the page, but love the volume that Young is getting both in the run and pass game. The former Missouri transfer has 101 rushing attempts for the season. Next closest running back on the roster has just 19 carries. Bye week upcoming for WKU, but Young gets the worst team in the C-USA in Kennesaw State the following week.
Keyon Mozee, Miami (Ohio) – Not sure I trust a Miami (Ohio) running back this season, but maybe I should? Three 100-yard rushing performances in the last four weeks for Mozee. Volume is also slightly up with 16 attempts in the last two games.
Carson Hansen, Iowa State – Five touchdowns in the last two weeks for Hansen, with 90 or more rushing yards in the last three games. Matt Campbell stated this week that the running back that practices the best will be getting the lion’s share of the carries for that game, hence why Hansen is not higher on the list. This still feels like a committee approach.
Wide Receivers:
Chase Sowell, East Carolina – We’ll see if the firing of Mike Houston opens up the ECU offense any, but Swell had been trending up with 60 or more receiving yards in each of the last four games. In all but one game this season Sowell has been targeted at least seven times.
Horatio Fields, Wake Forest – Fantasy points matter most, of course, and Fields didn’t have many in a good matchup with Connecticut. That said, he continues to see a heavy volume of targets with a season-high 11 on Saturday. If in P4 only leagues and in desperate need of a streamer, there are worse options.
Markus Allen, Eastern Michigan – Allen is a Wisconsin transfer that has seen his playing time increase over the last three games. Finally, some production came with that increase workload with 8-189-1 on 15 targets vs. Central Michigan. Watch list candidate because we have just one game of evidence of fantasy production.
Matt Sykes, Rice – Volume is still there for Sykes as 43 of his 57 targets this year have come in the last four games alone. Rice can’t run the football effectively, again, this year which means more passes thrown!
Caleb Goodie, Colorado State – Someone had to step up in place of the injured Tory Horton. Volume was low with just three targets but topped 100 yards on the day with a touchdown, while running the most routes of any Colorado State receiver.