Slate Breaker: FD CFB DFS Bowl Season (12/27)

Quarterbacks

Play of the Day: Garrett Greene, West Virginia (vs North Carolina)

In a slate filled with backup QBs, Greene stands out. He was a great option on full slates during the regular season and now that he is the only consistent producer on this limited slate, you need him in your lineups. Greene's rushing prowess went under the radar following dominant seasons by Jayden Daniels and Jalen Milroe, but this guy is just as good as those two if not better. Just look at what he did over the last 2 weeks. He has run for 100+ in back to back weeks while combining for 5 rushing TDs during that span. His rushing abilities give him a baseline of 20+ FDP but his ceiling is much higher. Don't get cute, play Greene.

Kyron Drones, Virginia Tech (vs Tulane)

Drones is the only other QB who has had any kind of routine success. He is averaging 26.7 FDP over his last 3 games so you can see that he is a player that comes with a lot of potential. It is his opponent that makes me hesitant to play him. Drones is a run first QB and Tulane is the 8th best run defense in the country so they have the ability to shut Drones down if they play to their full potential, but there is a silver lining for Drones. Tulane is a program in transition so they might underwhelm in this one as they are no longer the cohesive unit they once were. With this tough matchup, I see Drones as a big boom or bust candidate so playing him comes with a lot of risk.

Jaylen Henderson, Texas A&M (vs Oklahoma State)

Henderson is one of the few backup QBs on this slate who has shown they can produce solid fantasy numbers. He has scored 19+ FDP in 3 straight games so he has established himself as a somewhat reliable fantasy producer. Oklahoma State made an unexpected run to the Big 12 Championship, but that was due to their offense not their defense. Their defense is very beatable, allowing at least 30 points to their opponent in 4 straight games. Henderson has shown he can produce in this offense and there is no reason to think he will not do it again against this vulnerable Oklahoma State defense.

Conner Harrell, North Carolina (vs West Virginia)

Harrell is the ultimate wild card on this slate. He does not have any real college football experience but he oozes potential especially as a fantasy producer. He was the #10 dual threat QB in his class with high end athletic traits, but he is also a good passer and does not just tuck and run at the first sign of pressure, he actually uses his feet to escape and then throw down the field. We truly have no real idea of what Harrell will be like at the next level, but he gets a soft landing spot against West Virginia. Lacking any real pass rush, West Virginia has been routinely beaten by some middling QBs so if Harrell can succeed at this level of football then he will find success this week. Harrell is as risky as they come but if he is as advertised then expect huge things this week.

Running Backs

Play of the Day: Isaac Guerendo, Louisville (vs USC)

When Jawhar Jordan has been out of the lineup, Guerendo has been an elite fantasy RB with multiple 20+ FDP games under his belt. Now he gets the easiest RB matchup in the nation. USC's inability to stop RBs this season has been puzzling since there is plenty of talent on this defense but still every single RB succeeds against them. USC has allowed an opposing back to score 20+ FDP in 7 straight games while allowing 30+ FDP in nearly half of those games. Guerendo is going to have a career day against the Swiss cheese of a run defense.

Ollie Gordon, Oklahoma State (vs Texas A&M)

We get one last chance to utilize the best RB in the nation this year and you better believe I am going to be all over him. He is good for 20 FDP against basically any opponent and he has true 40 FDP potential every time he takes the field. The matchup does not really matter for Gordon so even though Texas A&M was fairly solid against the run, Gordon will still find success. It will be hard for me to build a lineup without both Guerendo and Gordon and I imagine a lot of DFS players will feel that same way.

Makhi Hughes, Tulane (vs Virginia Tech)

Hughes truly is the last man standing on this offense. Tulane's starting WRs, QB and coaching staff are all gone so it will be up to Hughes to carry this offense in the season finale. He does have the potential to succeed if the Tulane passing attack can keep the Virginia Tech defense honest and prevent them from loading up the box. The VT defense was good against the pass this year, but still allowed nearly 150 yards on the ground so if this Tulane offense is semi functional even with all the personnel changes, Hughes will have a huge game.

Jahiem White, West Virginia (vs North Carolina)

White seemingly came out of nowhere midseason and finished the season as one of the most promising RBs who are returning for the 2024 season. If you want to see the kind of potential this kid has, just look at his last 2 games. Following an injury to top back CJ Donaldson, White took over the lead back role over the last 2 games and produced some eye popping games with 279 and 162 yard games while scoring 3 times over that span. CJ Donaldson is out again so I would expect another game of elite fantasy production.

Wide Receiver

Play of the Day: Zachariah Branch, USC (vs Louisville)

With Miller Moss at QB and a tough Louisville defense on hand, the USC offense will be simplified and condensed. This will lead to a lot of passing close to the line of scrimmage and running off the edge, two things that Branch excels at. Branch is an elite athlete so he can break a long TD at any moment so with an increase in usage incoming, Branch has elite potential.

Brennan Presley, Oklahoma State (vs Texas A&M)

Presley is one of the few elite WRs on this slate who is paired with his regular season QB so we can make a reasonable projection of his production. The projection is looking very juicy as he really came on strong down the stretch recording 90+ yards in 4 of his last 5 games. This offense is run through Ollie Gordon, but he is the majority of this passing game goes through Presley. The Oklahoma State defense gives up a lot of points so both the running game and passing game will be needed in what should be a competitive game so Presley will get enough work to be productive.

Virginia Tech WRs (vs Tulane)

Playing guys all comes down to whether you believe the Tulane defense is still elite. Both of the top VT WRs, Da'Quan Felton and Jaylin Lane, are great fantasy WRs so they should be able to overcome a tough matchup. Tulane has only allowed a WR to top 100 yards in 3 games this year so these WRs will likely need to find the endzone in order to deliver value on their lofty prices, but the stability of this offense makes me optimistic about both of these guys.

Nate McCollum, North Carolina (vs West Virginia)

Basically everyone who has caught a pass for UNC this year will be inactive for the bowl game leaving just JJ Jones and McCollum as the only proven pass catchers for the Tar Heels. McCollum is the more appealing option since he is the slot receiver. With the inexperienced QB Conner Harrell running this offense, McCollum will be relied on as a safety blanket since he works out of the slot and runs a lot of routes close to the line of scrimmage. McCollum has been injured, but he has been practicing so I think he plays, but make sure you confirm his availability before locking him into your lineup.

Yulkeith Brown, Tulane (vs Virginia Tech)

If this passing attack is competent with backup QBs Ibieta and Horton running the show, then Brown will be the guy who the offense will run through. He and TE Alex Bauman are the only members of the Tulane passing attack that will be playing in this game so they will be the only guys who know the entire offense leading them to get a ton of usage. Brown is a big play threat so an increase in usage will lead to a monster day. Let's all hope that these backup QBs are able to run this offense because Brown can be a Slate Breaker.

Dream Team

QB: Kyron Drones, Virginia Tech (vs Tulane)

RB1: Ollie Gordon, Oklahoma State (vs Texas A&M)

RB2: Isaac Guerendo, Louisville (vs USC)

WR1: Nate McCollum, North Carolina (vs West Virginia)

WR2: Yulkeith Brown, Tulane (vs Virginia Tech)

WR3: Zachariah Branch, USC (vs Louisville)

Flex: Garrett Greene, West Virginia (vs North Carolina)

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