The college fantasy football playoffs are officially here, and there is no margin for error with your lineup decisions this weekend. If you have any deficiencies with your skill position groups, there are still several quality starting options still available in the majority of Yahoo leagues.
Quarterback
Noah Fifita, Arizona (24% rostered)
The fifth-year phenom has been positively electric in Big 12 play, throwing for 280+ yards in eight straight games with multiple touchdown passes in seven of them. He has scored 20+ points in every game except for a Week 9 loss to Texas Tech, when he threw for 417 yards and still managed to produce a respectable 18.2 points. It’s fair to say that Fifita has one of the most stable floors of any quarterback in the P4. His 24 touchdowns passes ranks fifth among all P4 signal callers and Fifita’s 253.3 total points (25.3 PPG) ranks ninth. He faces a reeling Kansas State team that has lost four straight and ranks 112th in yards per successful dropback allowed (15.8). Fifita is an excellent starting option if you’re looking for a boost at QB for the playoffs.
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Gio Lopez, Wake Forest (29% rostered)
What more can you say about the breakout campaign Gio Lopez has had this season? He returned after missing last week’s tuneup against FCS Merrimack to utterly destroy ACC foe SMU 49-7 with Lopez recording 27.4 points in the blowout. With Lopez having scored 27+ points in six of his nine appearances, and playing Georgia Tech’s 110th ranked defense that allows 20.5% of their completions to gain 20+ yards, he is a top waiver priority in the 71% of leagues he is still unrostered in.
Dylan Raiola, Oregon (2% rostered)
Since throwing two interceptions and getting pulled against UCLA, Raiola has gone five straight games without throwing a pick while completing 67% of his throws in that span. He was on point this week in a 31-7 beating of Michigan throwing for 341 yards with four touchdowns for 28.9 points. Raiola is a credible QB2/3 streaming option against Michigan State this week if your QB1 is compromised or has a bad matchup.
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Running Back
Richard Young, Colorado (0% rostered)
An Alabama transfer this past offseason, Young was sparsely used in the early going, receiving 16 carries through the first seven games. However, that all changed on Halloween, when Young exploded out of nowhere for 24 carries, 120 yards, two touchdowns and 24.0 points in a 27-24 win over Kansas State. He was once again the catalyst for CU’s offense this weekend, churning out 21 carries for 99 yards and two touchdowns in a 42-32 shocking upset of Big 12 contender Houston. He has a prime time matchup against a Cincinnati defense that ranks 123rd in rushing success rate allowed, 5.4 YPC and just watched ISU RB Aiden Flora put up a ridiculous 46.9 fantasy points against them on Saturday. It’s wheels up for Young, who is firmly in play as a RB2 or flex starter this week.
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Darrion Dupree, Wisconsin (0% rostered)
Wisconsin OC Jeff Grimes went with Dupree as his starter this week. He had 18 touches and got the opportunity to cash in two short-yardage touchdowns for 19.8 points. Abu Sama had been the starter all season, but he didn’t receive a carry until the second quarter and only saw two touches on the day. Dupree has been more dynamic than Sama and boasts higher marks in broken tackle rate, yards after contact and rushes of 10+ yards. Dupree should be a strong flex play against Purdue’s porous run defense that allows 178 yards per game on the ground (110th) and ranks 134th nationally in explosive play rate allowed.
Carson Hansen, Penn State (35% rostered)
Hansen started the season a little slowly and didn’t score over 12 points until PSU’s Halloween showdown with Purdue. Hansen has emerged as a legitimate starting fantasy option since then, having scored 17+ points with 341 rushing yards over his last three games. It’s important to note that he left Saturday’s 42-14 destruction of Minnesota early after tweaking his ankle, but by that time he had already racked up a season-high 126 rushing yards and the game was well in hand. PSU HC Matt Campbell expressed optimism about Hansen’s availability for their mouth-watering Week 12 matchup against Rutgers’ poor defense that allows 192 rushing yards and 32.3 points per game. Just make sure to stay vigilant checking on his health status before tossing him in your lineup.
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L.J. Phillips Jr., Iowa (5% rostered)
Phillips has amassed 261 yards on 44 carries over the last two games, taking over for the injured Kamai Moulton. He should receive another 20+ carry load and is a rock-solid starter this week against Illinois.
Wide Receiver
Calvin Russell III, Syracuse (1% rostered)
The crown jewel of Syracuse’s freshman class, Russell was unable to play until Oct. 3, catching two passes for 14 yards in his first two appearances as he got acclimated to the collegiate game. Safe to say he settled into his starting role, accruing 54 targets, 397 yards and three touchdowns over his last five games. He officially broke out as a fantasy star this week against NC State, catching an eye-popping 17-of-18 targets for 137 yards and a touchdown, adding 24 rushing yards for good measure as Russell erupted for 30.6 fantasy points, which led all P4 wideouts in Week 11. He has a very favorable matchup against a Boston College D that allows 2.34 points per drive (100th) and ranks 108th in marginal explosiveness, and should be a major waiver priority for WR-needy teams, as Russell may have just stolen the WR1 role from Umari Hatcher.
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Aidan Mizell, UCLA (0% rostered)
Don’t confuse Aidan with his younger brother, Isaiah, who is also a standout receiver for Arizona, but regardless of which Mizell you’d like to reference, both of them have evolved into legitimate WR1’s at their respective schools. Aidan had been used primarily as a deep-ball specialist early in the season after transferring in from Florida, where both his parents were also student athletes. That all changed two weeks ago against Illinois with Mizell catching not one, but two 75-yard touchdown passes in a 34-20 over Minnesota. Clearly he caught the attention of the coaching staff, as Mizell recorded career highs in targets (10), receptions (six) and receiving yards (176) in the rain-soaked 22-14 victory over Illinois. The Bruins play Michigan in Ann Arbor this weekend, but if Mizell can pop for 26.6 points in the first UCLA home game since 2012 to be rained upon, I’m confident he can handle the November Michigan weather after the Wolverines just got carved up by Oregon 31-7.
Jeremiah McClellan, Oregon (6% rostered)
Welcome back, Jeremiah! The rising receiver was an important part of Oregon’s late-season playoff pus last season, and had been electric in Oregon’s opening week 34-27 win over Boise State, reeling in six-of-nine passes for 150 yards, a touchdown and 24.0 points. Unfortunately, McClellan was injured after just one reception in Oregon’s Week 2 loss to Oklahoma State, and hadn’t suited up for several weeks until he checked in with a reception against Ohio State in Week 10. Now healthy, McClellan diced-up Michigan, catching four-of-five passes for 105 yards and a touchdown for 18.0 points this Saturday. Keep in mind, McClellan looked like the WR2 opposite Dakorien Moore at the beginning of the year and is a better bet to produce fantasy relevant stats then Evan Stewart down the stretch. McClellan is well worth a speculative add against Michigan State this weekend.
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Giovanni Richardson, Arizona (5% rostered)
While Richardson was written up in my Week 11 waiver wire column, he is still only 5% rostered despite catching 23-of-37 targets for 355 yards and 55.4 points over that span. He and QB Noah Fifita have shown a strong connection since Richardson returned from injury three weeks ago, and are a superb QB/WR combo against Kansas State this weekend.
Tight End
Luke Dehnicke, Northwestern (2% rostered)
A preseason sleeper who received praise in fall camp, Dehnicke started strong out the gate and looked like an every week starter after he secured all seven of his targets for 140 yards against a stout Indiana defense in Week 4. Unfortunately, he got hurt in the process and wasn’t able to play again until Oct. 31. Since his return, Dehnicke has reasserted himself as a factor in the Northwestern passing game, catching 13 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown over his last three games, with this week’s 17.3-point detonation against Ohio State being the second-highest score among all P4 tight ends for the period. He is an excellent starting option this weekend against a Minnesota defense that has given up 82 points over the last two weeks and ranks 131st in completions of 20+ yards allowed.
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Jeremiah Hasley, Duke (39% rostered)
The lead returning receiver for the Blue Devils, Hasley has come on strong lately, having recorded 12.5+ points in two of the last three games. He should be a focal point of the offense and receive another 8-10 targets against a reeling Clemson team that just got embarrassed 20-6 by lowly 3-7 Georgia Tech.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
