WEEK 1 NOTES & OBSERVATIONS

These are my quick-hitting Notes & Observations from the past weekend.  Hopefully, you can use this piece and the Weekly Waiver Wire write-up to help make any necessary adjustments to your roster.

–Joe D–

POWER 5

• Nice start to the season for West Virginia WR Bryce Ford-Wheaton (9-97-2).  TE/RB CJ Donaldson ran for 125 yards and a TD on seven carries.  Listed as a Tight End, I’m sure he’ll be a popular waiver addition this week.
• My biggest takeaway from the Pitt offense is that Rodney Hammond Jr. looked a lot better, and was more effective, than projected preseason RB1 Israel Abanikanda.
• Oklahoma State WR Jaden Bray missed the opener, which allowed Braydon Johnson to establish himself as the Cowboys’ top target against Central Michigan.  While it remains unclear when Bray will return, it seems quite clear that Johnson is the player to have on your roster right now.  Dominic Richardson was effective when he got touches (9-61-1), but only nine rush attempts in the opener is a little concerning moving into Week 2.
• It seemed inevitable that Wake Forest WR AT Perry’s fantasy value would be affected by Sam Hartman’s absence, but 3 catches for 47 yards against VMI was probably a bit unsettling for his fantasy owners.
• Cody Schrader led Missouri with 17 rush attempts against Louisiana Tech, but six players had at least four rushing attempts and five different players scored a rushing TD.
• Three Penn State running backs had at least 8 rushing attempts against Purdue and each of them averaged less than 4.0 yards per carry.  There doesn’t seem to be any signs of improvement from the Nittany Lions’ running game.  Western Kentucky transfer WR Mitchell Tinsley led the team with 7 receptions and 11 targets.
• As if Purdue WR Charlie Jones’ numbers against Penn State weren’t impressive enough (12-153-1), how about his 19 targets.
• I know it was against New Mexico State, but Mohamed Ibrahim’s 21-132-2 night was a great start for a player coming back from an Achilles injury.
• Not much to take away from Arizona State’s win over Northern Arizona, but RB Xazavian Valladay seems like he’ll be a better fantasy factor than Daniyel Ngata.
• Illinois RB Chase Brown has 321 rushing yards after two games.
• Indiana WRs Cam Camper (10-147-0) and DJ Matthews Jr. (8-118-1) combined for 80% of the Hoosiers’ receiving yards against Illinois.
• Keshawn King ran for 111 yards and caught a TD pass Friday night against Old Dominion.  I probably wouldn’t move on King because Malachi Thomas did not play and I’m worried about the Hokies’ offense struggling in conference play after that performance at ODU.
• Michigan State RB Jalen Berger had a strong start to the year, rushing for 120 yards and a TD on 16 carries.  With teammate Jarek Broussard adding 54 yards on ten rush attempts, we’re likely to see those two sharing the load this year.
• The TCU passing game didn’t impress against Colorado, as the Horned Frogs only totaled 138 yards through the air, and Quentin Johnson was limited to three catches for 22 yards.  QB Chandler Morris is likely to miss up to four weeks with a leg injury.
• Many fantasy owners are hoping for big non-conference numbers from Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa, but while the Terrapins dominated Buffalo in the opener, Tagovailoa did not account for a single TD.
• Boston College WR Zay Flowers caught 10 passes for 117 yards and 2 TDs in Saturday’s loss to Rutgers.  The offense seems rather one dimensional right now, which is good news for Flowers’ fantasy owners.
• With Gavin Williams absent from Saturday’s contest against South Dakota State, Leshon Williams ran for 72 yards on 24 carries.  Was that performance enough to hold down the RB1 spot?  Not sure.  The Hawkeyes’ offense could only produce 3 points in Saturday’s 7-3 win.
• Not a bad start for the Michigan RB duo Blake Corum (13-76-1) and Donovan Edwards (12-64-1), but they weren’t needed much in an easy 51-7 win over Colorado State.
• Two surprises for me in Texas A&M’s opener…QB Haynes King throwing for 364 yards, and RB Devon Achane only averaging 2.3 yards per carry on 18 rush attempts.
• There was some concern that coaching changes at Virginia would negatively affect QB Brennan Armstrong’s fantasy numbers, but 246-2 passing and 10-105-1 rushing was a nice start to the 2022 season.
• Jirehl Brock’s fantasy owners worried about Cartevious Norton and Eli Sanders can breathe a little easier.  Brock finished with 104 yards and a TD on 16 carries.  Sanders and Norton combined for 10 rush attempts.
• Kazmeir Allen seems like the early target of choice for UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson after his 10-85-1 receiving performance in the opener against Bowling Green.
• According to Miami HC Mario Cristobal, RB Jaylan Knighton is dealing with a soft-tissue injury, so they decided to hold him out against Bethune Cookman.  My assumption is that he’ll be fine and they didn’t need to risk him in that type of matchup.
• I wasn’t expecting Eric Gray to dominate the carries in the Oklahoma backfield as he did in the game against UTEP, but while he had 16 carries compared to Marcus Major’s seven rush attempts, it was Major who had the better fantasy performance with 2 rushing TDs.
• Georgia’s offensive performance against Oregon was impressive.  RB Kenny McIntosh was the standout for me, as he led the team in receiving with 117 yards on nine receptions.  
• After facing a Georgia defense, I’ll assume we’ll know more about the Oregon offense after next week’s game against Eastern Washington.
• I worry about consistency issues with Arkansas QB KJ Jefferson, but his numbers were quite impressive in the opener against Cincinnati.
• Arizona rolling up a 38-spot at San Diego State took me by surprise.  WR Jacob Cowing (8-152-3) picked up where he left off after transferring from UTEP.
• True freshman RB Jadyn Ott was impressive (17 carries for 104 yards) in Saturday’s win against UC Davis.
• The Ole Miss win’t anything to write about after Saturday’s win over Troy.  HC Lane Kiffin already announced that Luke Almoner would start next week’s game against Central Arkansas.  RB Zach Evans had a nice start to the 2022 season by rushing for 130 yards on 20 carries.  Ulysses Bentley only had two rush attempts, while freshman Quinshon Judkins had 87 yards and a TD on 14 carries.  There’s been a lot of praise recently for Judkins, and if you watch his runs against Troy, you’ll see why.  He looks impressive.
• It’s only one week, but our fear of RB rotation in the USC backfield was the reason we did not have Travis Dye highly ranked.  Of the four backs that had at least four rush attempts against Rice, he was the only one without a TD.
• Curious to see how the year plays out for Florida, but QB Anthony Richardson is fun to watch.
• There were quite a few questions coming in last week about choosing the right Kentucky RB against Miami (OH) while Chris Rodriguez serves his suspension.  The correct answer proved to be neither Kavosiey Smoke (7-32-0) or Ramon Jefferson (2-10-).
• Vanderbilt QB Mike Wright with another impressive performance (6 total TDs).  The Commodores have two more decent non-conference matchups before they jump into SEC play.  He could be a player you leverage in a trade soon, especially with the upcoming schedule: Week 5-Alabama, Week 6-BYE, Week 7-Ole Miss, Week 8-Georgia.
• WR Monaray Baldwin with an impressive Week 1 at Baylor, 4-84-1 receiving and 2-46-1 rushing.
• A lower leg injury against Notre Dame limited Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba to three series on the field.  This could be a big blow for fantasy owners and their 1st round pick.  Expect Emeka Egbuka (9-90-1) to be one of the hottest waiver claims of the week.
• Well, the Alabama depth chart held true with Treason Holden, Kobe Prentice, and Jermaine Burton finishing as the team’s top receivers in Week 1.
• Malik Cunningham and the Louisville offense being held to seven points in the opener at Syracuse makes my list of Week 1 surprises.
• If you were worried about Robert anae coming in as Syracuse’s OC and disrupting Sean Tucker’s utilization, have no fear.  Tucker ran 21 times for 98 yards and a TD, while adding six receptions for 85 yards and a TD as a receiver.
• Expect Donovan Smith, obviously, to get the nod at quarterback for Texas Tech while Tyler Shough is out (shoulder).  The biggest disappointment in the Red Raiders’ matchup against Murray State was Myles Price only catching three passes for 39 yards, and the biggest surprise had to be Loic Fouonji catching four passes for 110 yards and 2 TDs.  Guess I really need to brush up on the pronunciation of his name now.
• Washington State QB Cameron Ward tossed 3 TD passes in the Cougars’ 24-17 win over Idaho, but they didn’t come easy and his yards were disappointingly low (25-of-40 for 215 yards).
• We did not get much clarity in the Oregon State backfield last night and LB Jack Colletto only makes matters worse with his utilization out of the wildcat formation.  Colletto carried the ball three times for 44 yards and a TD in the win over Boise State
• I was already done writing this before the LSU/FSU game ended, but I had to add something on LSU WR Kayshon Boutte.  He just didn’t seem to be in the game mentally.  I hope I am wrong,  but frustrations and a bad start by the Tigers this year has me fearing an early opt-out, because this is a player that has already missed significant time due to an injury.

FULL FBS

• While QB Dj Irons, RB Cam Wiley, and WR Shocky Jacques-Louis are the featured players in the Akron offense, or so it seems after Week 1, struggling against St. Francis isn’t a good sign.  The Zips play Michigan State, Tennessee, and Liberty in the next three weeks.
• Central Michigan RB Lew Nichols III picked up where he left off by rushing for 72 yards and 2 TDs at Oklahoma State.  His fantasy owners are probably feeling a little better about the Chippewas’ Week 4 matchup at Penn State.
• In Toledo’s 37-0 win over CW Post, the Rockets ground game didn’t impress.  Maryland transfer Peny Boone led all back with 56 yards on 13 carries, but I do not think he’s a priority on the waiver wire this week.
• John Rhys Plumlee impressed in his first action at quarterback under Gus Malzhan.  Plumlee looks as if he will be a major fantasy factor this year.  Javon Baker (5-84-1) outplayed there Knights’ top returning receiver Ryan O’Keefe (3-48-0).  
• FIU QB Grayson James only completed 50% of his passes against Bryant, but he led the comeback win over Bryant by tossing 4 TD passes.  Starter Gunnar Holmberg left the game with a concussion.
• Put Louisiana Tech WR Cyrus Allen on your watchlist after his 5-121-2 performance against Missouri.
• I thought we would see Antario Brown vulture the majority of carries at running back for NIU against Eastern Illinois, but he finished with 13 and teammate Harrison Waylee led the team with 14,
• UAB RB DeWayne McBride’s absence (illness) against Alabama A&M was a big hit to Week 1 starting lineups.   
• Could be another tough season for the San Jose State running game, which is good news for anyone that has QB Chevan Cordeiro or WR Elijah Cooks.
• The surprise coming out of the Fresno State win over Cal Poly was that Nikko Remigio was targeted more times (11) than Jalen Moreno-Cropper (9).
• Eastern Michigan RB Samson Evans scored 12 TDs last year and started the 2022 season with 2 TDs in the Eagles’ Friday night win over Eastern Kentucky.
• Ron Cook was the RB1 for Buffalo against Maryland with 15 rush attempts, but it still feels too soon to be secure about him holding off Washington or Henderson.
• While I wasn’t one to jump on the Colorado State hype train, especially QB Clay Millen, because I think they need a year to develop, it was encouraging to see WR Tory Horton post solid numbers in the opener at Michigan (6-69-1).
• Even though ECU RB Keaton Mitchell tore it up last year with 1,385 total yards and 12 TDs, he and Rahjai Harris split carries, which was a fear of mine going into 2022.  In Saturday’s loss to NC State, Harris had 12 carries, while Mitchell finished with 10.  I feel we will see much of the same, but I’m not confident that Mitchell will average 3.0 more yards per carry than Harris this year.
• Late this summer we removed Air Force FB Brad Roberts from the rankings because a report was published that mentioned Roberts might not be recovered from a spring injury before October.  Either he recovered quicker than anticipated or the injury wasn’t as severe as first reported. 
• I think Cincinnati RB Corey Kiner’s fantasy owners are feeling much better about him taking over that RB1 role in the offense. 
• Questions still remain around that San Diego State RB1 spot.
• The lack of a running game for Wyoming has me concerned for Titus Swen’s fantasy owners.  Perhaps a Week 3 matchup against Northern Colorado will help get things going.  However, matchups against Air Force and BYU afterwards could present problems.
• Nice start to the 2022 season for the Tulsa offense that produced three 100-yard receivers against Wyoming.
• At least after one game, it seems Ethan Payne and Khalan Laborn will split carries in the Marshall backfield in Rasheed Ali’s absence.
• Trelon Smith seems to be the running back of choice in the UTSA backfield, but the Roadrunners couldn’t do much on the ground against Houston.  
• Brandon Campbell seems to be RB1 at Houston, but the Cougars weren’t very effective running the ball in Saturday’s wild OT win at UTSA.
• In Full FBS leagues, South Alabama QB Carter Bradley, RB La’Damian Webb, and WR Jalen Wayne will all have fantasy value this year.
• James Madison QB Todd Centeio (6 pass TDs, 110 rush yds) and WR Reggie Brown (5-78-2) were both on my Sleepers list in the Preseason Draft Guide, and both impressed in the opener against Middle Tennessee.
• WR TeVailance Hunt was a late scratch for Arkansas State against Grambling.
• RB Chris Smith is still the RB to have at Louisiana, but keep an eye on Terrence Williams.  He received a lot of praise in preseason camp. 
• Southern Miss QB Ty Keyes was injured and the offense went back to Frank Gore taking snaps and throwing passes.
• Liberty QB Charlie Brewer could miss 6-8 weeks with a hand injury, so expect Kaiden Salter to take over as the starter.  Salter’s dual-threat ability could cement him into the starter’s role if he plays like he did Saturday night at Southern Miss (8-of-13 for 148 yards, TD; 9 rushes for 65 yards).
• As an owner of UMass RB Ellis Merriweather (11-36-0 vs. Tulane) in a couple of leagues, I’m worried about his fantasy potential, especially seeing Tim Baldwin Jr. leading the Minutemen with 65 rushing yards on 13 carries against Tulane.
• It seems as if RB Tyjae Spears will definitely be featured in the Tulane offense (12-57-3 rushing; 2-32 receiving).
• Coastal Carolina RB Reese White was impressive in Braydon Bennett’s absence, totaling 153 yards from scrimmage and totaling 3 TDs in the Chanticleers’ win over Army. 
• I’m not so sure Taylen Green is worth a waiver claim right now, but he was clearly the best player on the Boise State offense after he relieved starter Hank Bachmeier, who tossed 2 INTs in the Broncos’ 34-17 loss at Oregon State.
• Western Kentucky WR Malachi Corley with a disappointing 4-12-0 game after 5-61-3 last week.
• Hawaii’s offense looks terrible!  They need a quarterback.  In their 49-17 loss to Western Kentucky, Brayden Schager (4) and Joey Yellen (1) combined for 5 INTs.