We did it, fam! We made it all the way from January to the end of August, biding our time and watching whatever sports were necessary, but we’re finally there. College football is back! We get to satiate our palate with a modest Week 0 offering, featuring a smaller-than-usual three-game main slate and four games altogether. But after seven long months without it, we’ll happily take whatever the football schedulers throw our way as we gear up for another intense five months of action.
We’ve got you covered for DFS purposes, highlighting our preferred players from Saturday’s main slate.
College football is back at FantasyLabs. Inside our Player Models, you’ll be able to utilize our Lineup Optimizer to effortlessly create up to 300 lineups for your DFS contests.
Or if cash games are more your speed, you can build your lineups alongside our projections with our Lineup Builder. From there, you can hand-build your lineup or lock in a few guys and let the builder optimize the rest based on our projections.
Here’s a brief snippet of what our models look like:
Let’s dive into this week’s slate!
CFB DFS Quarterback Picks
Tommy Mellott (Montana State Bobcats): $7,000 DraftKings
While most teams stack their early-season schedule with FCS matchups to tune up for the upcoming campaign, the New Mexico Lobos are already at a disadvantage. They enter Saturday’s tilt against the Montana State Bobcats as shocking +13.5 home underdogs in a game that should see Tommy Mellott shine.
Montana State employed a curious quarterback strategy last year, at times deploying three QBs in the same game to operate the offense. Even with a divided workshare, Mellott was the undisputed leader on offense, but he entered the campaign as the premier quarterback and undisputed starter moving forward.
Mellott was exceptional last year, and we saw the best he had to offer when the pressure was highest. The Montana native completed 63.0% of his passes for 1,089 yards and 10 touchdowns. Moreover, we saw him step up in the playoffs, throwing for a season-best 204 yards and going 13-for-17 in the second round of the FCS Championship against the North Dakota State Bison.
With an unencumbered workload under center, we should see Mellott develop into one of the best quarterbacks in the FCS ranks. That starts with Saturday’s battle against the Lobos, where he’ll have the opportunity to step up against an FBS opponent and cement his place as the best quarterback on the slate.
DJ Uiagalelei (Florida State Seminoles): $9,000 DraftKings
Florida State Seminoles fans don’t need reminding of last year’s heartbreaking disappointment, but they’re expecting the program to reload instead of rebuild as they look toward defending their ACC crown. Thankfully, Florida State recruited standout quarterback DJ Uiagalelei this offseason, giving itself the best chance of building on last season’s success.
Uiagalelei is coming off, arguably, the best season of his career. As a junior, he set a new career-best in passing yards despite a record-low number of pass attempts. In total, Uiagalelei threw for 2,638 yards on 315 pass attempts for 8.4 yards per throw. That efficiency also resulted in 21 touchdown passes, one short of his career-high.
Although his completion percentage dipped a little in 2023, we should see that ratchet higher this year. The Seminoles feature a bevy of premier pass catchers, ensuring that Uiagalelei works his way back up to career average. In doing so, we could see his QBR eclipse the impressive 81.0 he set last year, finishing with the 12th-highest mark in the country.
We also can’t discount Uiagalelei’s rushing potential. While the Oregon State Beavers put a damper on his running game last year, FSU should embrace the dual-threat nature, helping their newly minted quarterback reach his full potential.
The well-traveled signal-caller has made an impact every season of his career, but he’s saving the best for last. Uiagalelei leads the Seminoles into their season-opening showdown against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and should have no problem reaching his fantasy ceiling at the neutral site affair in Ireland. Hopefully, last year’s pain will become a distant memory for the Seminoles.
CFB DFS Running Back Picks
Jamal Haynes (Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets): $6,300 DraftKings
Over the past few seasons, we’ve seen a more balanced attack from the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. But if anything, that’s only taken the pressure off the ground game, as defenses have to plan for an aerial attack rather than loading up the box and defending the run. As a result, we’ve seen Jamal Haynes thrive out of the Yellow Jackets backfield, with his best coming in 2024.
Three different players had at least 100 rushing attempts last year. Dual-threat quarterback Haynes King went off for 737 yards on 120 carries, and Dontae Smith added 504 more on 100 carries. But it was Jamal Haynes who was the bell cow, accumulating 1,059 rushing yards on 174 carries. Heading into his junior campaign, we’re expecting an even better performance.
Even though he was solid from start to finish last year, Haynes emerged as a top threat later in the campaign. The then-sophomore cracked the century mark in three of the final five games of the season, improving his yards per carry to 6.8 over that stretch. That’s Haynes’ new standard heading in 2024 as he bites off an even bigger piece of the offense in his junior season.
We will be riding the Haynes train at many points this season, but his fantasy value is even more pronounced in the Yellow Jackets’ season-opener versus the Seminoles. This will likely be his lowest salary of the season, so be sure to capitalize.
Roydell Williams (Florida State Seminoles): $7,100 DraftKings
Of course, FSU can fight fire with fire, turning to their own star running back. In four seasons with the Alabama Crimson Tide, Roydell Williams never really found his footing. His best effort came in 2023, but he still played second fiddle to Jase McClellan and never had to opportunity to shine. Now, with the Seminoles, we should see everything the former four-star recruit has to offer.
Williams has an unforgiving running style that will play well against the inferior competition in the ACC. FSU featured three running backs who averaged at least 5.8 yards per carry, setting the bar for Williams heading into the 2024 season. As the primary rusher, we’re also expecting the senior to feature more prominently in the red zone, amplifying his fantasy ceiling week after week.
Let’s also not lose sight of Georgia Tech’s lackluster rush defense. The Yellow Jackets hemorrhaged yards last year, giving up an ACC-worst 438.2 per game, 225.7 of which came on the ground. We’re not expecting meaningful progression this season, giving the Seminoles an unneeded advantage as -10.5 favorites.
Williams finally has the chance to become the player many thought he would with the Crimson Tide, featuring as the lead back of what should be a potent FSU attack. That starts in Week 0’s matchup against a porous Georgia Tech defense.
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CFB DFS Wide Receiver Picks
RJ Maryland (SMU Mustangs): $5,400 DraftKings
Week 0’s chalkiest game features the SMU Mustangs taking on the Nevada Wolf Pack as -25.5 favorites. That betting market confidence bodes well for the Mustangs’ aerial attack that should have no problem breaking off yards in chunks against a shaky Wolf Pack defense. While SMU has several players who rate highly in the FantasyLabs projections, we like RJ Maryland’s ceiling the best.
Maryland was a preferred target all season, but he did his best work in the red zone. The big tight end target led all pass-catchers with seven touchdowns last year, and he’ll be Preston Stone’s safety blanket once again in 2024.
Still, Maryland’s fantasy contributions aren’t limited to red zone targets only. He featured regularly in the passing attack, hauling in three or more receptions in eight games last season, surpassing 56 receiving yards in three of his final five games of the season. Continuity heightens those expectations this year as Maryland becomes a staple of the Mustangs’ aerial assault.
Nevada was one of the worst defenses in the country last year. The Wolf Pack gave up a disastrous 442.8 yards per game, with opponents torching them for 254.1 yards per game via the passing game. The Mustangs should run roughshod over the Wolf Pack in the season opener, with Maryland leading the charge.
Malik Benson (Florida State Seminoles): $7,000 DraftKings
Stacking remains one of our preferred options in the CFB DFS world, and our opening week strategy involves loading up on prominent Seminoles. With DJ Uiagalelei looking to make an immediate impact with his new squad, he should look to build immediate chemistry with newcomer Malik Benson.
Benson joins FSU after a tepid foray into the FBS ranks with the Alabama Crimson Tide last season. While he appeared in 14 games, Benson tallied just 13 receptions and 162 yards in his junior campaign. After a solid spring with the Seminoles, the Kansas native has vaulted to the top of Florida State’s depth chart and will be the first read in Uiagalelei’s progressions throughout the season.
A former four-star recruit, Benson has flashed breakaway speed at every level he’s played at. But speed doesn’t come at the expense of route running, as we’ve also seen the senior thrive in short-to-intermediate routes, using his explosiveness to create space against defenders.
While Benson still has something to prove against top competition, he won’t face that against Georgia Tech’s secondary in Week 0. Expectations are high for the wide receiver, but we expect Benson to deliver with the Seminoles, particularly in the season opener.
Ty McCullough (Montana State Bobcats): $4,900 DraftKings
On a smaller slate, we’re not passing up the opportunity to employ a dual-stack, pairing Ty McCullough with Bobcats quarterback Tommy Mellott. McCullough was the preferred passing option in Montana State’s attack last season, and he’ll build off last year’s team-leading metrics.
In 2023, McCullough set the standard across the board. He led the Bobcats in receiving yards and touchdowns despite appearing in only eight games due to injury. More importantly, his chemistry with Mellott pushes McCullough over the edge in his senior season. Like Mellott, McCullough became more involved in the offense toward the end of the season, letting the Bobcats’ duo head into the 2024 season with full confidence.
Across the final three games of last year, when the stakes were highest, we saw McCullough go off for 241 yards and four touchdowns. We’re expecting nothing less in Saturday’s tilt, as McCullough re-establishes himself as the top passing option and burns the Lobos at every opportunity. The betting market continues to tilt the betting line in the Bobcats’ favor, which is the same confidence DFS punters should have in rostering McCullough on the main slate.
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