You may have heard this a time or two over the past week, but College Football is back! After gearing up with a few slates to start the season, Week 1 is officially underway.
Some of you might be looking to add to your daily winnings after building out the main slate, while others may have missed the mark and are looking to bounce back. Either way, this is where it happens. This is the Saturday Night slate!
Seven games kick off the Week 1 Saturday night slate, five of which have a projected point total north of 50, fueling plenty of fantasy goodness to go around.
As a reminder, we are going to have plenty of content in-season for you every week in our CFB Package, including:
DFS (Articles & Livestream)
Player Props ArticlesMatchup Reports
Projections
Rankings
and MORE!
Let’s check out some of my favorite plays on this slate.
QUARTERBACKS
Jalen Milroe, Alabama vs Western Kentucky (DK: $8.5K | FD: $11.7K | O/U: 59.5 | Implied: 45.5)
Jalen Milroe was a top 30 QB eight times last year while throwing for over 2,800 yards and 23 touchdowns. He added another 531 yards on the ground with an additional 12 touchdowns. He’s a perfect example the dual-threat quarterbacks whom we want to target in college football DFS. The departure of Nick Saban leaves questions on the table in regard to what this team will look like in 2024. Insert the new coach and new system as Kalen DeBoer comes over from Washington, where he hopes to bring similar success.
This is a great matchup for Milroe, and the Crimson Tide have the second-highest implied team total on this slate. Our projections have him as the highest projected quarterback on this slate, giving you a nice $700 savings compared to the next quarterback we’re going to mention.
Dillon Gabriel, Oregon vs Idaho (DK: $9.2K | FD: $12.5K | O/U: 62.5 | Implied: 53)
Dillon Gabriel seems to find success regardless of which team he’s under center with. We’ve seen him play as a top quarterback at UCF, transfer to Oklahoma, and continue to be a top quarterback, and now he has moved into the high-octane Oregon offense with plenty of supporting weapons around him.
This week, Gabriel faces a stiff test. While Idaho isn’t a powerhouse school, it does boast one of the better defenses in the FCS. With a team implied total of 53 (the highest on this slate), there should be plenty of opportunity for Gabriel to hit value. I’d expect the Heisman favorite to take care of business this week, making him a solid option to build around.
Donovan Smith, Houston vs UNLV (DK: $5.8K | $10.2K | O/U: 54 | Implied: 28.5)
Donovan Smith returns as the starting quarterback for the Houston Cougars after throwing for 2,801 yards and 22 touchdowns before undergoing shoulder surgery in the offseason. In addition, Smith has dual-threat capabilities, as seen last year when his rushing production supplied another 428 yards and 6 touchdowns.
This game has shootout potential, with the Cougars being favored by only 3 points. Head Coach Willie Fritz is going to lean on Smith. Given his cost on this slate being priced as the QB9 but having a top 6 projection, he lands as the top FP/$ at the position.
Alternatives:
Riley Leonard, Notre Dame vs Texas A&M (DK: $7.8K | FD: $8.4K | O/U: 46.5 | Implied: 24.5)
Matthew Sluka, UNLV vs Houston (DK: $5.3K | $8K | O/U: 54 | Implied: 26)
RUNNING BACKS
Jordan James, Oregon vs Idaho (DK: $8K | FD: $10.5 | O/U: 62.5 | Implied: 53)
Bucky Irving is gone, so it’s now the Jordan James show for the Oregon Ducks. He’s coming off a season in which he ran for 759 yards, 11 touchdowns, and a solid 7.1 yds per carry while playing second fiddle to Irving. He will now have his opportunity to put up massive numbers in this explosive offense.
As mentioned above with Gabriel, we are chasing this implied team total. James is a great way to do that. I prefer clicking on top-priced RBs when I’m fading their quarterback in a particular build. One of the pieces of this offense is going to hit the optimal lineup.
Parker Jenkins, Houston vs UNLV (DK: $4.9K | $10.2K | O/U: 54 | Implied: 26)
Parker Jenkins is in a terrific spot to start this season after coming in as a true freshman and posting 4.7 yards per carry on 99 totes. Over 65 percent of his rushing yards came after contact, along with 27 forced missed tackles.
UNLV’s defense gave up over 160 yards per game on the ground to opposing teams in 2023, ranking 215th in the country. Jenkins’ price and projected workload make him our top value at the position this week and allow you to acquire some of these high priced QB builds.
Demie Sumo-Karngbaye, Kentucky vs Southern Miss (DK: $5.7K | FD: $8.6K | O/U: 50 | Implied: 38.5)
Similar to Le’Veon Moss, Demie Sumo-Karngbaye finds himself atop the depth chart because of unfortunate circumstances, with Chip Trayanum slated to miss the beginning of the season with a hand injury.
Now in his second year at Kentucky, his role was expected to expand, but the injury accelerated the curve. Demie spent most of his reps last season as a slot receiver, making him a great target on a site such as DraftKings, which features a PPR format.
USM’s defense couldn’t stop much in 2023, allowing 178 rushing yards per game. Turnover at the QB position for the Wildcats should force them to lean on the run game, allowing plenty of dump-offs for Demie to soak up. He projects as the second best value at the RB position on this slate.
Alternatives:
Le’Veon Moss, Texas A&M vs Notre Dame (DK: $7.2K | FD: $7.2K | O/U: 46.5 | Implied: 24.5)
Tomarion Harden, UCLA vs Hawaii (DK: $7K | FD: $9.2K | O/U: 54 | Implied 33.25)
Jason Patterson, Kentucky vs Southern Miss (DK: $3.8K | FD: $6.4K | O/U: 50 | Implied: 38.5)
RECEIVERS
Evan Stewart, Oregon vs Idaho (DK: $7.6K | FD: $9.7K | O/U: 62.5 | Implied: 53)
Tez Johnson, Oregon vs Idaho (DK: $8.1K | FD: $10K | O/U: 62.5 | Implied: 53)
Wide receivers Evan Stewart and Tez Johnson will be the top two targets for Dillon Gabriel this year. Johnson is coming off a fantastic season where he had 1,182 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 86 catches. He will look to build on that early and often.
Stewart is the big-name transfer from the portal after his sophomore season with Texas A&M, but the team struggled, and Stewart decided to take his talents elsewhere. This Oregon offense offers an environment for Stewart to shine as they ranked #2 in the country in both points per game (44.2) and passing yards per game (342.8). Both of these receivers are projected as top 5 options on this slate.
If you are building around Gabriel, you will need to bring one, or perhaps both of these guys for your Oregon stack.
Ricky White, UNLV vs Houston (DK: $7.2K | $9.3K | O/U: 54 | Implied: 26)
Ricky White made a statement last season after posting a school-record 1,491 receiving yards. White went for over 100 yards in seven games last year, including five of the last six games, to propel UNLV to a Mountain West Championship contest.
White’s 3.83 yards per route average ranked second in FBS (CJ Daniels), and his 90.6 PFF receiving grade charts second among all returnees. If this offense is going to keep pace with the Cougars, they are going to need to feed targets to Ricky White.
Germie Bernard, Alabama vs Western Kentucky (DK: $5.7K | FD: $8.8K | O/U: 59.5 | Implied: 45.5)
Germie Bernard is on his third team in the last three seasons, going from Michigan State to Washington to Alabama. Germie lined up in the slot 77% of the time last year, though he primarily lined up wide in his standout Spring game with the Crimson Tide. His familiarity with HC Kalen DeBoer and a wide open receiving room have him projected as Milroe’s top target. He should have no problem carving up this leaky WKU secondary that surrendered 219.5 yards per game to opposing offenses in 2023.
Pofele Ashlock, Hawaii vs UCLA (DK: $4.7K | FD: $7.3K | O/U: 54 | Implied 19.25)
Pofele Ashlock exploded onto the scene to kick off last season with 15 catches, 241 yards and 3 touchdowns. Unfortunately, the rest of the season left a lot to be desired as he failed to clear 87 yards in any of his final 11 contests.
However, Ashlock is the number one target in a pass-heavy offense. The Rainbow Warriors ranked #1 in FBS with a 63% pass rate on standard downs (FBS Avg = 42%). He feels mispriced on this slate, sitting at the WR35 according to cost. Our projections have him as a top-six WR, making him the top FP/$ wide receiver.
Alternatives:
Traeshon Holden, Oregon vs Idaho (DK: $5.8K | FD: $7.2K | O/U: 62.5 | Implied: 53)
Noah Thomas, Texas A&M vs Notre Dame (DK: $5.4K | FD: $5.8K | O/U: 46.5 | Implied: 24.5)
Dekel Crowdus, Hawaii vs UCLA (DK: $3.4K | FD: $4.4K | O/U: 54 | Implied 19.25)
Ryan Williams, Alabama vs Western Kentucky (DK: $3.0K | FD: $5.7K | O/U: 59.5 | Implied: 45.5)
