College Football Daily Fantasy Helper: Thursday 11/14/19 Main Slate
Week 12 of college football is here! FanDuel's Thursday night college football DFS main slate includes two games.
In case you're unfamiliar with how it works, you can check out the rules and scoring on FanDuel, where you can hit the lobby each week to see the full array of slates and contests being offered.
As for the basics, your roster consists of a quarterback slot, two running back slots, three wide receiver slots (which also includes tight ends) and one super flex slot. In the flex, you can insert one player from any position, including quarterbacks.
Here, our goal is to help you field a roster full of fantasy goodness, and in true numberFire fashion, we'll use our in-house projections as well as betting totals and advanced statistics to tackle as many slates as possible in the lead-up to the College Football Playoff. This week, we are breaking down Thursday's main slate, which locks at 7:00 p.m. EST.
Let's breakdown which players are in great spots as well as identify some players with cheap price tags that will allow you to roster the high dollar players.
Quarterbacks
Sam Howell, North Carolina ($10,500) - The freshman signal caller has been on fire in the North Carolina Tar Heels' last four games. In those four games, Howell averaged 326 yards passing and 3.75 touchdown passes. Howell provides a stable floor and high ceiling; he's scored 29 or more FanDuel points in four out of the last six games. He's also cleared 13 FanDuel points in every game this season.
Dustin Crum, Kent State ($10,200) - The Kent State Golden Flashes' quarterback has played well in MAC games. In five games of MACtion, Crum is averaging 237.4 passing yards, 69.4 rushing yards, and 2.4 total touchdowns. Expect Crum to take to the air in the matchup with the Buffalo Bulls' as the Bulls have been stout against the run (allowing only 85 yards rushing per game) but vulnerable through the air (allowed a slate high 15 touchdown passes).
Kyle Vantrease, Buffalo ($7,400) - The sophomore quarterback has started each of the last four games for Buffalo. He's accounted for eight of the Bulls' 14 offensive touchdowns in his four starts. With Vantrease accounting for more than 50% of the Bulls' touchdown as a starter and an implied team total hovering around 31, Vantrease makes for a solid value play.
Others to consider: Kenny Pickett
Running Backs
Jarett Patterson, Buffalo ($9,300) - Patterson is the leading rusher for the Buffalo Bulls. The sophomore has 995 yards rushing and seven rushing touchdowns on 192 carries through nine games. In MAC play, the sophomore has topped 149 yards rushing in three out of five conference games. This week's opponent, Kent State, has one of the worst rushing defenses in all of the FBS. The Golden Flashes have surrendered 25 rushing touchdowns and allow 254.9 rushing yards per game to opposing backfields. Look for Patterson to find the end zone for the third consecutive game.
AJ Davis, Pittsburgh ($8,600) - The junior is the Pittsburgh Panthers' leading rusher despite missing two games due to an injury. Davis has 407 yards rushing and three rushing touchdowns on 89 carries this season. The versatile ball carrier also has recorded 17 receptions and 209 yards receiving (third-most on the team). In three games post-injury, Davis has received at least 15 carries in each game. He encounters a Tar Heels defense which has coughed up 15 rushing touchdowns to opposing ball carriers this season (second-most on this slate by five).
Kevin Marks, Buffalo ($7,700) - Patterson's teammate, Kevin Marks, has rushed for 730 yards and five touchdowns this season as the two share the backfield for the Bulls. All five touchdowns have come in the Bulls' last six games. Despite splitting time in the backfield, Marks has received at least 17 carries in eight consecutive games. Both players should have no problem succeeding against Kent State's horrendous run defense.
Others to consider: Javonte Williams, Michael Carter, Will Matthews, and V’Lique Carter
Wide Receivers
Maurice Ffrench, Pittsburgh ($8,900) – Ffrench ranks third in the nation with an average of 8.3 receptions per game. He's caught at least six passes in all nine games. This week's matchup with the Tar Heels is a good spot for the senior pass catcher. North Carolina has a below average pass defense which is allowing nearly 235 yards passing per game (79th in the country) and they've surrendered 14 passing touchdowns which is the second most on this two-game slate.
Antonio Nunn, Buffalo ($8,800) - Nunn has saved his best football for MACtion. The Bulls' leading receiver has 21 receptions, 272 yards receiving, and five touchdown in five MAC games. Nunn should have problem exploiting Kent State's defense which ranks 119th in total defense (allowing 469.2 total yards per game).
Mike Carrigan, Kent State ($7,100) - In the last three games, Carrigan has recorded 13 receptions, 188 receiving yards, and three touchdowns. With leading wide receiver, Isaiah McKoy, questionable this week for disciplinary reasons, expect targets to flood to Carrigan and Kavious Price. Carrigan matches up with Buffalo's secondary which has allowed a slate high, 15 touchdowns, via the air.
Others to consider: Dyami Brown, Dazz Newsome, Kavious Price, Beau Corrales, and Tysir Mack
Matthew Hiatt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matthew Hiatt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username easternmh. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.
