College football bowl season is finally here! It all gets started with Friday’s two-game slate starting at noon Eastern with the Bahamas Bowl between Middle Tennessee and Toledo. Then it’s the Tailgreeter Cure Bowl in the evening with Northern Illinois and Coastal Carolina. Let’s dive into the top plays and values at each position ahead of Friday’s CFB DFS slate!
THE SLATE (Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook):
- 12 pm ET -- Middle Tennessee vs. Toledo (-10) -- 50.5 O/U (in Nassau, The Bahamas)
- 6 pm ET -- Northern Illinois vs. Coastal Carolina (-11) -- 63 O/U (in Orlando, FL)
Implied Team Totals:
- Coastal Carolina -- 37 points
- Toledo -- 30.25 points
- Northern Illinois -- 26 points
- Middle Tennessee -- 20.25 points
QUARTERBACKS
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Grayson McCall | C-C | NIU | 8600 | 24.33 | 11000 | 23.43 | |
| The Coastal offense should run and pass all over the poor NIU defense and McCall will likely be a big part of that. He compiled a 23:3 TD:INT ratio with four rush TDs over 10 games this season and ended the year on a high note with seven total TDs and 60 combined DFS points over the final two contests. It’ll be hard to fade McCall in cash on this two-game slate. | |||||||
| Dequan Finn | TOL | MTSU | 8000 | 19.53 | 10000 | 19.24 | |
| In cash, it might be best just to pay up for both McCall and Finn in the same lineup to lock in the two safest QBs of the short slate. Finn will have the easiest matchup of any QB here against MTSU’s pass defense that gave up 257 yards and two TDs per game through the air during conference play this year. Finn also has some dual-threat ability with eight rush TDs this season. | |||||||
| Rocky Lombardi | NIU | C-C | 7000 | 20.1 | 8800 | 17.09 | |
| The MTSU QB situation is a mess for DFS with two guys likely splitting work in this bowl game. So the only cheap QB available is Lombardi, who has some upside in a high total matchup. Even though Coastal’s pass defense is strong, we know Lombardi will be throwing it a ton to try and keep pace here with NIU’s defense likely allowing a ton of points. There is some bust potential, though, so limit exposure to GPPs. | |||||||
Other Quarterbacks:
- Mike DiLiello -- Middle Tennessee ($6,500 DK / $6,500 FD)
RUNNING BACKS
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Bryant Koback | TOL | MTSU | 7700 | 26.48 | 11200 | 23.96 | |
| On this short slate, Koback is in a tier of his own at RB. He’s been one of the best DFS rushers in the country this season and it’s virtually impossible to fade him in cash and feel comfortable about it without any other top RBs to match his floor/ceiling combo. The MTSU rush defense is actually solid, but we know Koback will see heavy volume in the Toledo offense as their focal point. He had 140+ total yards, multiple TDs and 30+ DK points in four straight games to end the season and could very well do the same here. | |||||||
| Shermari Jones | C-C | NIU | 6300 | 19.46 | 9500 | 18.11 | |
| In terms of matchups, the Coastal backfield has the best one on this slate against a poor NIU defense that gave up 204 rush ypg and 5.8 ypc during conference play. Jones had been Coastal’s lead back in the final stretch of the regular season with Reese White out and that shouldn’t change in this bowl game. Even though White is expected to play, it’s hard to see him cutting too much into Jones’ workload. | |||||||
| Jay Ducker | NIU | C-C | 4900 | 12.71 | 8000 | 12.13 | |
| Ever since he took over NIU’s lead back duties with Harrison Waylee out, Ducker has been a DFS darling for us. He’s rushed for at least 100 yards in six of the last seven games with heavy volume in each. We have to temper expectations a bit here in a tough matchup vs. Coastal’s rush defense, but the opportunity is there with Waylee expected out again. | |||||||
| Clint Ratkovich | NIU | ECU | 4100 | 11.71 | 6300 | 10.95 | |
| If you’re looking for a cheap RB to round out that roster, Ratkovich is the way to go. The dude has been a TD machine with scores in six straight games coming in and 12 total TDs over 13 games. He doesn’t get much volume as NIU’s backup to Ducker, but he’s usually the goal-line back and the consistent end zone production is impossible to ignore. Though he’s a bit TD-dependent, you could do a lot worse in this price range. | |||||||
Other Running Backs:
- Martell Pettaway -- Middle Tennessee ($4,400 DK / $5,600 FD)
- Antario Brown -- Northern Illinois ($3,700 DK / $5,500 FD)
- Braydon Bennett -- Coastal Carolina ($3,600 DK / $5,800 FD)
WIDE RECEIVERS
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Jaivon Heiligh | C-C | NIU | 7100 | 18.53 | 9000 | 14.57 | |
| If you want to pair a Coastal pass-catcher up with McCall, it comes down to either Heiligh or Likely. You can go both and figure the rest out or roll with Likely in GPPs, but Heiligh is the best option in cash. He’s coming off a 1,000-yard receiving season as McCall’s favorite target, and more often than not he’s finding the end zone and putting up 20+ DK points on a weekly basis. On a slate without many top-tier wideouts, Heiligh is the guy you want in cash. | |||||||
| Trayvon Rudolph | NIU | C-C | 6200 | 17.44 | 8300 | 15.33 | |
| If fading the top two Coastal guys, then Rudolph is the contrarian way to go and makes for a high-upside pairing with Lombardi. Though NIU’s top receiver has been quiet the last couple games, it wasn’t too long ago when Rudolph was breaking the mid-week MAC slate with 65 DK points and 300+ yards. At least we know the upside is there, though the Coastal defensive matchup puts him in tournament territory. | |||||||
| Cole Tucker | NIU | C-C | 4900 | 12.72 | 6300 | 9.27 | |
| Though Tucker didn’t do much in the MAC title game, he’s still the No. 2 receiver in the NIU offense with Tyrice Richie presumably out again. That role has made him DFS-friendly for the most part with a decent enough floor for cash in a high-scoring attack. We expect NIU to be throwing more in the second half to keep pace in this game, so Tucker should see enough volume to return value. | |||||||
| Kameron Brown | C-C | NIU | 4700 | 11.97 | 7300 | 10.31 | |
| If you want some cheaper exposure to the Coastal offense in this favorable matchup, then Brown is the way to go. You can also stack him up with McCall, Heiligh and/or Likely to get maximum exposure. Brown actually has a better DFS floor than you’d think for playing third fiddle in the receiving corps to Heiligh and Likely - and he’s a candidate to score once or twice in this high total matchup. | |||||||
| Devin Maddox | TOL | MTSU | 3900 | 10.18 | 6500 | 7.54 | |
| While the Toledo offense doesn’t throw often, Maddox has been one of Finn’s favorite targets this season when he does pass it. Maddox’s 38 receptions and 562 receiving yards both lead the team this season and his four TDs are tied for the team high. You can also look at Isaiah Winstead as a cheap Toledo pass-catcher, but Maddox might be the best bet. | |||||||
| Yusuf Ali | MTSU | TOL | 3700 | 9.88 | 6600 | 8.08 | |
| We shouldn’t be targeting the Middle Tennessee offense much on this slate, but Ali is cheap enough to consider in cash or GPP. It’s tough to trust any one MTSU pass-catcher because the receiving production and yardage have been pretty spread out this season. Lately, though, it’s Ali who’s been consistently involved with 12+ DK points in three of the last four games. There aren't many great values on this short slate, but Ali could end up popular with some cheap tags. | |||||||
Other Wide Receivers:
- Isaiah Likely -- Coastal Carolina ($6,800 DK / $8,500 FD)
- Matt Landers -- Toledo ($5,200 DK / $7,600 FD)
- Isaiah Winstead -- Toledo ($4,400 DK / $6,100 FD)
Core Plays:
- QB Grayson McCall -- Coastal Carolina
- RB Bryant Koback -- Toledo
- WR Jaivon Heiligh -- Coastal Carolina
- WR Cole Tucker -- Northern Illinois