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:
Haynes King, Georgia Tech – Surprised to see such low ownership for a quarterback that has scored 26 or more fantasy points in all four games to start the season. Am I confident that streak holds up the entire season? No. Am I confident that streak holds up against Bowling Green this week? Absolutely.
TJ Finley, Texas State – Again, I don’t understand why Finley doesn’t have higher ownership after scoring 26 or more fantasy points for the third time in four games. Gets a Southern Miss defense next week that is allowing 28 FPPG to opposing QB1s.
Jacob Zeno, UAB – 28 fantasy points or more for Zeno in all four games this season, including 30.2 against Georgia. Yes, you read that correctly. Have to think Zeno can maintain this pace, or close to it, now with UAB entering conference play next week.
Running Backs:
Emmanuel Michel, Air Force – Do we have another Brad Roberts? Michel did benefit from Owen Burk not playing, but it was only a matter of time before the starting job was turned over to the senior fullback, now with six rushing touchdowns in the last two games. We know Air Force runs the football more than any team in the country, but we love to see 28 and 33 carries from Michel in the last two games.
Emani Bailey, TCU – Three 100-yard rushing performances for Bailey who has now fully taken over the TCU backfield with Trey Sanders seeing single-digit carries in each of the last three games. Our concerns about red-zone usage with Bailey are ceasing.
Kay’Ron Adams, UMass – UMass running backs have combined for 106 rushing attempts in 2023. Kay’Ron Adams has 96 of those. Outside of Penn State, there might not be a week left on the schedule when Adams won’t be in your lineup. Starts next week with lowly Arkansas State.
DJ Giddens, Kansas State – Just customary that you score 60 fantasy points in a week and you’re going to get a mention on our waiver wire report. Giddens was a one-man wrecking crew against UCF with 207 rushing yards, while also adding eight receptions for 86 yards in the win. Comes with an asterisk as Treshaun Ward did not play, and does not appear to be a long-term injury. We also wonder if this Kansas State will just stick with the hot hand when Kansas State comes off the bye week.
Receivers:
Malik Washington, Virginia – Three-straight 100-yard performances for the Northwestern transfer who is now averaging over 16 yards per catch. Not bad for a slot receiver. We’ve mentioned this multiple times now with Washington and fellow starting wideout Malachi Fields – 69% of the team’s total target share. No other UVA receiver has more than six targets this season. Washington is the priority, but both he and Fields are deserving of roster spots.
Andrel Anthony, Oklahoma – Not ready yet to concede that Anthony is Oklahoma’s WR1, but it’s tough to deny the results with consecutive 100-yard receiving performances. Our prediction did come true this week that we saw fewer rotations at the wide receiver position with Anthony, Jalil Farooq and Drake Stoops garnering most of the offensive snaps against Cincinnati. Anthony’s 17.2 yards per catch average and 14.2 aDOT make him an intriguing fantasy prospect.
Cyrus Allen, Louisiana Tech – Allen has been excellent since returning from injury in Week 2, hitting double-digit targets and finding the end-zone in each of the last two games. Conference USA schedule now for Allen and Louisiana Tech the rest of the way.
Kobe Hudson, Central Florida – No JRP, no problem for Kobe Hudson who has now hit 100 receiving yards in three-straight games. After struggling with drops the last two seasons – 12 combined – Hudson has only dropped one pass this season with a 78.6% conversion rate on his targets.
Tight Ends:
Michael Harrison, Colorado – Second straight week in which Harrison has found the end-zone. He could be in line for more targets, as could several other Colorado pass-catchers, if Xavier Weaver ends up missing time as he suffered an injury late vs. Oregon.
Luke Hasz, Arkansas – Hasz is the reason some of our Var’Keyes Gumms’ CFF shares have gone in the dumpster. The 6-foot-3 freshman was a standout in offseason practices and that has translated to the regular season, now with three touchdowns in the last two games. Arkansas doesn’t have a lot of depth at the wide receiver position behind Andrew Armstrong and Isaac TeSlaa, so would expect Hasz to remain as the Razorbacks’ second or third option in the passing game. Dan Enos is an OC that has featured the TE position often in the past.
Worth A Look
If you have the roster room, these prospects are worth a look.
Quarterbacks:
Behren Morton, Texas Tech – Unfortunately, this is the exact reason we said to handcuff Tyler Shough with Behren Morton in the offseason. Injuries reared their ugly head again with Shough now likely out for the season. There are issues right now with the Texas Tech passing attack under Zach Kittley, so I was hesitant to put Morton in the must-add section. Now in Year 2 of the system, there is no way the Red Raiders should be throwing for just 161 yards in any game. But if you had Shough as your roster’s QB1, Morton is probably a necessity addition at this point in the CFF calendar.
Thomas Castellanos, Boston College – This is a near perfect setup for a college fantasy quarterback. Boston College stinks on defense, can’t run the football and Castellanos is a true dual-threat. Four very favorable matchups in the coming weeks with a pair of bottom-half ACC defenses, Army and Connecticut coming up.
Jordan McCloud, James Madison – Crazy to think that McCloud wasn’t even named the starter coming out of fall camp. The Dukes are now 4-0 behind the arm and legs of McCloud who combined for six touchdowns in the win over hapless Utah State. Starting to think that we have some QB whisperers on the James Madison coaching staff, turning former castoffs into CFF success stories. Tough road ahead against some of the better teams in the Sun Belt with South Alabama and Georgia Southern upcoming.
Timmy McClain, UCF – There really hasn’t been a drop-off at all with McClain under center in place of JRP, now with 29 fantasy points in each of the last two games. Sounds like it’ll be at least another week, if not more, with Plumlee out of the lineup, and some juicy matchups ahead for McClain with Baylor and Kansas on the horizon.
Running Backs:
Peny Boone, Toledo – I guess we were all a year early on Peny Boone. 211 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries in the win over Western Michigan, giving him over 300 rushing yards and five touchdowns in the last three games. Again, it should be noted that Jacquez Stuart did not play so this dynamic could change in the coming weeks if/when he does return to the field.
Anthony Grant, Nebraska – You’re not playing Grant this upcoming week against Michigan, but there aren’t any roadblocks for at least a month after that for a running back who is now the only man left standing with Rahmir Johnson and Gabe Ervin done for the year with injury. Backup running backs combined for just two carries against Louisiana Tech.
Jamal Haynes, Georgia Tech – Haynes has seemingly taken over the starting job in the Tech backfield with double-digit carries in each of the last two games. RB/WR eligibility on Fantrax and is also an adept pass-catcher with 12 receptions on 14 targets.
Ismail Mahdi, Texas State – CFF never ceases to amaze me when I wake up each Sunday morning and look at some of the box scores of games I didn’t get to watch. Case in point with Mahdi who rushed for 216 yards and two scores in the win over Nevada. He was on our radar given that Mahdi has now found the end-zone in three of the first four games, but I believed this was a split backfield. Maybe not the case?
Lorenzo Lingard, Akron – The former 5-star was a Top 75 CFF running back for us coming into the year and we finally saw signs of life with 113 yards on 14 carries at Indiana. MACtion play starts for the Zips next week, and I’ll be locked in to see how some of their underperforming fantasy assets play.
Jaylon Glover, Utah – Speculative add here as it turns out Ja’Quinden Jackson is still dealing with an ankle injury that he suffered in Week 1 vs. Florida. I stopped watching this game, because it was incredibly boring, but doesn’t appear Jackson played much at all in the second half, leading to Glover getting 25 rushing attempts in relief. You wonder if the Utah staff will sit Jackson at some point to allow him to heal.
Jai’den Thomas, UNLV – Seven rushing touchdowns in four games for Thomas who found the end-zone four times against UTEP. Hawaii and Nevada coming up in the next two weeks. The Wolfpack are allowing the third most fantasy points to opposing backfield this season.
Receivers:
KC Concepcion, NC State – The targets are there for the true freshman, now leading NC State with 33 on the year after his breakout 116-yard, two-TD performance against Virginia. Concepcion has still averaged less than 10 yards per catch in three of the four games played this season, so I’d suggest this be an addition for full-point PPR leagues primarily.
Eric McAlister, Boise State – McAlister popped up on this report after Week 1, following 15 targets vs. Washington. Was discouraged after just two receptions the following week against UCF, but McAlister seems to have established himself as Boise State’s top wideout. 230 receiving yards and three scores in the last two games, now averaging almost 10 targets per game on the year.
Jordan Moore, Duke – The Blue Devils are entering the more challenging portion of the schedule, which will likely mean no longer being able to dominate opponents on the ground like they have in the first month. Similar to Virginia, we’re seeing a heavy target share among the top two WRs for Duke with Moore/Calhoun garnering 59% of it. Season-high 15 targets for Moore in the win over Connecticut, a game in which Duke won handily too.
Miami WRs – Pick one, any one. If Colbie Young, Jacolby George or Xavier Restrepo are available in your leagues, they could all be considered as an add with the way Tyler Van Dyke is slinging the rock. No other Miami receiver has more than 10 targets this season. Only reason I don’t have them listed in the top section is because the production is split three-ways evenly.
Amad Anderson, Temple – We’ll have to check this week on the status of Dante Wright who did not play on Saturday. Anderson was the beneficiary with 117 yards on 14 targets. Could be a staple in your lineup in full-point PPR formats in conference play, especially if Wright misses more time.
Eric Singleton Jr., Georgia Tech – Keep waiting for that freshman wall to hit, but Singleton continues to produce, now with a touchdown in all four games this season. More promising is that his playing time has increased substantially and hit double-digit targets in each of the last two games.
Josh Kelly / Kyle Williams, Washington State – Horrible luck for Lincoln Victor owners as the senior receiver was injured while holding the kick on an extra point. Early prognosis indicates Victor did not fracture anything and that it’s likely a high-ankle injury. Probably not season-ending in that case but will miss multiple games. Kelly and Williams were the beneficiaries against a good Oregon State defense, combining for over 300 yards receiving and four touchdowns. With the way Cameron Ward is slinging the ball around, this duo is close to a must-add with Victor out of the lineup.
Jalen Moss, Fresno State – Erik Brooks is still the WR1 here, but Moss is showing out as a capable sidekick with a receiving touchdown in three of the first four games. Remember offseason darling Josiah Freeman? Moss beat him out in camp for his starting job. 17 targets in the last two games alone.
Tight Ends:
Max Klare, Purdue – The 6-foot-4 redshirt freshman tight end is now third on the team in targets with 17 of his 19 receptions coming in the last three games.
Holden Willis, Middle Tennessee – Definitely want to see more output than just one game from Willis, but need to give a mention as the USF transfer has WR/TE eligibility on Fantrax. Caught nine passes for 118 yards on 10 targets vs. Colorado State.
Longshots
Need to see more from these guys before pulling the trigger unless you are in the deepest of leagues.
Quarterbacks:
Anthony Colandrea, Virginia – Bone-headed mistakes by the freshman quarterback cost UVA that game on Friday vs. NC State, but they also wouldn’t have stood a chance at winning games the last few weeks if Colandrea wasn’t the team’s QB1. 23 FPPG in three starts so far with Boston College and Williams & Mary in the next two games.
Tucker Gleason, Toledo – Dequan Finn is an excellent CFF quarterback, but injuries continue to dampen his football career, as he was carted off the field. Head coach Jason Candle did not offer up an update for his status after the game, but being carted off usually results in being out for a week or two at the very least. Gleason came on in relief to throw a pair of touchdowns and does have starting experience from last year when Finn previously went down with an injury.
Jase Bauer, Central Michigan – Reading up on the situation, it looks like the game plan coming in was to give each quarterback two series and whichever option was the more effective of the two, that’s who Jim McElwain would roll with. Do I have confidence that Central Michigan will stick with Bauer now and keep Bert Emanuel on the bench? Absolutely not.
Zeon Chriss, Louisiana – Chriss popped for me when viewing his performance against Houston the Louisiana’s bowl game last season as a potential option down the road. Didn’t win the starting job out of the gates but has moved into the QB1 spot with Ben Wooldridge injured. Quite the starting debut with over 300 yards of total offense and three scores. Buffalo is one of the worst defenses in the country, so we’ll want to see Chriss replicate this down the line before giving more consideration. Won’t start him this week against Minnesota.
Jaylen Raynor, Arkansas State – Great performance from Raynor with over 300 total yards and five touchdowns on Saturday. It was also the battle of the bottom feeders of the Sun Belt, so not expecting this level of production moving forward. With that said, Raynor gets UMass next week which could be a startable situation.
Running Backs:
Camar Wheaton, SMU – Last week’s 16-carry performance from Wheaton came with the caveat that Jaylan Knighton sat out due to suspension. Well, Knighton was back this week and Wheaton got another 16 carries for 73 yards and a score. I think we’re going to still see a lot of rotation at SMU all season but could start Wheaton in a pinch this week against Charlotte.
OJ Arnold, Georgia Southern – We’ll see what the status of Jalen White is this week as missed the Ball State contest while nursing an ankle injury. Arnold has now hit double digit fantasy points in each of the first four games so the Eagles definitely aren’t in dire need to rush White back. Georgia Southern faces the 12th ranked rush defense in the Sun Belt in Coastal Carolina next week.
Jordan James, Oregon – James has already found the end-zone six times this season as Oregon’s RB3. He’ll ascend to the RB2 spot now with Noah Whittington expected to miss multiple games with an injury. James can give you a quick spot-start in the flex with all the bye weeks upcoming.
Parker Jenkins, Houston – This is what happens with a coach on the hotseat and underperforming veterans – coaches give more playing time to talented freshman like Parker Jenkins who rushed for 105 yards and three scores against a good Sam Houston State defense. Looks like they held Tony Mathis Jr. out again, so we’re tentative to move Jenkins up any higher than this. But we’ve also seen Holgorsen turn this backfield over in the past to a freshman with a guy named Alton McCaskill so there is some precedent to this.
Davon Booth, Utah State – Second time in three weeks that Booth has hit double-digit fantasy points, this time rushing for 103 yards on 21 carries against a good James Madison defense. And that was with Robert Briggs in the lineup too. New starter in the Utah State backfield? UConn and a bad Colorado State defense in the next two weeks.
Wide Receivers:
Abdur-Rahmaan Yaseen, Purdue – 25 targets in the last two games for Yaseen, which should be a constant throughout the season if the Purdue defense continues to play the way it has. Beyond Yaseen, Deion Burks and TJ Sheffield, no other receiver has more than one target.
Chris Lewis, Troy – Thought this would be Jabre Barber as Troy’s WR1, but appears to be Lewis, now with 190 receiving yards in the last two games. Longshot add for the deepest of deep leagues as we don’t typically invest much FAAB into receivers catching passes from Gunnar Watson.
Kelby Williams, Old Dominion – You wouldn’t have thought Old Dominion would have scored just 10 points against a Division III opponent if one of the Monarch receivers went for 8-197-0 on nine targets. Throw Williams on your watch list but should be noted that Javon Harvey did not play again this week.
Naiem Simmons, South Florida – Simmons is probably closer to a “worth a look” than anyone listed in this section but would prefer a bit more evidence. Simmons is a Wagner University transfer with plenty of experience, catching 52 passes last season for six touchdowns. Did score a touchdown in Week 2 vs. Florida A&M, but this was his coming out party with 8-272-1 on eight targets. Simmons is second on the team in targets (25) and first among receivers in routes run.
Roc Taylor, Memphis – Six receptions in three of the first four games for Taylor who has now been targeted 19 times in the last two weeks.
Lideatrick Griffin, Mississippi State – Not convinced that Mississippi State is reverting back to the Air Raid like they did against South Carolina but was more a product of the situation with the running game not functioning up to standard. But we have to mention Griffin after putting up 256 yards and a touchdown on nine targets.
Dynasty
Players to add for future seasons
Tyler Brown, Clemson – The freshman got the starting nod on Saturday with Antonio Williams out due to injury and wound up as the team’s leading receiver with 84 yards on six targets. Dabo Swinney and the coaching staff have been consistently hyping Brown up for some time now and now we have proof of production along with it.
