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 last week, but if not - we’re back for a Saturday night full of intriguing matchups. 

First off, DraftKings and FanDuel have very different slates for Saturday night and lineup construction will be unique to each site. The FD slate includes all of the late-night kickoffs as well - which includes some high-scoring offenses in Washington State and Clemson. The sites do share some common games, though, and we’ll focus more on those players in this playbook. If you want more in-depth breakdown of the players in FanDuel’s extra games, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @dan_servodidio.

In this Week 4 Saturday Night DFS CFB 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. Again, we will focus our attention on the players who can be found on both sites - but pay attention to the “Also Consider” section for more plays specific to FanDuel and DraftKings.

Now, let’s dive into the specific players that are worth rostering in both cash game and tournament lineups for this Week 4 Saturday night slate!

QUARTERBACKS

Spencer Sanders - Oklahoma State ($8,400 DK / $9,500 FD)

The quarterback position - and basically the entire night slate - begins and ends with this Oklahoma State-Texas matchup. We’ll get to Ehlinger, but Sanders should have a field day against the Longhorns' defense that’s allowing a slate-high 313 passing yards per game. This defense has been getting torched through the air all season while limiting opposing running backs - which should force the Oklahoma State offense to throw more often than they have this year. Sanders also adds some upside with his dual-threat ability as he’s run for at least 50 yards in each game so far and had 109 rushing yards in the opener. This game has the highest projected total by far and it should be a back-and-forth scoring contest with Sanders getting a ton of work either as a thrower or runner. 

Sam Ehlinger - Texas ($8,500 DK / $10,600 FD)

On the other side of Sanders is Ehlinger headlining the Texas offense - and he owns an even higher DFS ceiling than his counterpart. This game could easily wind up similarly to when Texas lost to LSU two week ago, 45-38, when Ehlinger racked up over 400 passing yards, 60 rushing yards and five total touchdowns (four through the air). The Longhorns’ QB is also a dual-threat, but he’s been passing more because the defense behind him is also giving up a ton of points. There’s a possibility you can roster both Ehlinger and Sanders in the same lineup but you’ll likely have to choose between them if you want to get in the higher-priced RBs as well. On DK, Ehlinger looks pretty attractive as only $100 more expensive than Sanders but he’ll probably be lower owned on FD with a much higher price tag and in a crowded QB position. 

Adrian Martinez - Nebraska ($7,900 DK / $9,400 FD)

Following a subpar performance in the season opener, Martinez has looked more like himself over the last two games - bringing a unique dual-threat upside to the quarterback position. He’s racked up 547 passing yards, 110 rushing yards, four passing TDs and three rushing TDs in the past two weeks with the production pretty spread out between the games. His DK price tag is still very affordable - making him a discount for cash games - and he’ll likely be higher as the season goes on. It’ll be tough to roster him on FD, though, because his salary is so similar to other QBs with higher upside. Still, though, Martinez will have the ball in his hands a ton whether it’s passing or running in this matchup on the road.

Brandon Peters - Illinois ($6,300 DK / $8,400 FD)

If you’re looking for a cheaper option for the Super-Flex position, Peters is very affordable - especially on DraftKings. The Illinois QB has been passing more lately with the team involved in closer games - and it’s resulted in 35 and 37 attempts over the last two weeks, respectively. Plus, Peters brings some dual-threat upside in the red-zone as he had a rushing score in Week 1 and broke off at least a 13-yard run in each game so far. This Nebraska-Illinois game has sneaky high-scoring potential with two unproven defenses on either side and offenses that can light up the scoreboard. Peters could put up similar numbers to Adrian Martinez but you get him at a much cheaper price tag. 

Also Consider: 

Aaron Gordon - Washington State ($10,500 FD Only)
Justin Herbert - Oregon ($8,300 DK / $9,700 FD)
Matthew McKay - North Carolina State ($6,400 DK / $9,400 FD)
Patrick O’Brien - Colorado State ($7,300 FD Only)

RUNNING BACKS

D’Andre Swift - Georgia ($8,200 DK / $9,200 FD)

Whether you’re playing on either site, Swift looks pretty safe for cash games because of his very favorable matchup and guaranteed workload as Georgia’s bell-cow back. He only saw 15 total carries over the last two weeks because the Bulldogs were winning big early in cupcake matchups - but he was still very efficient with those limited touches. Instead, we should look at Swift’s Week 1 performance against Vandy when he racked up 147 rushing yards on 16 carries. On Saturday, Georgia should lean on Swift even more in a must-win game against Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish defense is allowing a slate-high 230.5 rushing yards per game and Swift could have a field day against them with potentially 20 or more carries. 

Eno Benjamin - Arizona State ($9,400 FD Only)

If you’re playing on FanDuel, Benjamin is an interesting pivot off Swift on the high-end of running backs. The Arizona State bell-cow gets a very favorable matchup against a Colorado defense that’s allowing nearly 200 rushing yards per game and just got torched by Air Force’s triple-option rushing attack a week ago. Benjamin had 102 yards on 22 carries with a receiving score in Week 1 but struggled in a tough matchup against Michigan State last week. We can basically ignore that game because of how good the Spartans are against the run. Instead, Benjamin should get a ton of carries against a porous rush defense this time around and is a very nice GPP play on FD. 

Keaontay Ingram - Texas ($6,700 DK / $9,300 FD) 

Ingram is a very interesting DFS play each week because of what his assumed role should be compared to his real-life stats. The Texas backfield is riddled with injuries and Ingram presumably should get the majority of carries as the clear lead back. Yet, he only saw 13 carries last week and 10 the week before. At least he returned value last weekend with two rushing scores and 75 yards on limited touches - but it’s a bit concerning how low his workload is with not much competition behind him. It’s actually Longhorns QB Sam Ehlinger who is stealing red-zone carries and touchdown opportunities away from Ingram - but the path to success is definitely there for him on Saturday in a game with tons of scoring on both sides expected. His FD price is a little too expensive for cash games, but his DK tag is very attractive as he could easily rack up 20-30 DK points. 

Rakeem Boyd - Arkansas ($7,400 DK Only)

If you’re playing on DraftKings, Boyd looks like a very safe cash game play with tons of upside in an easy matchup. The junior is the clear lead back in the Arkansas backfield and he’s coming off a very good performance of 20 carries for 122 yards and two touchdowns last week. He’s seen at least 17 carries in each game thus far and he could be in line for massive yardage in a favorable matchup this week. The San Jose State defense is allowing 183 rushing yards per game - which makes Boyd a nice value on the DK slate. 

Also Consider:

Max Borghi - Washington State ($9,500 FD Only)
Maurice Washington - Nebraska ($7,800 DK / $8,900 FD)
Marvin Kinsey Jr. - Colorado State ($8,100 FD Only)
Jaxson Kincaide - Nevada ($5,300 DK Only)

WIDE RECEIVERS

Tylan Wallace - Oklahoma State ($8,600 DK / $9,700 FD)

There’s no denying how good Wallace has been this season - and he’s deservedly the most expensive WR on both sites - but the only issue is fitting him in an optimal cash or GPP lineup. His price on FD is much more attractive because of the other guys around him, but he’s $1,300 more expensive than the next highest wideout in DK - which should keep him low owned. Wallace is clearly Spencer Sanders’ top target and he’s already found the end zone six times through the first three weeks. In what should be highest-scoring game on the whole slate, Wallace can easily score three times this week and return value. However, the price tag remains his main issue. 

Johnny Johnson III - Oregon ($6,900 DK / $8,200 FD)

The Oregon receiving corps was a bit muddied to start the year but we’re starting to see Johnson III move ahead of the pack as Justin Herbert’s top target. Last week, the junior had eight catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns and was the Ducks’ leading receiver for the second time in three weeks - he had seven receptions for 98 yards in Week 1. If you’re playing Herbert, you should try to pair him with Johnson as the two should connect often. The Stanford defense has been very susceptible to the pass this year and if Oregon wants to win it’ll be because they let Herbert do his thing through the air - with Johnson being his top option.

Collin Johnson - Texas ($5,200 DK / $7,800 FD)

Johnson has seen his price tag take a hit lately because he’s battling an ankle injury and sat out last week - but this makes him a value play in what will be a high-scoring game. Johnson entered the year as Texas’ top receiver and he was solid in Week 1 before getting hurt with four catches for 59 yards and a touchdown. Devin Duvernay has stolen the spotlight lately in Johnson’s absence - but we can’t forget that Johnson was Ehlinger’s top returning target from last season and he’s still a top NFL WR prospect. Johnson is probable to play this week and if he suits up, he’ll likely step into a normal workload as the No. 1 wideout on an offense projected to score a ton. 

Ricky Smalling - Illinois ($5,200 DK / $7,700 FD)

If you’re playing Peters at QB this week, consider pairing him with Smalling to lock down the Illinois passing connection. Smalling is being fed targets and he’s racked up 12 catches for over 100 yards and a score in the last two games. Over those last two weeks, he has more than double the targets of any other Illinois pass-catcher and that workload is encouraging - especially after seeing him finally find the end zone last week. Smalling can easily 4x his price tag on DK if he continues to see his regular targets and scores once or twice. 

Also Consider: 

Devin Duvernay - Texas ($7,300 DK / $9,200 FD)
Brandon Arconado - Washington State ($8,300 FD Only)
Dillon Stoner - Oklahoma State ($4,600 DK / $6,000 FD)
JD Spielman - Nebraska ($5,600 DK / $7,800 FD)
Trey Knox - Arkansas ($5,000 DK Only)

Example Lineup on DraftKings:

QB: Sam Ehlinger - Texas ($8,500)
RB: D’Andre Swift - Georgia ($8,200)
RB: Jaxson Kincaide - Nevada ($5,300)
WR: Collin Johnson - Texas ($5,200)
WR: Ricky Smalling - Illinois ($5,200)
WR: Dillon Stoner - Oklahoma State ($4,600)
FLEX: Keaontay Ingram - Texas ($6,700)
S-FLEX: Brandon Peters - Illinois ($6,300)

Example Lineup on FanDuel: 

QB: Spencer Sanders - Oklahoma State ($9,500)
RB: D’Andre Swift - Georgia ($9,200)
RB: Eno Benjamin - Arizona State ($9,400)
WR: Tylan Wallace - Oklahoma State ($9,700)
WR: Ricky Smalling - Illinois ($7,700)
WR: Jacob Breeland - Oregon ($7,000)
S-FLEX: Patrick O’Brien - Colorado State ($7,300)