Slate Breaker: FD CFB DFS Week 8

Quarterbacks

Play of the Day: Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma (vs UCF)

What a touching moment it will be for Gabriel to play the school that he started his college career with. Expect him and the Sooners playcallers to want to put on a show as a great way to help close out Gabriel's storied career. Gabriel has not needed an underlying narrative to bump up his fantasy production this year. He has scored at least 23 points in every game thanks to absurd passing production and solid running production. The UCF defense has been getting shredded in conference play allowing at least 36 points in every game. They are far more vulnerable against the run but Oklahoma just does not run a lot so Gabriel should be featured regardless but I like his chances of finding the endzone with his feet this week. Gabriel has a solid floor every week but I think he has a ceiling game this week with a monster statline in what is a very meaningful matchup for him.

Caleb Williams, USC (vs Utah)

I am sure Williams would like to forget last week entirely. But he will not be able to and will be playing with a big chip on his shoulder as he will have to single handedly will this team to the CFB playoffs. Utah is a tough defense but it is not one that Williams cannot handle. He has plenty of experience against this Utah team playing them twice last year and he was a great fantasy player in both games. He had 350+ yards and 3+ TDs in both games while chipping in at least 25 rushing yards. If he comes anywhere close to putting up those kinds of numbers again then he will be well worth his $11,500 price. Before last week, 27 FD points was his season low fantasy output so you really cannot go wrong with Williams in your lineup.

Jalen Milroe, Alabama (vs Tennessee)

After having their national title hopes torn away by Tennessee a year ago, the Crimson Tide will be on a warpath to make up for last year's blunder and Tennessee will get worked this week. Jalen Milroe will be at the head of that effort as he is looking more and more comfortable leading this team as the weeks go on. Milroe has 200+ passing yards in 4 of his last 5 games and has been a constant threat with his feet scoring 3 rushing TDs over the last 3 weeks. He does need to cut down on his sacks because he is too good of an athlete to end up with negative rushing yards so that is still his one weakness holding him back from being a fantasy stud. Tennessee is a good defense, but the production has been steady for Milroe so keep firing him up for the time being.

Spencer Rattler, South Carolina (@ Missouri)

Rattler continues to be one of the most underrated success stories in the nation. He has 250+ passing yards in every game but one this year and he has been a fairly decent TD producer with 3+ TDs in 3 of his last 5 games. Rattler continues to be a safe pick at the very least, but he has shown great upside with multiple games over 30 points. This Missouri defense has been fairly good, but they have gotten beat by opposing QBs allowing 250+ passing yards and 3 TDs to opposing QBs in 4 straight weeks before last week. This is a matchup that Rattler should be good in so you can play him with confidence in what should be a high scoring game.

Cameron Ward, Washington State (@ Oregon)

How is Cameron Ward $9,100? His recent performance has been lacking thanks to back to back single digit performances, but do not sleep on Ward and this Washington State offense. They had scored 30+ points in every game before this two week skid so they are a much better offense than their recent play indicates. When this Wazzu offense succeeds, Ward is an elite fantasy player. He scored 35+ FD points in 3 of his first 4 games and with a game against Oregon he will have every opportunity to put up another huge stat line. 

Garrett Greene, West Virginia (vs Oklahoma State)

Garrett Greene is quickly turning into one of the best fantasy QBs in the nation. He is a serious threat with his feet rushing for 2 TDs in back to back weeks and 47 or more rushing yards in every game but one. He has been very consistent too, scoring more than 20 points in every game this year including a tough matchup against Penn State. He will get a much easier matchup this week against Oklahoma State who has allowed 20+ FD points to opposing QBs in every conference game this year. He may not be the greatest passer but his running ability alone is enough to warrant fantasy consideration.

Running Backs

Play of the Day: Ja'Quinden Jackson, Utah (@ USC)

I have adopted a new rule for college fantasy this year. Play whichever RB is facing USC. They have allowed opposing backs to score 20+ FD points in 3 of their last 4 games and 15+ in each of their last 4. The matchups could not line up any more favorably with Utah being an almost entirely run first offense, running for 173 yards per game thanks to poor QB play. Jackson had been a bit banged up for a couple weeks but he finally seemed fully healthy again last week and the team showed a renewed confidence in him giving him 22 carries. With a plus matchup, a bunch of opportunities and a price tag of just $6,500; Ja'Quinden Jackson is the top play of the week.

Blake Corum, Michigan (@ Michigan State)

Any time you can get Corum for less than 10k, he is a great deal. He is a lock to score at least one TD every week and while his yardage production has been lacking, he is usually good for more than 80 yards. In the Michigan state rivalry game, Michigan will dominate meaning Corum will be getting a lot of work especially in the second half. Corum dominated this game a year ago with 179 total yards and 2 TDs, showing the kind of upside a player like Corum has. Corum will not disappoint and will get back above the century yardage mark this week.

Ollie Gordon II, Oklahoma State (@ West Virginia)

Gordon has quickly ascended into the elite tier of fantasy RBs. Both his usage and production are insane showing he is here to stay. He's had 20+ opportunities in 3 straight games turning that work into at least 120 yards in each of those games including a monster 284 yard 2 TD game a week ago. He is quickly becoming one of the most exciting players in college football, but he is still a relative afterthought so his ownership may be low making him an even better play since he can separate you from other players. West Virginia has been a tough matchup for opposing RBs only allowing one opposing RB to rush for more than 100 yards, but Gordon is just too hot right now to fail.

Tawee Walker & Marcus Major, Oklahoma (vs UCF)

This is more about this matchup than Walker or Major. UCF has been horrendous against the run. They allowed 3 different Kansas RBs to score more than 20 points last week. They allowed DJ Giddens to score 50+ a couple weeks back. And they allowed Ashton Jeanty to rumble for 200+ yards and a TD a month ago. This run defense has been bad, is bad and will be bad so start RBs against them. The only issue with this play is how Oklahoma uses their backs. An Oklahoma RB has only gotten more than 20 carries once this season and the lead back always seems to change. Deciding between these Oklahoma RBs is a complete gamble at this point; but if you choose correctly, you will be rewarded nicely.

Will Shipley, Clemson (@ Miami)

Shipley continues to be featured in this offense. He's had at least 18 carries in each of his last 3 games and with the team coming off a bye look for them to utilize their best player even more now that he is well rested. He gets a Miami defensive front that just got brutalized by the UNC run game where they allowed 217 yards and 2 TDs to Omarion Hampton. Will Shipley and this Clemson O line are the strong points of this offense so look for them to have an impressive game against this fading defensive front.

Nicholas Singleton, Penn State (@ Ohio State)

This play all comes down to whether Penn State can hang with Ohio State. If they can, he is a great play. In this matchup a year ago, the PSU RBs were fairly productive totaling 140 yards and 2 TDs. Unfortunately for Singleton, it was Kaytron Allen who had all the big plays and production. More of the work should go to Singleton in this year's matchup as he is slowly and quietly becoming a workhorse back for Penn State. Singleton is averaging 18 carries over his last 3 games while Allen has had fewer than 10 carries in each of their past two games. If Penn State makes this a game, it will be on the back of Singleton.

Wide Receivers

Play of the Day: Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State (vs Penn State)

Harrison looks fully healthy again and is ready to go on a run. After being heralded as a potential Hesiman dark horse to begin the season, Harrison got off to a bit of a slow start recording less than 50 yards in 2 of his first 4 games. Following a bye, Ohio State has shown they want to feature Harrison. In his two games since then, he has 13 targets in back to back games while racking up 100+ yards and a TD in each game. Ohio State has continued to struggle to run the ball so they are turning their offense over to Harrison and it is paying dividends. With Ohio State likely to find themselves in a tight game this week, look for Harrison to be FEATURED.

Xavier Legette & Luther Burden III, South Carolina vs Missouri

In what should be a fairly high scoring SEC game, both of their leading receivers make for great plays. Burden is coming off of a disappointing game, but it was the first game all year where he scored less than 15 so you can just throw out that last performance. Expect Burden to be a solid play this week and every week going forward. With Antwane Wells Jr. out again, Xavier Legette is once again the main feature on this South Carolina offense. He has been superb this season being a true home run threat every time the ball touches his hands. He has at least 50 yards in every game but that is his absolute basement with 110+ yards in 4 of his six games this year. He does not get a ton of action as he is yet to catch 10 passes in a game this year, but has not needed too much work to succeed with an absurd 19.4 yards per catch. It is a tough ask; but if you can somehow fit both these guys into a lineup, you will be unbeatable.

Brenden Rice & Tahj Washington, USC (vs Utah)

While I do expect the USC offense to succeed this week, I do not expect it to be on the back of their running game. Utah is great against the run allowing just 67 rushing yards per game so USC will be forced to throw. Caleb Williams and this passing attack will be successful as the Utah secondary is fairly vulnerable allowing 211 yards per game and if this USC passing attack succeeds it will be going through these two. Tahj Washington is the high usage guy as he usually ends up the target leader for this team which has resulted in at least 40 yards in every game. He does get taken off the field in the redzone though due to his small frame so his upside is limited and he will likely need a long TD to have a great game, but he is the most sure thing in this receiving corps. Brenden Rice is the opposite of Washington. He is the big bodied redzone target. He does not get nearly as much work as Washington, but he does get way more valuable work; collecting at least 5 catches in a game just once, but also securing 5 TDs this year. Rice has an easier path to value so I do prefer him over Washington, but they both have their flaws.

Xavier Worthy, Texas (@ Houston)

This is a true boom or bust game for Worthy. He is in a great matchup and should be able to run free against this weak Houston secondary, but Texas could absolutely dominate this Houston team and make Worthy obsolete by the third quarter. Houston has allowed opposing receivers to score at least 14 points in back to back weeks, but they have also got crushed by teams like Texas Tech and TCU. If you think this will be a competitive game that keeps Worthy involved for the majority of the game then I cannot recommend him enough, but if you think it will be 35-6 at half then it is best to look elsewhere.

Nic Anderson & Jayden Gibson, Oklahoma (vs UCF)

The injury to Andrel Anthony was unfortunate and horrible but it will be up to these two to replace his production. Nic Anderson will absorb most of the work as he was already prominently featured in this offense with multiple games with more than 50 yards and 7 TDs across 5 games. He will continue to be featured in the redzone but will also see a huge bump in his yardage totals. Jayden Gibson will still get plenty of work though as Anderson and Anthony were on the field a bunch together. Gibson has the ability to take the top off of any defense which when paired with Dillon Gabriel's deep ball can lead to great things.

Jalon Calhoun, Duke (@ Florida State)

Calhoun has been the definite WR1 for this Duke team, but that has not translated into a ton of production as Duke has been able to run the ball very well. This should be a particularly productive week for Calhoun though as he gets QB Riley Leonard back and their chemistry is unrivaled. Leonard will be nursing his ankle injury still so his running ability will be limited which will result in even more work for Calhoun. Duke will have to score to keep pace with FSU so expect them to pass way more than you would normally see making Calhoun a fairly safe play this week.

Squirrel White, Tennessee (@ Alabama)

I am going to be living by this Squirrel White play and I am going to die by this play. I have been dying a lot lately, but he has to hit eventually. Maybe Joe Milton just can't pass, but if Joe Milton is ever able to put it all together White will be a huge benefactor. White is clearly Milton's top target as evidenced by White's 100 yard game a couple weeks ago, but the lack of any consistency from Joe Milton makes this a gamble at best.

Dream Team

QB: Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma (vs UCF)

RB1: Will Shipley, Clemson (@ Miami)

RB2: Ja'Quinden Jackson, Utah (@ USC)

WR1: Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State (vs Penn State)

WR2: Brenden Rice, USC (vs Utah)

WR3: Jayden Gibson, Oklahoma (vs UCF)

Flex: Caleb Williams, USC (vs Utah)

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