This article is part of our Start vs. Sit series.
As we enter Week 4, we are heavy on the "getting to conference play" matchups, but there are still a few non-conference games left, even some contests featuring FCS teams. That creates a wide range of quality in matchups, from the ones I am excited to target to the ones I want to avoid, even with high-level collegiate players. For Week 4, these are my players to start and sit.
AAC Starts and Sits
START
Anthony Smith, WR, East Carolina at Liberty
Smith never carved out a role at NC State, but he's found a consistent one with East Carolina. He has five catches in all three games for the Pirates, tallying 212 yards and a touchdown. Liberty's only loss since the start of the 2023 season was a stomping at the hands of Oregon in a bowl game, but it has won with offense, not defense. Even this season, poor offenses in New Mexico State and Campbell, poor offenses, have dropped 24 on the Flames.
SIT
Kelley Joiner, RB, South Florida vs. Miami (FL)
Joiner has 220 yards and four touchdowns through three games, but sandwiched between his two big outings is a game against Alabama, where he was held to 25 yards on six carries. The Hurricanes haven't really been challenged yet – the Gators don't count this season, apparently – but they have held opponents to 8.7 points and 65.7 rushing yards per game.
ACC Starts and Sits
START
Maalik Murphy, QB, Duke at
As we enter Week 4, we are heavy on the "getting to conference play" matchups, but there are still a few non-conference games left, even some contests featuring FCS teams. That creates a wide range of quality in matchups, from the ones I am excited to target to the ones I want to avoid, even with high-level collegiate players. For Week 4, these are my players to start and sit.
AAC Starts and Sits
START
Anthony Smith, WR, East Carolina at Liberty
Smith never carved out a role at NC State, but he's found a consistent one with East Carolina. He has five catches in all three games for the Pirates, tallying 212 yards and a touchdown. Liberty's only loss since the start of the 2023 season was a stomping at the hands of Oregon in a bowl game, but it has won with offense, not defense. Even this season, poor offenses in New Mexico State and Campbell, poor offenses, have dropped 24 on the Flames.
SIT
Kelley Joiner, RB, South Florida vs. Miami (FL)
Joiner has 220 yards and four touchdowns through three games, but sandwiched between his two big outings is a game against Alabama, where he was held to 25 yards on six carries. The Hurricanes haven't really been challenged yet – the Gators don't count this season, apparently – but they have held opponents to 8.7 points and 65.7 rushing yards per game.
ACC Starts and Sits
START
Maalik Murphy, QB, Duke at Middle Tennessee State
Murphy, a Texas transfer, stands in the pocket and lets his fly. He doesn't even try to run, but he's thrown the ball 122 times already and has completed 63.9 percent of his passes with eight touchdowns against three picks. Even with an FCS opponent in the mix, the Blue Raiders are last in passing yards allowed per game, so Murphy can air it out all day.
SIT
Malik Benson, WR, Florida State vs. Cal
This is a conference matchup! In the Atlantic Coast Conference! Anyway, Benson came over from Bama, probably assuming he'd be part of the ACC champs. Instead, well, the Seminoles are a fiasco, and he has yet to score a touchdown. Benson did have five catches for 99 yards last week, but I am skeptical he can replicate that. Cal's defense has carried the team to a 3-0 start. Nobody has scored more than 14 points against the Golden Bears, and they have held opponents under 200 yards per game passing.
Big Ten Starts at Sits
START
Justice Ellison, RB, Indiana vs. Charlotte
Ellison joined Indiana from Wake Forest, and he's been part of a surprising 3-0 start under new head man Curt Cignetti. While his nine carries for 117 yards and two touchdowns against Western Illinois are giving his numbers a real boost, even on a road trip to UCLA, he averaged 4.7 yards per carry and found the end zone. Charlotte has been one of the worst FCS defenses since the start of 2023, and this year, it has allowed 171.0 rushing yards per game. Even Gardner-Webb scored 26 points on the 49ers.
SIT
Darius Taylor, RB, Minnesota vs. Iowa
Taylor's only really been held back by injury in his college career, but after missing the opener, he's had fun racking up yards and touchdowns against Rhode Island and Nevada. He's gone over 100 total yards in both games and notched four scores. Now, though, Taylor has to face the Hawkeyes. As long as Kirk Ferentz and Norm Parker are around, this will be a tough team to run on, and this year, Iowa has held opponents to 56.3 rushing yards per game.
Big 12 Starts and Sits
START
Abu Sama, RB, Iowa State vs. Arkansas State
Sama only got a few carries against North Dakota in the Cyclones' opener and then had to play the aforementioned Hawkeyes. Now he should finally get a chance to earn some real carries against a favorable opponent. Michigan, who has struggled to get its offense in gear, ran for over 300 yards against Arkansas State last week. In 2023, Sama averaged 7.3 yards per carry and scored six touchdowns. Given the chance, he can tear up a run defense.
SIT
Avery Johnson, QB, Kansas State at BYU
Johnson flashed as a true freshman, so much so it may have helped push Will Howard to transfer (though landing at Ohio State is far from a consolation prize). He's thrown for six touchdowns against one pick through three games, but he has yet to throw for over 200 yards. While he did score seven rushing scores in 2023, he totaled 296 rushing yards, and five of those scores came against Texas Tech. BYU has held opponents to 14.0 points and 130.7 passing yards per game, so Johnson better be ready to run the ball on this trip to the Beehive State.
Conference USA Starts and Sits
START
Qua'Vez Humphreys, WR, Sam Houston State vs. New Mexico State
Humphreys broke his foot before the start of the 2023 season and didn't get to see a snap for the Bearkats in their debut FBS campaign. Now healthy, the receiver has 10 catches for 234 yards and three touchdowns. As for the Aggies, the loss of Jerry Kill as head coach may have had a swift impact. After holding an FCS opponent to 16 points in their opener, they allowed 30 to Liberty and 48 to Fresno State.
SIT
Omari Kelly, WR, Middle Tennessee State vs. Duke
Kelly exploded for nine catches for 239 yards and three touchdowns against Western Kentucky last week. In his first two games, though, he had five catches for 46 yards. Duke's opponents have not been difficult, but it has only allowed 14.7 points and 133.7 passing yards per game. This will be a tougher opponent for Kelly than the Hilltoppers.
MAC Starts and Sits
START
Evan Boyd, WR, Central Michigan vs. Ball State
No one receiver for Central Michigan has stood out yet, but the big redshirt freshman Boyd has been consistently involved and tallied eight catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. As he adjusts to college football, this matchup is so enticing I had to land on a Chippewa for it. Ball State looks to have one of the worst defenses in the FBS, having allowed 48.0 points and 38.2 passing yards per game.
SIT
Cade McDonald, WR Miami (OH) at Notre Dame
McDonald has picked up eight catches and over 100 yards in both of Miami's games this season, and Northwestern and Cincinnati are by no means easy opposition. That said, a trip to Notre Dame is a different level of competition. Don't forget that even when the Fighting Irish got upset by Northern Illinois, that game was 16-14. Even Texas A&M could only manage 13 points at home against Notre Dame.
Mountain West Starts at Sits
START
Brayden Schager, QB, Hawaii vs. Northern Illinois
Schager has been erratic this year, but he's completed 59.2 percent of his passes in his career, so he should be fine. Plus, he has six total touchdowns through three games, and you know Timmy Chang will let him air it out as much as necessary and then some. A visit from an FCS team, the second for Hawaii this season, should give Schager a chance to pad his numbers, and style points don't count for fantasy.
SIT
Luke Wysong, WR, New Mexico vs. Fresno State
There are not many tough opponents for Mountain West teams this week. FCS teams abound, and the best in-conference defenses are either off or facing non-conference opponents. Fresno is coming off a shutout against New Mexico State, and it has held opponents to 178.7 passing yards per game. This matchup is as tough as it gets for any MWC team in Week 4, so I'd sit Wysong.
SEC Starts at Sits
START
Raheim Sanders, RB, South Carolina vs. Akron
A trip to Kentucky to face a defense that in Week 3 would stymie Georgia? Sanders averaged 4.2 yards per carry and found the end zone. LSU in town? The man they call "Rocket" ran 19 times for 143 yards and two scores. Sanders has earned a chance like this. The Zips have allowed over 40 points and almost 180 rushing yards per game.
SIT
Deion Burks, WR, Oklahoma vs. Tennessee
Burks has 22 catches but only 169 receiving yards. His three touchdowns are notable, but they all came against Temple. When discussing Tennessee, it's worth paraphrasing ESPN's Bill Connelly, who always notes it is not as much about who you beat as how you beat them. The Vols have played easy competition but also have steamrolled the opposition. That includes holding opponents to 105.0 passing yards and a mere 4.3 points per game.
Sun Belt Starts and Sits
START
Rodrigues Clark, RB, Southern Miss at Jacksonville State
Clark has gotten better week by week. Last week, he averaged 5.7 yards per carry against South Florida. Last year, he averaged 5.6 yards per tote on the campaign in a secondary role. It was one thing when Jacksonville State allowed 49 points to Lousiville, but another to allow 37 points to Eastern Michigan. Also, the Gamecocks have given up 226.3 rushing yards per game.
SIT
Jalen White, RB, Georgia State at Ole Miss
White's five rushing touchdowns certainly pop. However, he's only carried the ball 31 times and only averaged 3.1 yards per carry. I'm racking up White's scoring rate as both anomalous and unsustainable. A trip to Oxford should be a cold dose of reality. This is a defense that has only allowed 33.3 rushing yards and 3.0 points per game.
