Ivan Herrera 
Welcome back to another exciting season of CFB! We are starting Week three action on Saturday with a big 14-game slate. We are starting to enter conference matchups, which always make for great environments. One of the big conference matchups this week has LSU visiting Mississippi State. The Tigers are looking to keep the momentum they built after beating Grambling by 62 last week.
The purpose of this article is to break down the college football main slates both on the DFS and betting sites. The article includes my favorite plays at every position as well as honorable mentions. You can also find my favorite bets under my Dragos Best Bets section.
The QBs:
Riley Leonard (DUKE) $6,700
If Riley is on the slate, then I am interested in playing him. He had a great start to the season, taking down Clemson at home on Monday night in Week 1. In his second game, he had very little work as he only played 35 minutes after being taken out of the game early in the third quarter. Against Northwestern, we should see a Riley that has a day similar to his game against Clemson. He will use both his arm and legs to lead Duke down the field against a Northwestern side that has not looked good in their first two outings.
Who to pair him with: Jalon Calhoun, Jordan Moore, Sahmir Hagans.
Jordan Travis (FSU) $9,700:
Travis is the highest-priced QB on the slate, with Rising still not available for Utah. While I’m usually not the biggest fan of using the highest-priced guy, Travis is well worth his price. His DraftKings score did take a 24.5 point dip compared to his 41.5 point performance against LSU, but that doesn’t worry me as FSU didn’t need him to do much in their Week Two win over USM. On paper, the matchup against Boston College looks like a tough one, as BC is ranked 24th against the pass, but they are 100th in yards allowed per completion. So their pass ranking has more to do with the fact they haven’t had to deal with too many attempts than with them being able to stop a team’s passing game.
Who to pair him with: Keon Coleman, Johnny Wilson.
Austin Reed (WKU) $5,500:
Reed is the cheapest QB on my list, but he has one of the highest ceilings. Reed threw for 336 yards and had two scores in his first start against USF; he followed that up by throwing for 253 yards and four touchdowns in three quarters against Houston Christian. This weekend, he has to lead WKU into Columbus for a matchup against Ohio State. In the first two games, the Ohio State pass defense has only allowed 217 yards through the air. That number may scare the field away from using Reed, but if you look at the two QBs that faced OSU, neither are the same caliber of QB as Reed. Youngstown State’s Davidson only has 228 passing yards in his two games, and Indiana’s two QBs have a combined 432. Reed will be Ohio State’s first real challenge, and I think he is up for it.
Who to pair him with: Malachi Corley, Easton Messer, River Helms.
Honorable Mentions: DJ Uiagalelei (ORST) $9,000. Will Howard (KSU) $8,200. Jalen Milroe (BAMA) $9,100. Jayden Daniels (LSU) $8,600. Drew Allar (PSU) $7,900. Davis Brin (GSU) $6,900. Byrum Brown (USF) $6,400. Bert Emmanuel (CMU) $6,100.
The RBs:
Every article I’ve written so far has included Audric Estime and Braelon Allen, so I am not going to include them in the write-ups, but I am a big fan of both of them this week.
Damien Martinez (ORST) $6,400:
The reigning Pac-12 freshman of the year has picked up where he left off last season. In both of the games so far this season, Martinez has rushed for over 100 yards. He is running behind one of the CFB’s best offensive lines, which has opened up plenty of holes for him. SDSU’s rush defense is mid-tier; they are allowing 129 yards and a touchdown per game in their first three games. The Aztecs rank 106th in yards allowed per attempt, which bodes well for Martinez as he is coming into the game averaging 10 yards per attempt. Martinez will end up being my highest-owned RB this week because I am a fan of how ORST’s balanced offense is allowing Martinez to look great this season.
Nicholas Singleton (PSU) $6,300:
Singleton is one of my favorite backs in CFB. So far, he has had a slow start to his sophomore campaign when it comes to yards (117), but he has had four rushing touchdowns in his first two games. He has a good chance to improve on his rushing yardage as he is facing an Illinois team that averages 224 yards given up per game on the ground, which puts them at 122nd in the nation. Illinois also ranks 118th in the nation in yards allowed per attempted, allowing 5.21. Singleton should also find the end zone once PSU gets inside the 20, as they lead the nation in red zone rushing touchdowns with eight. If you are looking for an $800 discount, his teammate Kaytron Allen is also in play as he splits carries with Singleton.
Jordan Waters (DUKE) $5,700:
I am really big on Duke this season; I have them making the ACC title game, and one of the reasons for my love of the Blue Devils is Waters. Waters has taken the lead as the Duke’s main RB, as he’s leading them in attempts (22), yards (175), and touchdowns (3). Northwestern hasn’t allowed a lot of rushing yards, 113 per game, but they have played two bad rushing offenses. Duke should control this game thanks to their QB play, which would then allow Waters to produce as Duke will be turning to their run game.
Honorable Mentions: Jawhar Jordan (UL) $5,500. TreVeyon Henderson (OSU) $7,600. Jo’Quavious Marks (MSST) $6,800 Trey Benson (FSU) $6,600. Treshaun Ward (KSU) $6,200. Jalen White (GSU) $5,700.
The WRs:
Similarly to the RB section, I am not going to include WRs that are well known and can be played on any slate. This week, those WRs are Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka, who are both from Ohio State. I will have them in multiple lineups but would rather focus on players who may not have the same attention as these two.
Malik Nabers (LSU) $7,300:
Statistically, Nabers is LSU’s number two receiver, as teammate Brian Thomas Jr. is leading the Tigers in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. But his worse stats are a product of terrible Week Two competition, as Nabers didn’t need to have a big day in LSU’s huge win over Grambling. A matchup against Mississippi State is a perfect situation for Nabers, as MSST’s offense is averaging 39.5 points per game, so they will force LSU to keep up similarly to what FSU did to them in the first week. MSST has also allowed 465 passing yards in their first two games.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith (PSU) $6,400:
KLS has been a huge help for first-year starter Allar. Lambert-Smith is averaging five receptions, 98.5 yards, and a touchdown in the first two games. He gets a good matchup against an Illinois team that has been uncharacteristically bad at defense so far this year. The leading WRs for Illinois’s first two opponents have combined for 169 yards on 11 receptions. Another reason I like Lambert-Smith this week is his average per reception. He is currently averaging 19.7 yards per catch, and this Illinois side has allowed multiple 20+ yard catches, which means Allar can look to push the ball upfield.
Jha’Quan Jackson/Lawrence Keys III (TUL) $6,300/$6,000:
The top two receivers for the Green Wave are in play this week. Losing Spears to the NFL has severely hurt Tulane’s running game, as they are only averaging 126.5 yards per game compared to last season, when they averaged 204.8 yards per game. With the lack of a run game, Tulane is now focusing on the passing game, where both Jackson and Keys average 95 yards per game and have four combined receiving touchdowns. Last week, Tulane’s opponents, USM, struggled to stop FSU starter Jordan Travis and then his backup, Rodemaker. As of writing this article, Tulane’s starting QB is questionable to play, but even if the backup is in, Jackson and Keys will be the vocal points of the attack.
Silas Bolden (ORST) $6,000:
Bolden has been DJ U’s favorite target since he arrived with the Beavers. He leads ORST in receptions (10), yards (118), and is tied for the TD lead (1). Like a lot of players that have been mentioned in this article, Bolden hasn’t needed to have big games for ORST to win, as both SJSU and UC Davis struggled to keep up. This week against SDSU Bolden should see more work, as the Aztecs will be the Beavers’ toughest opponents to date.
Honorable Mentions: Jayden Thomas (ND) $6,200. Luther Burden III (MIZZ) $5,900. Derwin Burgess Jr (GSU) $5,900. Lideatrick Griffin (MSST) $5,700. Ryan O’Keefe (BC) $5,400. Jamari Thrash (UL) $5,300. Xavier Legette (SCAR) $5,200. Jjay Mcafee (GSU) $3,400. Brock Bowers (UGA) $4,700. Jack Velling (ORST) $4,000. Cade Stover (OSU) $3,800.
Drago’s Best Bets:
- Arizona -17 vs UTEP
- Western Kentucky +27.5 at Ohio State
- Washington -16 at Michigan State
- LSU at Mississippi State Over 54.5
- Duke -19 vs Northwestern
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