Welcome back, college football fans! It’s been a long offseason waiting for CFB DFS to return but we’re glad to say that Saturdays (and Thursdays and Fridays) will again be dominated by college football action. Hopefully you cashed in Week 0 and on the Thursday/Friday Week 1 slates, but if not - we’re back for a Saturday night full of intriguing matchups. 

DraftKings and FanDuel have slightly different slates for Saturday night but they do share seven common matchups with the majority of them kicking off at 7:30 pm ET. FanDuel has added in three additional games to form a 10-game slate as the Iowa, USC and Washington State matchups will make lineup decisions even tougher. 

In this Week 1 Saturday Night slate Playbook, we’ll break down a few of the top plays at each position by taking into account the price differentials, individual matchups, depth charts and point spreads. Also, we will focus our attention on the players who can be found on both sites - but pay attention to the “Also Consider” section for plays specific to FanDuel.

Now, let’s dive into the specific players that are worth rostering in both cash game and tournament lineups for this Week 1 Saturday night slate!

 

QUARTERBACKS

Kelly Bryant - Missouri ($7,900 DK / $9,600 FD) - Remember when Bryant led Clemson to the National Championship game in 2017 as one of the nation’s premier dual-threat quarterbacks? We do, and it’s the main reason why we should expect him to have a big performance in his debut with Missouri tonight. Bryant transferred away from Clemson last season after losing the starting job to Trevor Lawrence and you can bet he’s motivated to prove his decision was for the best. In that 2017 season, Bryant threw for over 2,800 yards, ran for 665 more and accounted for 24 touchdowns. He’s replacing Drew Lock in this Tigers’ offense and although he’s not the pure thrower Lock was, he actually brings a different dimension with his running ability. 

Justin Herbert - Oregon ($6,400 DK / $9,500 FD) - We know Auburn’s defense could give the Ducks’ offense some trouble tonight - but there’s really no reason that Herbert’s DK salary is only the 10th-highest among quarterbacks. This is a guy who could be the #1 overall pick in the NFL Draft, will compete for the Heisman this year and was routinely in the 8-9k range last season in DFS. His FanDuel price tag is much more accurate but he’s a clear bargain on DraftKings. Herbert threw for more than 3,000 yards and nearly 30 touchdowns last year and he’ll be Oregon’s leader tonight in a tough matchup vs. Auburn. The SEC defense could easily bottle up the Ducks’ rushing attack which would force Herbert to make plays through the air in the second-half. Lock him in as one of your QB’s on DK and seriously consider him in all formats on both sites. 

Also Consider: 

Bryce Perkins - Virginia ($8,700 DK / $10,000 FD)

Anthony Gordon - Washington State ($9,800 FD Only)

Sean Chambers - Wyoming ($5,400 DK / $7,400 FD)

Shai Werts - Georgia Southern ($4,800 DK / $7,500 FD)


 

RUNNING BACKS

De’Andre Swift - Georgia ($9,800 DK / $9,600 FD) - Swift is the most expensive RB on both sites for a good reason and despite the high price tag, it’ll be tough to fade him in all formats. On a slate with few high-end plays at QB and WR, paying up for Swift as your RB1 makes a ton of sense as he could easily wind up being the highest-scoring DFS player. The junior is the clear-cut workhorse back in the Georgia offense this season after sharing the backfield in his first two years with Nick Chubb and Elijah Holyfield. Both are gone and it leaves Swift to get 25-30 touches per game on a weekly basis in the Bulldogs’ run-dominant attack. Although he battled groin and ankle injuries last year, Swift finished with 1,346 yards from scrimmage and 13 total touchdowns and he enters this season as a legit Heisman Trophy and Maxwell Award contender. Plus, Swift gets a favorable matchup tonight as the Vanderbilt defense allowed 187.3 rushing yards per game in 2018. 

Keontay Ingram - Texas ($7,700 DK / $9,300 FD) - Although Ingram has been battling a bone bruise in camp this past month, he’s been cleared to play in the opener and he’ll be the Longhorns’ lead back right away. The sophomore shared the backfield last season with Tre Watson and still racked up 878 total yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns. In 2019, though, Ingram will begin the year as the starter and his only real competition is true freshman Jordan Whittington. Outside of that, the rest of the Texas backs are banged up with Kirk Johnson, Daniel Young and Jarrett Smith all out for at least this week. Whittington is a talented recruit but he’ll definitely take a backseat to Ingram for much of this game. Plus, Ingram has even more upside in this specific matchup as Louisiana Tech will start four new players along its defensive line. 

Also Consider:

Max Borghi - Washington State ($8,800 FD Only)

Larry Rountree III - Missouri ($8,400 DK / $9,400 FD)

Clyde Edwards-Helaire - LSU ($5,200 DK / $9,500 FD)


 

WIDE RECEIVERS

Adrian Hardy - Louisiana Tech ($6,400 DK / $8,200 FD) - With Texas coming in as three-touchdown favorites tonight, Louisiana Tech will likely be throwing the ball for much of the second-half to get back into the game - and Hardy is the #1 receiver for the Bulldogs. The redshirt junior broke out last season with a team-high 75 receptions for 1,145 yards and six touchdowns. He was quarterback J’Mar Smith’s top target in the passing game and if Louisiana Tech needs to go to the air more often in this one, we can assume Hardy will see the bulk of those targets. In the final four games of 2018, Hardy totaled 36 catches for 488 yards and was a target hog in this offense. 

Jared Pinkney - Vanderbilt ($4,800 DK / $8,200 FD) - Vanderbilt has yet to announce a starting quarterback, but Pinkney should see a ton of targets no matter who is behind center. The Commodores will either go with Ball State transfer Riley Neal or junior Deuce Wallace as this year’s replacement for the departed Kyle Shurmur. The Georgia defense, meanwhile, is one of the best in the nation and should bottle up Commodores’ star tailback Ke’Shawn Vaughn. This will force Vanderbilt’s QB - whether it’s Neal or Wallace - to look for easy completions to move the ball and this is where Pinkney could excel. Although he’s a tight end in this offense, Pinkney was actually Vandy’s second-best receiver a year ago with 50 receptions for 774 yards and seven touchdowns. On DK, we’re getting Pinkney at a very nice bargain and he can easily return value at that sub-5k price tag. 

Jaylon Redd - Oregon ($4,800 DK / $7,400 FD) - If you’re rostering Justin Herbert tonight, you’ll want to pair him with a Ducks receiver and Redd is the safest option among them. Redd is the leading returning pass-catcher from last season when he totaled 38 receptions for 433 yards and five touchdowns. Herbert’s favorite target from a year ago (Dillon Mitchell) is no longer there so we’ll have to see where the majority of his passes go - but it seems reasonable that he’ll look towards a guy he’s already familiar with. Redd is a shifty, possession receiver who will start in the slot and he could rack up some catches tonight if Herbert is looking for easy completions. The other starting Oregon wideouts are Penn State transfer Juwan Jefferson and Johnny Johnson III, who only had 17 catches in 2018. DraftKings is underpricing the entire Ducks receiving corps and getting Redd at a sub-5k price tag is very appealing. 

Jonathan Nance - Missouri ($3,300 DK / $6,300 FD) - Like his quarterback, Nance is the other new face in Missouri’s offense this season and he may have a bigger role for the Tigers than most are expecting - especially considering DK’s price tag. The Arkansas grad transfer has reportedly been Kelly Bryant’s primary receiving option during camp and he could wind up being the Mizzou QB’s favorite target this week. In 2017 for Arkansas, Nance led the team in receptions (37), receiving yards (539) and touchdown catches (five) and also started the Razorbacks’ first four games of 2018 before transferring. He’s such a bargain on both sites and should be a safe cash game play. 

Also Consider: 

Easop Winston Jr. - Washington State ($8,400 FD Only)

Devin Duvernay - Texas ($5,700 DK / $8,100 FD)

Albert Okwuegbunam - Missouri ($5,300 DK / $7,900 FD)

Johnny Johnson III - Oregon ($3,600 DK / $6,700 FD)

 

Example Lineup on DraftKings:

QB: Justin Herbert - Oregon ($6,400)

RB: De’Andre Swift - Georgia ($9,800)

RB: Keontay Ingram - Texas ($7,700)

WR: Jonathan Nance - Missouri ($3,300)

WR: Jared Pinkney - Vanderbilt ($4,800)

WR: Jaylon Redd - Oregon ($4,800)

FLEX: Clyde Edwards-Helaire - LSU ($5,300)

S-FLEX: Kelly Bryant - Missouri ($7,900)

 

Example Lineup on FanDuel: 

QB: Kelly Bryant - Missouri ($9,600)

RB: De’Andre Swift - Georgia ($9,600)

RB: Max Borghi - Washington State ($8,800)

WR: Jaylon Redd - Oregon ($7,400)

WR: Jonathan Nance - Missouri ($6,300)

WR: Easop Winston Jr. - Washington State ($8,400)

S-FLEX: Anthony Gordon - Washington State ($9,800)