Louisiana Tech vs. Kennesaw State
- Point-Spread: LT -6.5
- O/U Total: 45.5
- Implied Score: LT 26 – KSU 19.5
- Weather: 64 degrees / 10% rain / 12 mph winds
Louisiana Tech:
Top Play(s) – RB Clay Thevenin ($3,400) This will be one to watch in the pregame. RB Omiri Wiggins ($7,500) was the team’s starter throughout the first month of the season and did start last time out against UTEP in Week 5. But he gave way to Thevenin who carries the ball 19 times for 68 yards and a score. Stay tuned to theCFFSite discord for possible new leading up to kickoff. Louisiana Tech is 8th nationally in rush play percentage at 62.6% so we know what the Bulldogs are attempting to do offensively.
Fade – QBs This is not the offense we envisioned Louisiana Tech having when Sonny Cumbie was hired, but hey, whatever works right? The Bulldogs are 11th in Conference USA in yards per game through the air and might play multiple quarterbacks on Thursday. Blake Baker started the previous two games while Cumbie stated on Monday that Trey Kukuk would be available and play as well.
Best of the Rest – Pass-Catchers. Minimal interest in the La Tech receivers and tight ends with how ineffective the pass game has been, ranking 121st in success rate. TE Eli Finley ($5,600) doesn’t have the stats to warrant consideration but is on the field over 90% of the time each week. WRs Marques Singleton ($4,400) and WR Devin Gandy ($4,800) are tied for the team lead in targets (20) and are consistently on the field more than the other La Tech wideouts.
Injury Notes – n/a
Kennesaw State:
Top Play(s) – WR Gabriel Benyard ($5,500) The running back turned receiver has made a successful transition, having now found the end-zone in each of the last three games with a receiving touchdown. By far the most productive offensive player for the Owls.
Fade – RB Coleman Bennett ($5,700) For RBs on the slate, I’d rather spend up for a Cam Cook or OJ Arnold or go bargain shopping. Bennett is the starter and has played well, averaging five yards per attempt and coming off his first 100-yard rushing performance of the season. The Louisiana Tech run defense is the best in the conference, though, allowing just 3.3 YPC and rank 8th nationally in rush D success rate. Not a complete fade but would limit my exposure.
Bargain Bin – TE Gerard Bullock Jr. ($3,100) Bullock transferred over from Tennessee State in the offseason where he caught 25 passes for 212 yards and two scores a season ago. His impact hasn’t been great thus far, but he is coming off his best performance of the year with 34 yards and a touchdown vs. Middle Tennessee. Bullock plays over 80% of the team’s offensive snaps.
Pivot Play – QB Amari Odom ($6,000) Seems like Odom will be the starter on Thursday despite the Q tag on DraftKings and is relatively cheap for an athlete at the QB position with 30 or more rushing yards in the last three starts. Louisiana Tech is just 8th in the conference in yards allowed through the air (240.8 YPG) and being a touchdown underdog should give Odom the game script advantage.
Best of the Rest – WR Lyndon Ravare ($4,700) or WR Christian Moss ($4,400) Kennesaw State does not rotate much at all at wide receiver, so your choices come down to Benyard, Ravare or Moss. Moss has been the more efficient of the two options with a 68 percent catch rate, while Ravare – a Fresno State transfer – is the team leader in routes run. That trio combines for 62% of the team’s targets.
Injury Notes – n/a
East Carolina vs. Tulane
- Point-Spread: Tul -6.5
- O/U Total: 54.5
- Implied Score: Tul 30.5 – ECU 24
- Weather: 81 degrees / 10% rain / 8 mph winds
East Carolina:
Top Play(s) – WR Anthony Smith ($6,800) or WR Yannick Smith ($5,900) I’d look to have at least one of the Smith Bros in each lineup you create. The top three receivers for ECU account for 56% of the team’s target volume with 65% of the receiving production. Tulane is 12th in the American in yards allowed per game through the air.
Fade – RBs. Full-blown committee, split three ways between London Montgomery, Parker Jenkins and Marlon Gunn, with Houser’s legs mixed in as well. If leaning in one direction, it would be Montgomery who is the “starter” in name and does lead the team in rushing attempts and yards. Tulane is middle of the pack in the American in yards allowed per game on the ground, but also 128th in rush D success rate. East Carolina probably isn’t the team to take advantage but might find some running room on Thursday.
Bargain Bin – TE Jayvontay Conner ($3,500) Two or more receptions in four of the five games played for the Ole Miss transfer. Conner found the end-zone last time out against Army in Week 5. Passing game funnels around the starting trio of receivers, so this is a long shot play.
Pivot Play – WR Brock Spalding ($5,000) It was thought that Oklahoma transfer Jaquaize Pettaway would be the team’s starting slot receiver in 2025. Not the case as Spalding has been hyper-efficient with 22 receptions on 25 targets (88% catch rate) and a team best 3.17 yards per route run.
Best of the Rest – QB Katin Houser ($8,100) There’s limited quarterback options on the slate, but Houser is not the fantasy QB he was a year ago. Mostly because he doesn’t have to be, with ECU having the No. 1 scoring defense in the conference. That said, ECU is an underdog, and passing volume is up from a year ago, averaging 36 attp/g compared to just 32 attp/g in 2024. High floor option that won’t kill your lineups.
Injury Notes – n/a
Tulane:
Top Play(s) – QB Jake Retzlaff ($8,300) Last year Tulane had four fantasy options – Darian Mensah, Makhi Hughes, Mario Williams and Alex Bauman – that we could reliable upon each week. That’s down to one this season with Retzlaff, and even he’s trending in the opposite direction, scoring a combined 26 fantasy points over the last two games. ECU has the No. 1 scoring defense and No. 3 pass defense in the conference, so Retzlaff isn’t a lock by any stretch.
Fade – RB Maurice Turner ($5,500) Injuries have set back Turner this season, but even then, some thought this would happen where the journeyman senior would give way to some of the younger options in the Tulane backfield. Expect Turner to play after healing up following the bye week, but it’s a major risk to assume he’s getting his starting job back.
Bargain Bin – RB Javin Gordon ($4,000) Similar to Turner, this is a risky play considering Gordon could be relegated to backup duties potentially, and this isn’t the same Tulane backfield from a year ago, with as many as five different ball-carriers potentially getting considerable playing time. That said, Gordon is coming off a career-best with 78 rushing yards and three touchdowns in the win over Tulsa in Week 5. Seems like a guy you want to get more touches. ECU’s run defense has been shaky the last two games, giving up a combined 413 yards to BYU and Army.
Pivot Play – WR Shazz Preston ($4,100) The thought coming into the year was that WR Omari Hayes ($4,500) would be the team’s leading receiver and potentially challenge for 1,000 yards as Mario Williams did in 2024. It’s been Preston of late, with 12 of his 14 receptions coming in the last three weeks, averaging over 15 yards per catch.
Best of the Rest – WR Bryce Bohanon ($4,200) or WR Anthony Brown-Stephens ($4,000) Retzlaff is playable solo because of his running abilities, and if stacking with a Tulane WR, Preston or Hayes would be the priorities. Bohanon and Brown-Stephens are second and third, respectively, in routes run, while Bohanon does lead the team in targets (23).
Injury Notes – n/a
Southern Mississippi vs. Georgia Southern
- Point-Spread: SMiss -3.5
- O/U Total: 60.5
- Implied Score: SMiss 32 – GSU 28.5
- Weather: 64 degrees / 28% rain / 11 mph winds
Southern Miss:
Top Play(s) – QB Braylon Braxton ($8,700) Braxton has been one of the most consistent quarterbacks in the country, scoring 20 or more fantasy points in all five starts. The surprising part is that Braxton is getting it done with his arm, not his legs, with bodes well for his outlook moving forward if the coaching staff runs him more. There really isn’t one thing that Georgia Southern does well defensively, ranked 13th in the conference in scoring (37.2 PPG).
Fade – WR Carl Chester ($6,200) Chester does lead the team in routes run, targets (25) and receiving yards (224), but has just a 48% catch rate with one touchdown on the year. Chester accounts for just 18% of the team’s target share, which is very low for this pricing. There’s no real reason to force Chester or any Southern Miss WR into a lineup.
Bargain Bin – Tychaun Chapman ($3,000) Chapman is tied for seventh on the team in targets (9) but somehow has the second most receiving yards on the team (171). Fiscally, he makes more sense than the other USM wideouts.
Pivot Play – RB Jeffrey Pittman ($5,200) Three times in five games Southern Miss has had a different leading rusher, though Pittman seems to be the RB1 with four of the team’s six rushing touchdowns this season. His Week 5 performance against Jacksonville State was his best of the year, rushing for 80 yards and a pair of scores on 18 attempts. Georgia Southern is dead last in the conference in yards allowed per game on the ground. Pittman and Braxton are playable together in lineups, and that might be advised given how bad GSU has been at defending the run.
Best of the Rest – RB Matt Jones ($4,500) The Ole Miss transfer has been more involved in the offense with Robert Briggs Jr. out of the lineup due to injury with 20 rushing attempts over the last two games. Briggs is on the weekly depth chart, fwiw.
Injury Notes – RB Robert Briggs Jr. (questionable)
Georgia Southern:
Top Play(s) – WR Camden Brown ($6,400) The former Auburn transfer has now hit the century mark in receiving yards in consecutive games and has scored double-digit fantasy points in all five weeks to begin the year. Impressive considering how inconsistent the QB play has been for the Eagles.
Fade – QB JC French IV ($6,800) The decision to not bring in a transfer quarterback during the offseason might be Clay Helton’s biggest mistake and eventual downfall as JC French looks like the exact same below-average QB that he was a year ago. Southern Miss is 8th in the conference in yards allowed through the air but have intercepted 8 passes this season (best in the Sun Belt) and rank 32nd nationally in pass D success rate.
Bargain Bin – WR Marcus Sanders Jr. ($4,100) Sanders leads the team in routes run, while ranking third in targets (20) and receptions (14). He wouldn’t be in the lineup, though, if Josh Dallas were healthy as he’s missed the last three games due to injury. Sanders should start again with Dallas already confirmed out.
Pivot Play – WR Dalen Cobb ($6,500) Cobb leads the team with 23 receptions on 40 targets with two touchdowns but is a pure volume play as he’s averaging just 9.5 YPC with an aDOT of only 6.4 yards. Cobb and Brown stacks are playable as the clear top two passing options, though I’d lean towards having just one per lineup.
Best of the Rest – RB OJ Arnold ($7,000) Remember Jalen White from the last several years? Would run for 150 yards one week, and 20 yards the next? You should view Arnold in that same light – the Georgia Southern run game is as unpredictable as it gets. There’s a chance Arnold gets rolling this week, though, with the Southern Miss run defense struggling last time out, allowing 262 yards on the ground to Jacksonville State. USM has allowed at least two rushing touchdowns in all five games this year.
Injury Notes – WR Josh Dallas (out)
Jacksonville State vs. Sam Houston
- Point-Spread: JSU -9.5
- O/U Total: 55.5
- Implied Score: JSU 32.5 – SH 23
- Weather: 85 degrees / 5% rain / 8 mph winds
Jacksonville State:
Top Play(s) – RB Cam Cook ($8,000) Top play on the slate and will have the highest ownership. For good reason too, having rushed for 120 or more yards in three of five games played in 2025. Sam Houston is just third in yards allowed per game on the ground in CUSA but has given up the second most rushing TDs (10).
Fade – QB Gavin Wimsatt ($7,500) For the first time this season, there is an OR designation at the quarterback position between Wimsatt and QB Caden Creel ($7,700) after the latter scored 34.5 fantasy points with 161 rushing yards in the loss to Southern Miss in Week 5. It is difficult to envision the JSU staff doesn’t roll with Creel this week after that performance, though there isn’t a concrete plan that is known of what the staff intends to deploy for Thursday.
Best of the Rest – WRs. The Gamecocks are 132nd in the country in pass play percentage, throwing the ball just 34.9% of the time, so at maximum there should only be one JSU pass-catcher per lineup. WR Brock Rechsteiner ($5,300), the son of Scott Steiner for you wrestling fans out there, is the team leader in receptions (17), yards (215) and has all three of the team’s receiving touchdowns. WR Caleb Coombs ($4,900) has been heavily targeted (20) in the last three games with at least two catches in all five games.
Injury Notes – n/a
Sam Houston:
Top Play(s) – RB Alton McCaskill ($4,600) Assuming Elijah Green is out again, McCaskill likely gets another start in the backfield for Sam Houston. JSU is 125th in rush D success rate, and have been gashed by the last two G5 opponents faced in Georgia Southern and Southern Miss, allowing 219 rushing yards or more to both teams with a combined six rushing scores given up. Running backs are frequently targeted in this offensive scheme too, as McCaskill had three receptions and a TD vs. New Mexico State.
Fade – WRs. Sam Houston is averaging just 177 pass yards per game in 2025, and the leading target-getter is a running back. Says all you need to know.
Bargain Bin – RB Landan ‘Coco’ Brown ($3,800) Brown has scored double-digit fantasy points in three of four games this season because of his abilities coming out of the backfield as a receiver, leading the team with 20 receptions on 21 targets. He’s a great option to save salary somewhere as we’re spending up at quarterback and receiver.
Pivot Play – QB Hunter Watson ($6,600) Don’t think you can consider a quarterback like Watson, playing on the worst scoring offense in CUSA, with the chance he can get benched at a moment’s notice. That said, Jacksonville State has struggled some with rushing quarterbacks, allowing 30+ yards and a touchdown on the ground to both Braylon Braxton and JC French in recent weeks. It’s so obvious that if Sam Houston is going to get anything done offensively this year with Watson under center that they must morph into a QB-run option type offense as they were a year ago.
Injury Notes – RB Elijah Green (questionable)
Mike’s DK Core Four:
- RB Cam Cook, Jacksonville State
- WR Camden Brown, Georgia Southern
- WR Gabriel Benyard, Kennesaw State
- QB Braylon Braxton, Southern Mississippi
Mike’s FD Core Four:
- RB Cam Cook, Jacksonville State
- QB Braylon Braxton, Southern Mississippi
- WR Camden Brown, Georgia Southern
- WR Gabriel Benyard, Kennesaw State
