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Mike Marteny's DraftKings daily fantasy college football lineup picks for Thursday (8/28/25) in Week 1. His CFB DFS lineup picks and DFS sleepers will help you win.
We have waited over eight months for this! We have a total of 91 games over the next five days. I do wish there were more on Sunday and Monday, but I will take what I can get. That means a whole lot of teams making DFS tournaments who usually aren't in these. Sometimes you have to dig deep for that slate-winning value. I see a lot of DFS players just ignore teams that are likely to get blown out. That isn't always the best practice.
We will try and help with the value plays, especially on this slate. There are a lot of good pay-up spots, but which ones are the best? We'll sort through that too. Week 0 was a blast. Imagine what Week 1 will be like! Unfortunately, the South Florida-Boise State game starts too early to be on this slate. That's unfortunate, because there are some great options in that game too.
In this article, I will provide you with my daily fantasy college football lineup picks for DraftKings on 8/28/25, starting at 7 p.m. Eastern. I’ll give multiple player suggestions for players at quarterback, running back, and wide receiver, aiming to highlight one option at the salary scale's high, middle, and lower end. Good luck, RotoBallers.
DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Quarterbacks
Cam Fancher, Central Florida ($8.3K)
While I don’t think he has the highest ceiling, I think there’s a solid case to be made that Cam Fancher is currently the best QB on the roster.
In 2024, Fancher recorded:
-59.4% comp. rate
-1,528 Pass Yds
-6:6 TD/INT
-365 Rush Yds, 3 Rush TD’s pic.twitter.com/TGUE6Likru— Clay Pasco (@Clay_Pasco) July 29, 2025
Lost in the slander of Cam Fancher at FAU last year is just how bad the roster was around him. FAU's offensive line was a disaster, and he had no help at WR after LaJohntay Wester went to play for Deion Sanders.
Let's not forget what Scott Frost did for McKenzie Milton when he took over the first time at Central Florida. Forget the Nebraska situation for a minute. Frost never should have taken that job and said as much. We could see a big jump from Fancher in his senior season.
His arm isn't the problem, but sometimes the decision-making is. Fancher isn't going to have a monster day, but he could wind up scoring more DraftKings points than most priced above him. The potential is there in this offense.
Dylan Raiola, Nebraska ($7.5K)
We saw flashes of brilliance from Raiola last year. We also saw the deer-in-headlights look and the token poor decision afterwards, a few times. He was a true freshman. Overall, it was not a bad season for Raiola.
Cincinnati's pass defense was a problem last year. They didn't allow many touchdowns (16 in 12 games), but did allow 223 yards per game and only picked off five passes. As with Fancher, I don't think we'll see a slate-breaking number from Raiola, but he should at least be worth this price.
Drake Lindsey, Minnesota ($6.1K)
Minnesota is going to run the ball to take the pressure off of Lindsey, but if this game gets a little out of hand, Minnesota may let him take a few more chances with the offense. He's not a high-volume play, but there is some potential here against Buffalo. Consider Lindsey the safest play among the cheap options.
Also consider: CJ Bailey, North Carolina State ($9.5K); Gavin Wimsatt, Jacksonville State ($7.2K); Kaden Anderson, Wyoming ($6.8K)
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DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Running Backs
Darius Taylor, Minnesota ($9K)
Darius Taylor enters his 3rd season with the Minnesota Gophers,
hoping to get a full season under his belt in 20252023: 149 TOT || 891 YDS || 5 TD
2024: 259 TOT || 1336 YDS || 12 TDIncoming transfer AJ Turner looks to be an ELITE pairing to Taylor
Turner led all of CFB in… pic.twitter.com/dOCQnqXE7K
— RTB GOPHERS (@RTBGophers10) July 14, 2025
Buffalo's run defense was solid in MAC play last year, but this isn't the MAC. Missouri and UConn both ran for more than 250 yards on Buffalo last year, and Minnesota's RB room is better than both of those. I expect a run-heavy game plan from the Gophers. Taylor is an elite play if you can afford him.
Hollywood Smothers, North Carolina State ($7K)
Smothers topped 100 rushing yards twice in five games as a starter last season, culminating with 139 and a touchdown against East Carolina in the bowl game. ECU allowed 169.9 rushing yards per game last season and 21 touchdowns in 13 games. The run defense is ECU's soft spot. We should see another triple-digit game and a touchdown out of Hollywood.
Dilin Jones, Wisconsin ($5.7K)
Gone is the air raid offense at Wisconsin. New offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes will lean more on the run game. Let's face it, that's what Badger fans want. The Redhawks have a solid run defense, but the volume will be there for Jones, and the Wisconsin offensive line is going to be a problem for Miami. Jones had a great spring for Wisconsin. It's worth seeing if it carries over into the season at this price.
Also consider: Emmett Johnson, Nebraska ($7.5K); Al-Jay Henderson, Buffalo ($6.4K); Cam Cook, Jacksonville State ($5.8K); A.J. Turner, Minnesota ($4.6K)
DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Wide Receivers
Jacory Barney Jr., Nebraska ($6.4K)
I expect Dane Key and Nyziah Hunter to be big parts of this offense as well, but Barney is a known commodity. He has a rapport with Raiola and is a great play on DraftKings due to the PPR boost for a slot receiver. WR is the hardest part to nail down early in the season, so I'm going more with the known commodities early on.
Victor Snow, Buffalo ($6K)
● WR Spotlight ●
Victor Snow - Buffalo
• Snow was a walk-on last season before playing so well that he earned a scholarship, now he returns in 2025 as one of the top WRs in the #MAC. Last season he caught 55 passes for 631 yards 6 Touchdowns averaging 11.8 ypc, he also added… pic.twitter.com/VF34M2ryTx
— NCAAF Nation (@NCAAFNation247) July 12, 2025
Buffalo is likely to be playing from behind, so expect Snow to be a big part of the offense. New QB Ta'Quan Roberson has to get the ball to Snow first, but he was a highly rated recruit and had some success at UConn in 2023. Snow is probably the most secure play at WR on the slate, but I'm not sure the upside is that high against Minnesota.
Jeff Caldwell, Cincinnati ($5.7K)
The transfer from Lindenwood is a monster (6-foot-5) with great leaping ability. As long as the ball is in the same zip code as Caldwell, he's going to catch it. If Cincinnati winds up playing from behind, Caldwell could have a great day. Cincinnati is going to struggle to run the ball on this defense. Expect the Bearcats to go to the air frequently. Caldwell should be the top target.
Deion Colzie, Miami (OH) ($4.9K)
This is going to be an uphill battle for the Redhawks, and they will likely be playing from behind. On top of that, Wisconsin's run defense was one of the few bright spots on this team last year.
Dequan Finn is the new Miami QB. He might have a little better arm than Brett Gabbert. At any rate, the Redhawks are going to have to throw to keep up, and Colzie is likely Miami's best receiver. Colzie was an afterthought at Notre Dame last year, but he should be the alpha of this WR room.
Also consider: Dane Key, Nebraska ($7.8K); John Michael Gyllenborg, Wyoming ($6.5K); Nyziah Hunter, Nebraska ($5K); Kam Perry, Miami (OH) ($3.9K)
DraftKings CFB Stacks
North Carolina State
ECU's defense is the worst on this slate, and you know that the Pack is looking for revenge after falling to ECU in the bowl game last year. Bailey and Smothers are the elite players and are worth paying for. Who is going to fill KC Concepcion's shoes? Noah Rogers is the likely candidate, but Justin Joly outperformed Rogers in the bowl game last year. If you can run both, that's what I would try for. If only using one, Joly gets my vote.
Nebraska
Cincinnati's defense was surprisingly porous last year. They will likely be a little better this year, but this Nebraska offense added some playmakers. Emmett Johnson had a great summer, and Nebraska is unlikely to play musical backs as much this year. You could go a full five-player stack with Nebraska here. Dane Key's salary makes it tough, but Hunter's price at just $5K makes it possible.
Also consider: Central Florida, Miami (OH) (GPP only)
