Welcome back college football fans & DFS players!! The CFB season continues on with an entertaining Week 8 Saturday slate - and Fantasy Alarm has you covered! This playbook will cover the early afternoon main slate of games while Pete Cole will have the night slate for you!
Before we dive in, a quick note that we’re only focusing on the DraftKings slate of games for this playbook, but feel free to play on FanDuel with the same players below. If you have any questions on specific players or lineup builds, feel free to hit me up on Twitter @dan_servodidio or on the Discord and I’ll try to help out!
Without further ado, let’s dive into DraftKing's Main Slate (12:00, 12 games) for October 23rd!
THE SLATE
(Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook):
- 12 pm ET -- Oklahoma (-39) at Kansas -- 66.5 O/U
- 12 pm ET -- Northwestern at Michigan (-23.5) -- 51 O/U
- 12 pm ET -- Illinois at Penn State (-24) -- 45.5 O/U
- 12 pm ET -- Kansas State (-1) at Texas Tech -- 60.5 O/U
- 12 pm ET -- Cincinnati (-28) at Navy -- 48.5 O/U
- 12 pm ET -- Wake Forest (-3) at Army -- 52.5 O/U
- 3 pm ET -- Wisconsin (-3) at Purdue -- 40 O/U
- 3:30 pm ET -- Oklahoma State at Iowa State (-7) -- 47 O/U
- 3:30 pm ET -- Oregon at UCLA (-1) -- 60.5 O/U
- 3:30 pm ET -- LSU at Ole Miss (-7.5) -- 77 O/U
- 3:30 pm ET -- Clemson at Pittsburgh (-3) -- 48 O/U
- 3:30 pm ET -- Maryland at Minnesota (-4) -- 54.5 O/U
Implied Team Totals
(per DK Sportsbook Odds)
- Oklahoma -- 52.75 points vs. Kansas
- Ole Miss -- 42.25 points vs. LSU
- Cincinnati -- 38.5 points vs. Navy
- Michigan -- 37.25 points vs. Northwestern
- Penn State -- 34.75 points vs. Illinois
- LSU -- 34.75 points vs. Ole Miss
- UCLA -- 30.75 points vs. Oregon
- Kansas State -- 30.75 points vs. Texas Tech
- Texas Tech -- 29.75 points vs. Kansas State
- Oregon -- 29.75 points vs. UCLA
- Minnesota -- 29.25 points vs. Maryland
- Wake Forest -- 27.75 points vs. Army
- Iowa State -- 27 points vs. Oklahoma State
- Pittsburgh -- 25.5 points vs. Clemson
- Army -- 24.75 points vs. Wake Forest
- Maryland -- 24.75 points vs. Minnesota
- Clemson -- 22.5 points vs. Pittsburgh
- Wisconsin -- 21.5 points vs. Purdue
- Oklahoma State -- 20 points vs. Iowa State
- Purdue -- 18.5 points vs. Wisconsin
- Northwestern -- 13.75 points vs. Michigan
- Kansas -- 13.75 points vs. Oklahoma
- Illinois -- 10.75 points vs. Penn State
- Navy -- 10.5 points vs. Cincinnati
QUARTERBACKS
| Quarterbacks | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Matt Corral | MISS | LSU | 10200 | 37.85 | is | ||
| It’s no surprise to see Corral as the price king against a subpar LSU defense with by far the slate’s highest total. The price tag is definitely expensive, but Corral has been worth it this season with 33+ DFS points in five of six games and the legit ceiling to post 50 in a back-and-forth contest like this one. The only worry is Corral possibly dealing with an injury that has him questionable. Even though Lane Kiffin suggested he might not play, the spread and Ed Oregeron’s comments this week tell a different story - so expect Corral to be the regular starter. If for some reason he’s not out there, freshman Luke Altmyer ($4500) is likely the next man up and would be a massive value - though don’t rule out John Rhys Plumlee ($3500) being used in a Wildcat role. | |||||||
| Desmond Ridder | CINCY | NAVY | 8900 | 23.09 | |||
| Anyone who played Ridder last week, unfortunately, got burned with a down performance stats-wise even though Cincy blew out UCF. Still, this is a guy who can easily rip off multiple rushing TDs or 3-4 passing scores in any given game with how good the offense is and the fact that they want to pound every opponent on the schedule until they lose. Ideally Navy keeps this one close enough for Ridder to continue producing deep into the game, but there’s legit blowout risk where Cincy just goes run-heavy in the second half like they did last week - and Jerome Ford is the guy scoring TDs instead. That limits Ridder’s floor/ceiling, but, the GPP upside is always there for a guy who’ll likely be a Heisman finalist. | |||||||
| Dorian Thompson-Robinson | UCLA | ORE | 8100 | 24.12 | |||
| The Oregon-UCLA game is definitely one to target overall and Thompson-Robinson’s price is very affordable for all formats. First off, he’s facing a below-average Oregon pass D that’s giving up 270 passing yards per game (110th in FBS). Combine that with his dual-threat upside of nearing 100 rushing yards and/or a rush TD or two in any given week. He’s frankly underpriced on this slate when you consider all the factors and the real potential for 30+ DFS points - and DTR should be popular in cash. | |||||||
| Anthony Brown | ORE | UCLA | 7900 | 21.16 | |||
| On the other side of DTR is Brown headlining the Oregon offense - and he’s also slightly underpriced for the potential offensive shootout we could see in this Pac-12 battle. He’ll get a good matchup vs. UCLA’s poor pass D that’s allowing 290 passing yards per game (122nd in FBS). Like DTR, Brown is also doing a lot with his legs and he’s had to take on a bigger rushing workload lately with CJ Verdell out for the season - including three rush TDs over the past two games combined. It gives him a higher floor than most QBs and a solid cash play. You can easily stack up both guys in this game and feel good about it. | |||||||
| Max Johnson | LSU | MISS | 7200 | 22.72 | |||
| Remember when Johnson went OFF against Ole Miss last year? It was the final week of the regular season and the LSU QB accounted for five total TDs and 435 passing yards as he smashed the DFS slate. Now we’re not saying he’ll replicate those numbers, but he’ll face a below-average Ole Miss defense in a high total game that will feature plenty of offense on both sides. This is oddly a season-low price tag for him and it comes in arguably his best matchup thus far. Take advantage now in cash or GPP as your Super-Flex. | |||||||
| Skylar Thompson | KSU | TTU | 6000 | 17.48 | |||
| As long as he’s healthy, Thompson has proven time and again that he’s a serviceable Super-Flex option in cash or GPP. He’s put up 27 and 20 DFS points in the last two games against much tougher defenses than Texas Tech, which is giving up 31 PPG. Thompson brings his rushing upside as well and, frankly, he’s too cheap for being a dual-threat QB in a high total game - especially against a shaky TTU defense. He’ll likely be popular in cash as everyone’s go-to cheap QB2 - and he makes fitting in Matt Corral a bit easier. | |||||||
Also Consider:
- Caleb Williams -- Oklahoma ($9,800) -- GPP
- Sam Hartman -- Wake Forest ($7,800) -- GPP
- Tyhier Tyler -- Army ($7,100) -- Cash if starting
- Spencer Sanders -- Oklahoma State ($6,500) -- GPP
- Henry Colombi -- Texas Tech ($6,300) -- GPP/Cash
RUNNING BACKS
| Running Backs | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Jerome Ford | CINCY | NAVY | 8300 | 27.57 | |||
| Shoutout to Pete Cole who said last week on the livestream that it would be a Jerome Ford smash game. Well, four TDs and 49 DFS points later had everyone (including myself) wishing they heeded Pete’s advice. In the last two games, Ford has now racked up 338 rushing yards and six TDs as Cincy’s offense is feeding him the ball while crushing opponents. A similar workload and stat line could be coming this week against a Navy squad that likely won’t keep it close. The risk with Ford is always whether or not he’s scoring TDs or getting vultured by Ridder - but he’s had no problem finding the end zone lately. The increased price tag puts him in GPP territory this week though. | |||||||
| Deuce Vaughn | KSU | TTU | 7700 | 25.42 | |||
| We’ve been targeting RBs against the Texas Tech rush defense all year and now get Deuce Vaughn in this favorable matchup? Yes please! Though Vaughn hasn’t eclipsed 100 rushing yards in three straight, he did face tougher defenses in those games and suffered from a pass-heavy game script a couple of times with Kansas State losing. Last week, though, he impressed with 87 rushing yards against a stout Iowa State D. He should find tons of success against a TTU rush D that allowed big games to Zach Evans and Bijan Robinson in recent weeks. Expect him to be popular in cash even in a loaded RB pool. | |||||||
| Tyrion Davis-Price | LSU | MISS | 6600 | 14.29 | |||
| Did anyone play Davis-Price last week when he smashed Florida’s defense for a whopping 49.7 DFS points thanks to his 287 yards and three TDs on 36 carries? Yep, me neither because the matchup and game script did not point us in that direction. Well, now his price has jumped up from $of 4400 last week - but he’s still very much in play. This game vs. Ole Miss will feature plenty of offense on both sides and Davis-Price can have a monster game yet again. It’s clear that LSU is content on giving him a big workload as the best playmaker on the offense and he should see plenty of carries and tons of production for a third straight week - especially against a defense that's giving up 198 rush yards per game and 14 rush TDs over six contests. He may be more of a GPP option, but can’t blame you if you roster in cash. | |||||||
| Hassan Haskins | MICH | NW | 6500 | 17.8 | |||
| If Michigan is on the slate, we’re always faced with the conundrum of playing either Haskins or Blake Corum. At least we know the Michigan offense will be run-heavy, but the backfield is still splitting work between the two - making them tough to fully trust. Over the past couple of games, Haskins has been getting a bit more work with 40 carries compared to Corum’s 28. The matchup is very favorable as Northwestern’s defense is giving up 206 rushing yards per game with 14 rush TDs allowed over six games. We can easily see one or both of Haskins/Corum go off for 100+ yards and multiple scores - but Haskins gets the slight nod with the cheaper price. | |||||||
| Bryce Williams | MINN | UMD | 5400 | 4.65 | |||
| Last week we originally thought Mar’Keise Irving was the next man up for Minnesota following Trey Potts’ season-ending injury. That’s obviously not the case after Williams took on lead back duties and smashed value at $3700 with his 21.7 DFS points, 127 rushing yards, and a TD on 17 carries. This Minnesota offense is known for leaning on one workhorse ball-carrier and it looks like Williams is the guy moving forward. Even with a slight price increase, he’s still too cheap for the perceived role and should be popular in cash games. The shaky Maryland rush defense shouldn’t scare us away at all. | |||||||
| Jerrion Ealy | MISS | LSU | 4000 | 10.06 | |||
| After missing a game with a concussion, Ealy returned last week but only saw nine touches as Ole Miss utilized three different RBs. However, Ealy is presumably still the lead back when healthy and is way too cheap at 4k. Though he only has one 100-yard game this season, remember that he led the team in rushing last year with 745 yards and nine rush TDs. The ceiling is still there for Ealy to smash value at a price point that’s way too low for his talent and role in a high-scoring Ole Miss offense. With Matt Corral dealing with an injury, we could see the Rebels lean on the run game more this week - making Ealy a great GPP option. | |||||||
| Keyvone Lee | PSU | IL | 3300 | 4.65 | |||
| This is a very interesting value play but one with some obvious risk. Lee has been notably outperforming Noah Cain over the past couple of games and we could be seeing a changing-of-the-guard when it comes to Penn State’s lead back. Remember that Lee actually led PSU in rushing yards last year as he filled in for the injured Cain. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Lee get more touches than Cain this week as the offense tries to figure out the backfield before next week’s showdown with Ohio State. Judging from Lee’s 5.4 ypc compared to Cain’s 3.0 ypc this season, those extended touches could result in a big game vs. Illinois’ below-average rush defense. Either way, the PSU offense will likely be run-heavy with QB Sean Clifford dealing with an injury. | |||||||
| Jakobi Buchanan | ARMY | WAKE | 3200 | 7.32 | |||
| Although Army’s ball-carriers constantly rotate in and out, Buchanan is a sneaky play at close to min price here. The fullback is seeing the most consistent volume of carries of any non-QB rusher in this triple-option offense. Buchanan’s 64 carries leads the team right now and he’s been seeing more work lately with Christian Anderson out - though his 3.1 ypc average isn’t ideal. Wake’s rush defense is actually below-average and we could see Army have some success on the ground as they grind out long possessions. If Buchanan finds the end zone, he’ll return value right away at a cheap price tag for GPP’s. | |||||||
Also Consider:
- Breece Hall -- Iowa State ($9,400) -- GPP
- Kennedy Brooks -- Oklahoma ($8,600) -- GPP
- Blake Corum -- Michigan ($7,100) -- GPP
- Zach Charbonnet -- UCLA ($7,000) -- Cash/GPP
- Henry Parrish Jr. -- Ole Miss ($5,300) -- GPP
- Eric Gray -- Oklahoma ($5,200) -- Cash/GPP
- Tyrell Robinson -- Army ($3,700) -- GPP
WIDE RECEIVERS
| Wide Receivers | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| David Bell | PUR | WISC | 7600 | 28.9 | |||
| Though Purdue is in a low-total matchup with Wisconsin here, Bell has proven he can post solid stat lines even when his team isn’t lighting up the scoreboard. He’s one of the best wideout talents in the country and is a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses - many of which consistently fail to contain him. Bell has at least six catches in every game and is coming off a monster performance vs. Iowa when he had 11 grabs, 240 yards and a TD for 44 DFS points. The floor is hard to match on this slate and his fantasy ceiling is among the best in the sport. He’s perfectly fine in cash but probably better suited for GPP. | |||||||
| Jahan Dotson | PSU | IL | 7200 | 22.79 | |||
| Much like David Bell above, Dotson has proven he can get his numbers even if Penn State is playing in low-scoring games. He has at least seven receptions in four straight games and that consistent floor keeps him firmly in play for cash games. The only worry is the health of QB Sean Clifford, who’s dealing with an injury and could be limited this week. Still, he remains the top weapon on the PSU offense and should see a healthy amount of targets even if the backup is in there. Consider him more a GPP play this week with the chance that the offense goes more run-heavy in a likely blowout win. | |||||||
| Erik Ezukanma | TTU | KSU | 6500 | 17.08 | |||
| This Kansas State-Texas Tech matchup looks like one to target overall and Ezukanma is always in play as TTU’s top wideout. Though the TD’s haven’t been there as much as we’d like - just two on the year - Ezukanma is still involved plenty. He’s had at least six touches in four of six games and is even being used as a rusher at times. In this high-total game, expect Ezukanma to see plenty of targets and touches to post a good stat line - and if he scores then he’ll be a top WR on the slate. The floor should be safe for cash and the possible TD or two puts him in GPP range too. | |||||||
| Kyle Philips | UCLA | ORE | 6100 | 17.15 | |||
| We have to monitor the status of Philips, who sat out last week with an undisclosed injury and is questionable to play here. However, there’s reason to believe he’ll suit up as he’s participated in practice this week. If he’s in there, Philips could be in line for a big performance as one of DTR’s favorite targets. In Weeks 3-5, he had at least five catches and a TD in every game as a focal point of the UCLA attack. He put up 30+ DFS points in two of those games - which would make him a massive value at this decreased price tag. The Bruins have a favorable matchup vs. Oregon's poor pass D and Philips can take advantage. | |||||||
| Player | Team | Opp. | DK $ | DK FPPG | FD $ | FD FPPG | |
| Jaray Jenkins | LSU | MISS | 5700 | 9.8 | |||
| Admittedly, it’s not smart to be reactionary rather than proactive when playing DFS - but it’s hard to ignore what Jenkins did last week. In the first game without star WR Kayshon Boutte, Jenkins stepped up as Max Johnson’s favorite red-zone target with his three TDs. Going into that game, we didn’t exactly know which LSU wideout would take on the void left by Boutte - but it’s clear now that Jenkins will be more involved moving forward. The increased price tag is tough to swallow in cash, but he could easily find the end zone multiple times again in this high-scoring matchup vs. Ole Miss. Limit exposure to GPP lineups. | |||||||
| Greg Dulcich | UCLA | ORE | 4800 | 13.73 | |||
| Dulcich is one of the best receiving tight ends in the country and he should be heavily involved in this must-win game for UCLA. He’s too cheap for a guy that’s proven his slate-breaking DFS upside numerous times the past two years. Though he’s been relatively quiet lately in terms of reception volume - only five catches in the past two games combined - he did score in both contests and remains a top red zone option for DTR and the Bruins. He simply shouldn’t be sub-5k for his talent level and floor/ceiling combo - which we saw a few weeks ago when he went for 25 DFS points thanks to his nine catches for 136 yards vs. Arizona State. Dulcich seems to have his best games in marquee matchups and this one vs. Oregon definitely falls into that category. | |||||||
| Charlie Kolar | ISU | OKST | 4500 | 12.18 | |||
| There should be a rule for CFB DFS: if Charlie Kolar is priced below 5k then you have to consider him. Even against a stout Oklahoma State defense, Kolar should see enough receiving volume to return value as Brock Purdy’s go-to in the short and intermediate range. The tight end has at least four catches in five straight and offers a reasonable floor of 10 PPR points with that involvement. If he finds the end zone or eclipses 60-70 yards, then he easily returns value at sub-5k. You can feel comfortable rostering in cash. | |||||||
| Phillip Brooks | KSU | TTU | 4400 | 10.03 | |||
| While Malik Knowles is the headliner for Kansas State’s receiving corps, Brooks offers similar production and floor for $1200 cheaper than his teammate. Over the last two games, Brooks has been more involved with Skylar Thompson back under center - totaling nine catches for 109 yards and two TDs. His price tag has slowly increased after those performances but he’s still a big value under 5k. In this high total matchup vs. Texas Tech’s soft D, Brooks is a solid cash or GPP option. | |||||||
| Michael Woods II | OU | KU | 4400 | 9.49 | |||
| With Marvin Mims and Jadon Haselwood scoring all the TDs lately, it seems like Woods is the forgotten man in the OU receiving corps. However, this price tag is too cheap for a top pass-catcher in the high-scoring Sooners attack that should be scoring early and often against Kansas this week. Woods may have had a better rapport with Spencer Rattler, but he still went for 75 yards on three catches last week with Caleb Williams in there. Even if other OU receivers have big games, Woods can still put up numbers in a soft matchup and return value for cash or GPP. | |||||||
| Davis Allen | CLEM | PITT | 3700 | 5.85 | |||
| We mentioned Allen in the playbook a couple weeks ago as Dabo Swinney said he would get the tight end more involved in the offense moving forward. Well it took some time, but Allen was indeed involved plenty last week when he had eight catches for 49 yards. It’s hard to trust the production on a consistent basis, but Clemson is looking for anyone to step up on an underperforming offense. Allen could be that guy who becomes a favorite target for D.J. Uiagalelei outside of Justyn Ross and Joseph Ngata. He’s worth a look in GPP’s as a salary-saver for the chance he finds the end zone or has another high-reception game - especially if the Tigers are trailing Pitt and need to pass more. | |||||||
| Chigoziem Okonkwo | UMD | MINN | 3700 | 9.7 | |||
| Maryland’s receiving corps suffered another setback last week when Jeshaun Jones joined Dontay Demus on the season-ending injury list. Outside of Rakim Jarrett, it’s anyone’s best guess as to which Terps WR to trust moving forward. Okonkwo, though, has been a safety valve for Taulia Tagovailoa from the tight end position and he should see more targets moving forward. Okonkwo has at least three catches in three straight and just went for five receptions and 56 yards last week. With Maryland likely trailing again this week, Okonkwo could be a favorite target for Taulia and return value with a few grabs at a cheap price tag. | |||||||
Also Consider:
- Marvin Mims -- Oklahoma ($7,300) -- GPP
- A.T. Perry -- Wake Forest ($6,600) -- GPP
- Kaylon Geiger Sr. -- Texas Tech ($5,900) -- Cash/GPP
- Malik Knowles -- Kansas State ($5,600) -- Cash
- Stepon Robinson Jr. -- Northwestern ($5,500) -- GPP
- Johnny Johnson III -- Oregon ($4,100) -- GPP
- Rashod Owens -- Oklahoma State ($3,800) -- Cash
- Malik Nabers -- LSU ($3,700) -- GPP