Short and sweet this week for Championship Saturday. Congrats to all reading this as you likely made your league’s finals! Thanks again to everyone for subscribing and supporting the CFF Site for another year. – Mike
Quarterbacks:
Will Howard, Kansas State – Maybe Kansas State should’ve started Will Howard from the get-go? 30+ fantasy points in three of the four games started this season, and will cap the year against a Kansas defense that is allowing 29 FPPG to opposing QBs this season.
Garrett Greene, West Virginia – If there is one positive to come out of this year for West Virginia, it’s that they look to have found their future at the QB position in Garrett Greene who’s posted back-to-back 30-point fantasy performances. Favorable matchup again this week against an Oklahoma State defense allowing over 30 fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks in 2022.
Joe Milton, Tennessee – I have a feeling there will be some disagreements this offseason about Joe Milton’s 2023 outlook on him potentially being Tennessee’s QB1 next season. We’ll get a good glimpse at who appears to be on the right side of that argument for the time being as Milton will start vs. Vanderbilt with Hendon Hooker now out for the season. Longshot streaming option here for me personally.
Running Backs:
Frank Peasant, Middle Tennessee – Peasant was pedestrian on the ground vs. Florida Atlantic with just 59 yards and a TD but did his work through the air with eight receptions and two more scores on 11 targets. 42 fantasy points on Saturday and double-digit fantasy points in each of the last four games. Lowly FIU next on tap for Peasant and the Blue Raiders.
Nakia Watson, Washington State – 25+ fantasy points in the each of the last three games for Watson. I like that there is a high floor with Watson if he doesn’t get it going on the ground because of his involvement in the passing game, targeted 23 times this season with three receiving TDs. I’d side against him hitting that mark against Washington in the Apple Cup, but double-digit fantasy points should be well within his reach.
Elijah Green, North Carolina – Just 10 carries on Saturday as UNC was surprisingly playing catchup against Georgia Tech yet found the end-zone twice to give Green double-digit fantasy points in each of the last five games. He’s the man in the UNC backfield.
Jaiden Credle, Northern Illinois – Harrison Waylee and Antario Brown are still around, but the coaching staff seems willing to give the bulk of the work to the freshman in Credle who ran for 97 yards on 15 carries in the loss to Miami (Ohio). Not overly impressive, but the RedHawks have the best defense in the MAC. Next up? Akron, who allows 23 FPPG to opposing RB1s.
RJ Harvey, Central Florida – Dreadful performance from Harvey, JRP, the Gus Bus and everyone involved in the loss to Navy on Saturday. I expect a big bounce back performance from the running game against a USF defense that allows the third-most fantasy points to RB1s in the country and is 128th in yards allowed on the ground.
Percy Agyei-Obese, James Madison – 20+ carries in three of the last four games for PAO with four touchdowns in the last three weeks. Stop fumbling, though! One in each of the last two games. Matchup with Coastal Carolina this week who is an average run defense for Sun Belt standards, allowing 17 FPPG to opposing RB1s.
Dallan Hayden, Ohio State – The 3-star freshman was outstanding vs. Maryland in place of the oft-injured TreVeyon Henderson, rushing for 146 yards and three touchdowns on 27 attempts. We’ll see what transpires over the course of the week with Henderson and Miyan Williams likely to be questionable heading into the matchup with Michigan.
Marquis Crosby, Louisiana Tech – We’ll give Crosby a shoutout here after rushing for 105 yards and three touchdowns vs. Charlotte, but unlikely we’ll start him next week vs. UAB. Crosby will be a name to remember for 2023, though, having hit the century mark in three of the last four games.
Kimani Vidal, Troy – I wake up every Sunday morning and immediately start parsing through some of the box scores of games that I did not pay any attention to. And every Saturday morning there is at least one that makes my jaw drop. Seeing Kimani Vidal finally showing up this season, rushing for 228 yards and two scores vs. Louisiana Monroe, was that moment. Faces Arkansas State next week who has the 73rd ranked rush defense.
Wide Receivers:
Matthew Golden, Houston – Fantrax roster ownership won’t show it, but Golden was likely dropped in many redraft leagues after a slow start to his freshman campaign. He’s blossoming right before our eyes now with four touchdowns in the last three weeks, including a pair of 100-yard performances. The Cougars should light up the scoreboard next week at home vs. Tulsa.
Jamari Thrash, Georgia State – Tough matchup this week with Marshall, but cannot deny the production. 300 yards receiving in the last two weeks alone, and a chance at surpassing the 1,000-yard mark on Saturday. Averaging 7.4 targets per game in 2022.
Sam James, West Virginia – James has been West Virginia’s best wide receiver in the second half of the season, now having scored double-digit fantasy points in each of the last four games. Three catches, three touchdowns in the loss to Kansas State.
Javon Harvey, Old Dominion – With Ali Jennings out for the season, someone needed to step up at receiver for the Monarchs. That came in the form of Javon Harvey who was tied for the team lead in targets (7) and found the end-zone twice in the loss to Appalachian State. Longshot play.
Odieu Hilaire, Bowling Green – We all understand the 246-yard, two-touchdown performance last week against Toledo was an outlier. But that’s now 25 receptions on 30 targets in the last three games alone for Hilaire. I’d venture to guess that only Xavier Hutchinson and maybe just a handful of others have seen that many targets in that same span. This is Bowling Green, so Hilaire could easily go for 30 yards or less on Tuesday against Ohio, something he’s done five times this season. But the heavy usage of late is intriguing.
Tight End:
Ben Sinnott, Kansas State – 45 fantasy points in the last two weeks as Sinnott has found the end-zone three times in that span. 49% of his receiving yards for the season have come in the last two weeks alone.