DFS College Football 101: Week 10 Thursday Picks

DFS College Football 101: Week 10 Thursday

The calendar has turned to November, meaning we are hitting the home stretch of this college football regular season. It also means that we could see some more weather situations in the coming month or so. Thursday plays into that sentiment with chances of precipitation for Ohio-WMU and NIU-Akron. On top of that, a pair of stars from the Temple-UCF game are questionable (QB Milton and RB Armstead). We will parse through all of that in the following write-ups. In the meantime, here are the odds attached to these Thursday matchups:

Ohio (-3) at Western Michigan – Total: 64

Northern Illinois (-6) at Akron – Total: 37

Temple at UCF (-10) – Total: 61

Looking within that, I'll highlight the best fantasy selections on FanDuel & DraftKings while also touching on some situations to monitor for your DFS squads.

QUARTERBACK

Nathan Rourke – Ohio (FanDuel $10,000 / DraftKings $9,900)

Rourke was listed in this spot last Thursday, and he didn't disappoint with a sweet 28 FP performance vs Ball State. He has a similarly good matchup at Western Michigan this time around – a team that ranks 102nd in opponent passer rating and 98th in yards per carry allowed. As mentioned earlier, there's a chance for precipitation in this game, but that doesn't really impact Rourke's upside too much. He's a dual-threat QB who has topped 75+ rushing yards in four of his last six games with six touchdown scampers over that span. The over/under rests at a robust 64 point level as well, making me even more confident to roll with Rourke.

Also Consider: Central Florida superstar QB McKenzie Milton is questionable for this game. You'll want to scrounge the internet for clarity on his status leading up to kickoff. I believe Rourke is the better option with similar upside given the injury status. However, if Milton is ruled out, dual-threat signal caller Darriel Mack immediately becomes a strong DFS play – especially on FanDuel for $6k. I'm guessing Milton has a good chance of playing due to UCF checking in as steady 10 point favorites … On DraftKings, Marcus Childers is unbelievably underpriced given his volume a penchant for rushing yards and touchdowns. I'm giving him heavy consideration in the Super Flex spot.

RUNNING BACK

A.J. Ouellette – Ohio (FanDuel $8,500 / DraftKings $6,200)

Ouelette and Maleek Irons have been splitting carries in the Ohio backfield while seeing nearly identical volume over the past few weeks. There's an opportunity for one or both of them to take advantage of this matchup vs WMU's 98th ranked rushing defense. Ouelette is considerably cheaper than Irons on FanDuel, so I'm leaning his way over there. However, the two Bobcat RBs have very similar salaries on DraftKings, creating an opportunity to split your action by taking Irons over there.

Jamauri Bogan – Western Michigan (FanDuel $8,700 / DraftKings $6,900)

Bogan is an affordable running back with multi-touchdown upside on this abbreviated three-game slate. The Ohio-WMU game is expected to have some rain, and Western Michigan will be turning to their backup quarterback Kaleb Eleby. For those reasons, the Broncos could feature a run-heavy approach. The matchup is certainly viable for that strategy, as Ohio ranks 82 in opponent yards per carry. I'm liking Bogan as a fine mid-range play on Thursday.

Also Consider: You can also consider Bogan's teammate, LeVante Bellamy, who is a more explosive runner who sees some action in the passing game as well. He's more of a tournament play with a cumbersome salary on both DFS sites … Ryquell Armstead has been very good as the leading rusher for Temple this season, but he's questionable for tonight's tilt with UCF. I'll probably avoid him and the expensive salary even if he is cleared to play, as game flow and matchup potential are not in his favor. Temple runs a backfield by committee when he's out, which is inconsequential for DFS purposes … Tre Harbison of Northern Illinois is a cheap tournament play on FanDuel. His carries have been all over the place lately, but he could get fed 15+ times with potential for a score or two if NIU builds a healthy lead with a run-heavy approach.

WIDE RECEIVER

Gabriel Davis - UCF (FanDuel $9,300 / DraftKings $6,100)

Gabriel Davis and Jayden Reed are the top receivers on this slate. I'm leaning towards Davis with a better QB throwing him the ball (assuming Milton plays) within a high-octane offense. The weather in this UCF game is much better as well. It doesn't hurt that Davis checks in with a nice discount on DraftKings ($6100) despite coming off a career high 128 yards last game.

Isaiah Wright - Temple (FanDuel $7,100 / DraftKings $4,200)

Temple hasn't trailed in too many contests this season, and we could see more passing attempts than usual from the Owls while trying to keep pace with Central Florida. If that's the case, Isaiah Wright stands to benefit. Wright leads Temple with seven targets per contest, a number that could rise if the game flow goes according to script on Thursday. The last time Temple found themselves in a back-and-forth affair, Wright ended up with a nice 7-114 line on 15 targets at Boston College.

Also Consider: Branden Mack and Randle Jones are two other Temple receivers who could benefit from more passing attempts, but I prefer Wright over both of them … Jayden Reed of Western Michigan was briefly mentioned earlier as a top receiver, but I'm viewing him as more of a tournament only acquisition. He'll have a backup QB throwing to him with likely subpar weather conditions to boot … On DraftKings, Andre Williams of Akron and Randle Jones of Temple are two viable fillers to round out your lineup – listed in order of preference.