RADIO
Welcome to the first jam-packed Saturday of the last great college football season. For some dumb reason, they are trying to be the NFL. At any rate, we have 14 games for the main slate, so we have literally hundreds of options to choose from. I will try to narrow that down a little. Mississippi, Oregon, and Notre Dame are slumming against FCS schools, but we still have 11 FBS vs. FBS games on tap.
The noon kicks take East Carolina to the Big House. Northern Illinois climbs Chestnut Hill. Virginia takes on the Vols in Nashville. TCU hosts Colorado. Oklahoma welcomes in Arkansas...State. David Letterman U heads to Lexington. Utah State shows up in Iowa City. 3:30 brings Rice up to Austin to take on the Longhorns. Boise State heads to Seattle to take on the Huskies. The Buckeyes head to Bloomington. The new-look Badgers welcome in Buffalo to jump around a bit.
In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy college football lineup picks for DraftKings on 9/2/23, locking at noon Eastern. I’ll provide multiple player suggestions for players at quarterback, running back, and wide receiver, aiming to highlight one option at the high, middle, and lower end of the salary scale. Good luck, RotoBallers.
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DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Quarterbacks
Michael Penix Jr., Washington ($8,400)
So...who needs their QB to win? Tennessee? Maybe, but probably not. Ohio State? Not likely, but it has already been announced that the QB battle is going to linger into the first game. That leaves Penix and Washington. This is a hell of a consolation prize – a guy that threw for 4,641 yards last season. Washington returns Penix and all of their receivers. Expect a full-fledged aerial display against Boise in Seattle today.
Shedeur Sanders, Colorado ($7,000)
We all know the talent that Sanders has, and this price feels low enough to take the shot in a GPP format. There are a lot of unknowns about this entire team, and they open on the road against a team that made it to the National Championship last season. This TCU team has changed a lot though. Even fans barely recognize half of the players. The upside is there, but the floor is terrifying.
Tayven Jackson, Indiana ($4,900)
Dexter Williams is going to miss at least half the season. As of now, Jackson is listed as the starter for the Hoosiers. He played sparingly with Tennessee last season, so we don't really know what we're getting into. If Jackson's arm is as good as advertised, he will have plenty of chances to showcase it here against an Ohio State team that is likely to run off with this game. That means a lot of passing to try and keep up. It could also mean a switch to Brendan Sorsby if Jackson struggles, so plan accordingly.
Also consider: Tanner Mordecai, Wisconsin ($8,900); Joe Milton, Tennessee ($8,700); Rocky Lombardi, Northern Illinois ($7,400); JT Daniels, Rice ($5,800)
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DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Running Backs
Quinshon Judkins, Mississippi ($6,600)
The status of SMU transfer Ulysses Bentley is so up in the air that Ole Miss hit the portal for Oregon State's Jam Griffin. Griffin has only been in Oxford a few weeks, so I expect Judkins to see more carries than he likely would have if Bentley were fully healthy. There is still nothing to go with Bentley, but the poaching of Griffin speaks volumes about where Ole Miss sees him. Griffin will still get carries, but Judkins will do most of the damage early since he is familiar with the playbook.
Kaleb Johnson, Iowa ($5,700)
I'm not one to overuse the term "game manager," but that is exactly what Cade McNamara is. Iowa makes their living by running the ball behind a team of road graders. And you know what? That's okay. Iowa knows who they are and they like it. The difference this year will be that they have a quarterback that won't give games away with turnovers.
Utah State gave up a whopping 194.2 rushing yards per game last season. They didn't allow a ton of touchdowns on the ground, but they didn't play a team like Iowa either. Expect Johnson and Leshon Williams to be busy guys in Kinnick this afternoon.
Kavosiey Smoke, Colorado ($4,300)
Alton McCaskill is still not participating in contact drills in practice, so I would doubt that Colorado uses him much, if at all. That leaves Smoke and Coach Prime's RB last year at Jackson State (Sy'veon Wilkerson) as the backs for the opener against TCU. Smoke lacks breakaway speed, but he's a bruiser that should be able to pick up some tough yards against the Toadies.
Also consider: Ray Davis, Kentucky ($7,100); CJ Baxter, Texas ($5,500); Emani Bailey, TCU ($5,400); Dillon Johnson, Washington ($5,200)
DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Wide Receivers
Jalen McMillan, Washington ($6,900)
Rome Odunze is probably the steadier of the Washington receivers, but McMillan is the guy who can change a slate. All three are elite weapons and Michael Penix will throw to whomever is open. He has proven that time and again. McMillan just seems to get open more. At least he did in all but the Oregon State and Arizona State games.
Ryan O'Keefe, Boston College ($6,100)
UCF used O'Keefe all over the field last year. I don't know that BC will be as liberal with him running the ball, but he will take over the Zay Flowers role in this offense. As we saw last year, that can be a very good place to be. I'm a little nervous about Emmett Morehead at quarterback, but having a guy like O'Keefe to throw to can certainly help the growing pains.
Jimmy Horn, Jr., Colorado ($5,200)
I want to know just how much Travis Hunter is going to play on offense before I run him in DFS contests. That leaves South Florida transfers Horn and Xavier Weaver to catch passes from Sanders. TCU didn't allow a ton of plays over the top last year, so I am going with Horn, who is more of a possession receiver. If we expect Colorado to hang around, they are going to have to throw to do so.
Nico Ragaini, Iowa ($4,300)
Ragaini was the leader in receptions and yards for the Hawkeyes last year. It stands to reason that improved quarterback play should help pump his numbers a little. I expect Iowa to run a lot in this game, but they'll also want to throw the ball around a little bit since the passing attempt has been impotent for two years.
Also consider: Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State ($9,100); JoJo Earle, TCU ($6,900); Cam Camper, Indiana ($5,500); Tayvion Robinson, Kentucky ($5,000); Corey Rucker, Arkansas State ($4,900); Raymel Keyton, Tennessee ($4,100); Ty James, Mercer ($3,800)
DraftKings CFB Stacks:
Mississippi
The Rebels are expected to trounce Mercer and I don't disagree. It looks like UTSA transfer Zakhari Franklin won't play in this game. Neither will Memphis transfer Caden Prieskorn. That leaves Tre Harris as the only receiver that I have any real interest in. Quinshon Judkins and Jam Griffin are my main targets, but Jaxson Dart should put up decent numbers before his day is over as well.
Kentucky
This offense is going to be much improved under Devin Leary. The best part about this if you stack is the cheap receivers. Barion Brown, Dane Key, and Robinson are all between $5,000 and $5,500. Ray Davis is expensive, but Demie Sumo-Karngbaye was a terrific receiver out of the backfield and played with Leary at North Carolina State
Also consider: Arkansas State, Texas
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