Welcome back, college football fans! It’s been a long offseason but the 2019 College Football season is finally upon us and it’s time to dive into the first DFS slate of the year! In what’s being called Week 0 of the season, we kick things off with a two-game slate this Saturday, August 24th which features a pair of exciting matchups. 

The 8th-ranked Florida Gators will face in-state rivals Miami Hurricanes on a neutral field in the early game before Hawaii plays host to Arizona in the later matchup. DraftKings and FanDuel both have contests available for this two-gamer and we’ll break down the top DFS plays at each position you should be locking into your cash game and GPP lineups. 

First, though, it’s important to understand both matchups because point spreads and totals will surely play a huge factor into roster construction. All odds listed below are taken from Bovada’s sportsbook. Let’s take a look: 

  • 7:00 pm ET -- Florida (-7.5) vs. Miami -- 47 O/U

  • 10:30 pm ET -- Arizona (-11) at Hawaii -- 74 O/U

Right away, you’ll notice the later game is the one to target for DFS purposes and our picks below reflect just that. With nearly 30 more points expected to be scored between Arizona-Hawaii than in the Florida-Miami game, most of your lineup should contain players from the higher-scoring matchup. It’s unfortunate that both DK and FD force you to roster players from at least two games so you won’t be able to fully stack the Arizona-Hawaii matchup. 

Now, let’s dive into the specific players that are worth rostering in both cash game and tournament lineups for this Week 0 slate!

QUARTERBACK

Khalil Tate - Arizona ($9,000 DK / $10,100 FD)

The Arizona signal-caller is far-and-away the best QB play in all formats tonight because he’ll be the main catalyst behind the highest projected scoring offense on this two-game slate. His salary on both DK and FD is actually probably a discount right now as Tate is one of the best dual-threat QBs in all of college football and a big performance Saturday should force his price point even higher in the coming weeks. Vegas expects Arizona to score 40+ points and they shouldn’t have a problem doing so as Hawaii’s defense ranked 111th out of 130 FBS teams last year in points allowed and the Rainbow Warriors’ fast-paced offense allows opposing teams to get tons of offensive possessions. 

Tate is a pass-first QB because of Kevin Sumlin’s system, so he’ll have plenty of passing yards and potential passing touchdowns - but the dynamic playmaker also has a higher floor than most quarterbacks because of his rushing upside. An ankle injury forced him to limit his rushing attempts last season, but Tate regularly racked up 100-200 rushing yards per game two years ago when he was fully healthy. You should lock Tate into all your lineups this week - especially with the SuperFlex format allowing you to roster two QBs. 

Cole McDonald - Hawaii ($8,800 DK / $10,700 FD)

With both DraftKings and FanDuel giving you the option to roster two QBs in the same lineup with the SuperFlex position, McDonald is the ideal option to pair with Tate because of how high-scoring this game should be. There’s enough value on this slate at RB and WR that rostering two high-priced quarterbacks isn’t a big issue, either. Hawaii runs a spread offense with tons of passing all game long partly because that’s the intention, but also out of necessity as they trail in most games due to their defense being so poor. McDonald racked up 3,875 passing yards with a 35:8 TD:INT ratio last year and threw for at least 320 yards and two touchdowns in seven of 13 games. Although Hawaii’s leading receiver from last season, John Ursua, is off to the NFL - McDonald still has two of his top targets returning in Cedric Byrd II and JoJo Ward.

Also Consider: Jarren Williams - Miami ($6,100 DK / $7,500 FD)

RUNNING BACK

J.J. Taylor - Arizona ($7,700 DK / $9,800 FD)

Like his teammate above, Taylor should be rostered in all formats on this short slate because he’s the best running back by far among all four teams and will be on the offense projected to score the most. Taylor could be $1,000 more expensive on either site and you still have to lock him into one of your RB spots - it’s pretty simple. While the Arizona offense runs through Tate, it’s Taylor who’s the anchor on the ground as a constant threat to break open long gains with how spread out the attack is. The junior will likely be one of the top backs taken in next year’s NFL Draft as he’s expected to be one of the best college rushers this season. Taylor accounted for nearly 70% of the carries in Arizona’s backfield in 2018 and he should see a similar workload this year as the workhorse on the offense. He ran for 1,434 yards on 5.6 YPC last season and had four games when he tallied 140 rushing yards or more (his season-high was 284 vs. Oregon State). He’ll be mega-chalk on this two-game slate but you’ll likely find yourself on the outside of cashing if you don’t play him. 

Fred Holly III - Hawaii ($4,100 DK / $5,400 FD) 

Hawaii listed three starters on their RB depth chart coming into this game but it’s Holly who is the more proven and diverse back in the group. Dayton Furuta ($4,300 DK / $6,700 FD) is the bigger body who’s used mostly in short-yardage and goal-line situations - which makes him viable as a tournament play - and Miles Reed only saw 30 carries a year ago and is clearly third in this rotation. Holly, meanwhile, is the better all-around runner in Hawaii’s backfield who averaged 4.3 YPC last season and is a safer cash option than Furuta or Reed. Arizona gave up 162.5 rushing yards per game in 2018 and with how high-scoring this matchup should be - Holly could easily find the end zone a couple of times. In Hawaii’s first two games last year, Holly totaled 34 carries, 182 yards, and three scores - the offense could look to ride him once again to begin this season. 

Kadarius Toney - Florida ($3,300 DK / $6,200 FD)

If you’re looking for value at RB on DraftKings, Toney is your guy. He’s very much underpriced on that site and is listed as a running back despite being more of a WR by college football standards (he’s a WR on FanDuel, by the way). Toney will line up in the backfield, in the slot, and out wide as the Gators will use his dynamic playmaking ability to gain mismatches against opposing defenses. He’s basically Florida’s current version of Percy Harvin from back in the day - and he can break a game open on any one touch. Toney is easily the offense’s most versatile weapon and he could catch a ton of short passes while also taking jet sweep runs for big gains. As you’ll see below, you can definitely use him as a WR on FD - but his better value is on DK where you can roster him for cheap as your RB2 or FLEX at nearly half the price of the other running backs on the slate. 

Also Consider: Malik Davis - Florida ($3,700 DK / $5,200 FD)

WIDE RECEIVER

Cedric Byrd II - Hawaii ($6,900 DK / $8,700 FD)

JoJo Ward - Hawaii ($6,000 DK / $9,300 FD)

With John Ursua out of the picture, Hawaii’s top two returning receivers are Byrd and Ward - and they both make up the best plays at WR on this slate. As you can tell, Byrd is more expensive on DK while Ward is higher-priced on FD and they are basically interchangeable on each site if you’re looking to save with one over the other. Or you can definitely roster both in the same lineup to lock down Cole McDonald’s top pass-catchers. Last season, Byrd was the better possession receiver with 79 receptions for 970 yards and nine touchdowns. Ward, meanwhile, was the better big-play threat with his 865 yards, nine scores, and team-leading 17.0 YPC. Again, this Arizona-Hawaii game will be the highest-scoring game on the slate and with Arizona favored by 11 - we should see a ton of passing from McDonald and the Hawaii offense. Byrd and Ward should both see 10-15 targets and you’d be smart to roster at least one of them in lineups where you have McDonald. 

Cedric Peterson - Arizona ($5,900 DK / $8,400 FD)

The Arizona receiving corps is tough to project for this season with their top four pass-catchers from last year gone and a bunch of uncertainty coming into 2019. Peterson’s 18 receptions, 268 yards and four touchdowns from last season leave him as the top returning receiver and the de facto No. 1 in this offense heading into Week 0. This offseason, Peterson emerged as the senior leader of the WR group and he should be a red-zone target for QB Khalil Tate as four of his 18 catches from 2018 went for scores. With how many points the Wildcats are projected to score, Peterson may wind up getting 10-15 targets this Saturday and makes for a pretty safe cash play - especially at a cheaper price point than the top two Hawaii WRs. 

Jason-Matthew Sharsh - Hawaii ($4,700 DK / $6,500 FD)

There are a ton of targets and receiving yards to go around with John Ursua gone from the Hawaii offense and Sharsh could wind being the third pass-catcher alongside Byrd and Ward. Last year, we saw plenty of times that the Rainbow Warriors’ offense can easily support three different receivers for DFS because of how often they throw the ball in the spread attack. We mentioned how productive Byrd and Ward were a year ago but someone in this Hawaii receiving corps will have to replace Ursua’s team-leading 89 catches, 1,343 yards and 16 TDs from 2018. Sharsh could be that guy as he’s listed as the team’s starting left slot receiver heading into the weekend and seems to be ahead of California-transfer Melquise Stovall. The senior only caught four passes last season before his breakout in the bowl game - five receptions for 67 yards and a score - but he could provide a ton of value at this price on both sites, especially if defenses are more focused on stopping Ward and Byrd in the passing game. 

Brevin Jordan - Miami ($3,700 DK / $6,000 FD)

If you’re looking for a one-off WR play from the Miami-Florida game, Jordan provides some solid value on both sites. He’s actually a tight end in the Hurricanes’ offense, but he was basically the WR2 for them last year as a true freshman. He finished second on the team in receptions and receiving touchdowns and was third in receiving yards. With Miami going with, a first-year starter, Jarren Williams at QB to start the season, we could see Jordan get a ton of targets against Florida as the safety blanket in the short and intermediate parts of the field. Florida’s defense is one of the best in the nation and Williams may just opt to dump it off to Jordan a bunch as he gets acclimated to the offense. 

Jamarye Joiner - Arizona ($3,100 DK / $4,000 FD)

As we mentioned earlier, Arizona’s offense lost its top four receivers from last season - leaving a big opportunity open for any of the Wildcat pass-catchers to step up. Joiner is listed as a co-starter at slot receiver on the opening depth chart and he’ll be fighting with Brian Casteel for snaps and targets at the position. The slot WR role in Arizona’s offense is a pretty major one as last year’s starter, Shun Brown, racked up a team-leading 64 catches for 655 yards and six scores. Casteel ($5,500 DK / $6,100) is notably more expensive than Joiner - but apparently, this competition is wide-open and the better value is with Joiner. The fact that Joiner is even in this conversation is impressive, though, because he made the switch from quarterback to receiver at the start of fall camp and seems to have earned his way into a co-starter’s role. While he’s listed as a WR on DK, he is only QB-eligible on FD which limits how you use him in roster construction, obviously. We wouldn’t recommend using him at QB or SuperFlex, but he’s definitely a value option on DK. 

Also Consider: Bryce Wolma - Arizona ($3,100 DK / $4,900 FD); Jared Smart - Hawaii ($3,000 DK / $5,000 FD)

 

EXAMPLE DRAFTKINGS LINEUP

QB: Cole McDonald, HAW - $8,800

RB: J.J. Taylor, ARI - $7,700

RB: Kadarius Toney, UF - $3,300

WR: Cedric Byrd II, HAW - $6,900

WR: JoJo Ward, HAW - $6,000

WR: Jamarye Joiner, ARI - $3,100

FLEX: Jason-Matthew Sharsh, HAW - $4,700

S-FLEX: Khalil Tate, ARI - $9,000

EXAMPLE FANDUEL LINEUP

QB: Cole McDonald, HAW - $10,700

RB: J.J. Taylor, ARI - $9,800

RB: Fred Holly III, HAW - $5,400

WR: JoJo Ward, HAW - $9,300 

WR: Kadarius Toney, UF - $6,200

WR: Cedric Peterson, ARI - $8,400

S-FLEX: Khalil Tate, ARI - $10,100