NCAAF

College Football Daily Fantasy Helper: Friday 9/9/22

Malik Cunningham and the Cardinals should put up points in a fun clash with UCF. Which other stars should we prioritize?

College Football is back, and FanDuel's college football DFS main slate on Friday 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 backs, three wide receivers (which also includes tight ends), and one "Super FLEX". In the Super FLEX spot, 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 DFS projections, game projections, and market share report to tackle as many slates as possible in the lead-up to the College Football Playoff. In this piece, we are breaking down Friday's main slate, which locks at 7:30 p.m. EST.

Let's look at which players are in great spots as well as identify some players with low salaries who will allow you to roster the high-salary players. All stats come from PFF unless otherwise noted.

Quarterbacks

John Rhys Plumlee, Central Florida ($12,000) – The dual-threat quarterback was a slate changer in his Central Florida Knights debut. The senior quarterback eviscerated South Carolina State for 308 passing yards, 100 rushing yards, and five total touchdowns in last week's season opener. This week's matchup with the Louisville Cardinals is solid. The Cardinals struggled mightily against Syracuse Orange's versatile quarterback, Garrett Shrader, in their season opener. Shrader eclipsed 30 FanDuel points in that game.

Malik Cunningham, Louisville ($10,500) – Cunningham and Rhys Plumlee will be very popular on Friday. While Cunningham struggled last week, that won't mute his popularity on a two-game slate. The senior quarterback ranked 9th nationally in points responsible for (234). He has one of the highest DFS ceilings in all of college football.

Miles Kendrick, New Mexico ($6,500) – Kendrick is the salary-saving option at quarterback. With the star power of Cunningham and Plumlee, Kendrick will likely be a contrarian signal caller. The former Kansas Jayhawk has the ability to make plays in the passing game and with his legs. As a reserve at Kansas, Kendrick had 11 career touchdown passes against eight interceptions. He has also tallied 145 rushing yards.

The Boise State Broncos were holding an open competition between Taylen Green ($11,200) and Hank Bachmeier ($8,500) at quarterback this week. Green is a dynamic athlete and provides a dual-threat ability. Due to his salary, he'll carry virtually no popularity.

Meanwhile, Bachmeier has been a solid quarterback throughout his career. I don't think many gamers will roster him (if he starts) due to the possibility that he splits time with Green on Friday night. Consequently, I do think whoever draws the start, is viable on a two-game slate.

Running Backs

Isaiah Bowser, Central Florida ($10,000) – Bowser dominated the Central Florida backfield in last week's season opener. The big back received an impressive 22 carries in the Knights' season-opening win. He parlayed his massive workload into two rushing touchdowns. I like his chances of finding the end zone this week. Louisville's run defense was smashed by Syracuse runners last week. They allowed 207 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in their season opener.

George Holani, Boise State ($8,400) – Box score watchers may pass over Holani. The Broncos starting running back was limited to 9 rushing yards on 13 carries as the Broncos face-planted in last week's season-opening 34-7 loss to Oregon State. Holani is in great shape to bounce back against New Mexico. New Mexico ranked 51st nationally in rushing defense last season, allowing an average of 143.2 rushing yards per game.

Johnny Richardson, Central Florida ($6,500) – Richardson provides versatility in the Knights' backfield. The diminutive speedster tallied 25 receptions and 226 receiving yards last season. He also added 733 rushing yards. Despite totaling 68 yards and finding paydirt last week, Richardson's salary barely moved. He is a solid value play at running back.

Others to Consider: Tiyon Evans ($8,800), Ashton Jeanty ($6,200), and Nate Jones ($6,000).

Wide Receivers

Ryan O'Keefe, Central Florida ($8,100) – O'Keefe led the Knights in targets (111) and receiving yards (827) last season. It was not a surprise to see that O'Keefe led the Central Florida pass catchers in pass snaps last week (35). Additionally, he was utilized in the rushing game. The playmaker tallied 2 carries and 33 rushing yards. It's clear that Central Florida wants to get the ball to O'Keefe in every way possible.

Kobe Hudson $5,000 is also a great option at a low salary. Hudson's 34 pass snaps ranked second amongst the Knights in last week's season opener.

Stefan Cobbs, Boise State ($7,700) – Cobbs was pegged as the wide receiver to replace former star Khalil Shakir. He easily led the Broncos with nine targets in game one. The Boise State passing game should find more success this week as they take on the New Mexico Lobos. The Lobos had a middling pass defense in 2021.

Latrell Caples ($5,700) is the other full-time wide receiver for Boise State. He tied Cobbs for the team-high with 46 pass snaps in the season opener. Caples offers a heavy discount to Cobbs this week.

Dee Wiggins, Louisville ($5,500) – Wiggins drew the start at wide receiver in his Louisville debut last week. The former Miami (FL) Hurricanes pass catcher was on the field for 26 pass plays. He trailed only Tyler Hudson ($8,700) amongst the Cardinals' wide receivers (35) in pass snaps. Additionally, Wiggins looks like he'll be a deep threat in the passing game. The senior posted an eye-opening 21.3 aDoT (average depth of target).

Others to Consider: Javon Baker ($9,500), Marshon Ford ($6,100), Geordon Porter ($5,900), and Riley Smith ($5,400).