Week 1 of college football was certainly eventful. Are you starting off the year 0-1 and looking to bounce back? 1-0 and looking to keep up momentum? Facing your best friend and need the bragging rights? Justin Heisey looks into the game slate this weekend and offers to you the best and worst possible CFF Week 2 matchups.
Best CFF Week 2 Matchups
QB Sam Hartman, Wake Forrest
Freshman Sam Hartman is currently undefeated in his short career as the starter at Wake Forest and looks to keep that going again this week against FCS-opponent Towson. Hartman escaped Tulane last week in an overtime win in which he threw for 378 yards and two scores on a total of 51 passing attempts while rushing for 64 yards. Hartman will likely get a lot of playing time against Towson considering backup Jamie Newman is currently day-to-day with a quad contusion and quarterback-turned-receiver Kendall Hinton is still suspended. Expect Hartman to get his fill of fantasy points this week against the Tigers as they look to develop him more as a starter.
QB Manny Wilkins, Arizona State
Manny Wilkins may have been the most underrated fantasy player in college last year and he kicked off this season with a four-touchdown game against a less than great UTSA team to usher in the Herm Edwards-Era. This week, the Sun Devils take on the Michigan State Spartans, who allowed 319 yards through the air to Utah State quarterback Jordan Love a week ago. Wilkins has tons of weapons around him in Eno Benjamin and projected first-round wide receiver N’Keal Harry to get the job done this week. If you’ve got Wilkins, I say let him play.
QB Brady White, Memphis
Former-Arizona State quarterback Brady White fought hard with David Moore all offseason long and won out in the final hour and absolutely showed out in game one. White looked absolutely unstoppable against Mercer, going 22-for-28 with 358 yards and not four… not six… but five touchdown passes. This week, the Memphis Tigers take on a Navy team that allowed 438 yards and six touchdowns against the run-and-shoot Rainbow Warriors of Hawaii. White is going to have a field day against a team that will keep him in the game all day long so don’t miss out on these easy points.
RB Bryce Love, Stanford
Yes, I know. I know Bryce Love disappointed many fantasy owners last week after an abysmal performance against San Diego State where he took 18 carries for a total of 29 yards, but hear me out. Stanford gets to take on USC at home this week. KJ Costello looked like the best quarterback Stanford has had since Kevin Hogan last week, and, to top it all off, USC allowed 308 rushing yards to UNLV last week. If there ever will be a bounce-back week for the first rounder, it’s this week.
RB Spencer Brown, UAB
Spencer Brown got off to a good start last week against Savannah State with 102 yards and a score in a 52-0 blowout. This week, he should stay in the game a bit longer against Sun Belt foe, Coastal Carolina. Last week, the Chanticleers gave up 263 yards and two scores against a South Carolina team that finished 111th in rushing offense a season ago. If you’ve got Spencer Brown on your bench, make space for him somewhere in your lineup or you will regret it.
RB Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma
This one may come off as an obvious start in any week, but you need to start Rodney Anderson this week for sure. Anderson has been absolutely unstoppable since taking over as the guy against Kansas State in week seven of last season. UCLA’s rush defense looks almost as bad as it did last year and they made sure we all knew that by allowing Cincinnati running back Michael Warren II to put up 142 yards and three touchdowns on them. Anderson is sure to go over 200 yards this week if UCLA can keep up and is an absolute must play in Week Two.
WR Quez Watkins, Southern Miss
Quez Watkins made a statement last week by catching eight passes for 138 yards and three scores against Jackson State. Watkins is the undisputed, leading receiver in this offensive system and faces a more than friendly matchup against UL-Monroe in Week Two. ULM gave up 365 passing yards and four passing touchdowns to FCS-opponent Southeastern Louisiana last week and won’t have any answers on defense for this heavy passing offense. Caleb Evans will do enough to keep Watkins in the whole game where he’s sure to produce monster numbers in his already great season.
WR Trevon Brown, East Carolina
Many owners were worried last weekend until the East Carolina matchup with NC A&T was moved to Sunday instead of being canceled altogether. East Carolina may have gone on to lose that game, but at least Trevon Brown was able to get seven touches in the process. This week, ECU returns home to take on a North Carolina team that looked miserable last week against a California team that rotated three quarterbacks into the game. If East Carolina’s quarterback situation is much more settled and Brown will be right there, waiting for his chances to torch this North Carolina defense.
Defensive Matchups to Exploit
TCU Def against SMU
Boston College Def against Holy Cross
Virginia Tech Def against William & Mary
LSU Def against SE Louisiana
UNLV Def against UTEP
WORST MATCHUPS
QB Ben Hicks, SMU
Ben Hicks‘ transition to the Air Raid system was rough, to say the least, against North Texas. Hicks finished 12-for-24 with 252 yards, two touchdowns, and a pick. His total ownership dropped a full eight percent since last week and it was with good reason, considering he’s in an offense designed for high percentage throws. This week won’t be any easier against a TCU squad that dominated Southern University on both sides of the ball last week. If you were hoping for a turnaround game for Hicks, you’re going to be left disappointed yet again.
QB Riley Neal, Ball State
Last week, Riley Neal tore it up for his owners by passing for 259 yards and two scores while adding another touchdown with his legs. This week, Neal faces a team that simply shut down all aspects of the Michigan offense. Neal is in for a pretty good season if he plays as hard in his conference schedule, but Notre Dame looks no different after losing Mike Elko and Neal is not going to play well this week.
RB Trayveon Williams, Texas A&M
This one might or might not surprise many but things could go very south this week for Trayveon Williams. Williams shocked the world with 240 rushing yards, three touchdowns, and 43 fantasy points last week, but I can assure you he won’t do that again this week. Clemson’s defense forced ten sacks, two fumbles, and allowed 117 yards to a triple-option Furman team a week ago. If you’re thinking “well that’s just Furman,” Clemson returns almost their entire two-deep in a front seven that allowed 114 yards per game a year ago. Their entire starting line is expected to be drafted in the first round of the 2019 NFL draft and if you need any more reasons to sit him then I don’t know what to tell you.
RB LJ Scott, Michigan State
LJ Scott disappointed many last week against Utah State. Coach Dantonio gave Scott 23 chances to carry the ball against weaker competition and he mustered 84 yards for an average of 3.7 yards per carrying and not one touchdown. This week, Michigan State travels to Arizona State and Brian Lewerke will more than likely carry the load if they expect to win the game. I would say that you should bench LJ Scott until he can prove that he can play at a consistently good level.
WR Kelvin Harmon, NC State
Kelvin Harmon was drafted very heavily and was expected to be a great value after his 1,000+ yard 2017 season. Harmon’s year didn’t start off too great after being out-touched by Jakobi Meyers 14 to four last week after he dropped multiple passes. Now, this could have just been a fluke and Harmon could very well be on his way to 2017’s production numbers again, however, he could have lost favor and could see fewer touches going forward. I’m not saying not to play him, but this week Harmon is a Flex player at best.
WR Tyler Vaughns, USC
So Tyler Vaughns might be one of the more obvious additions to this list but important nonetheless. Stanford’s defense isn’t what I’m worried about in this game but rather the USC offense. Amor-Ra St. Brown has played so well since stepping on campus and it doesn’t look like he’s stopping anytime soon. St. Brown caught three more passes than Vaughns against UNLV and averaged five more yards per reception than Vaughns. For now, it’s best to leave Vaughns on the bench and try to snag St. Brown who is currently owned in 23% of leagues.
Defense to Avoid
Georgia Def against South Carolina
Boise State Def against UConn
Maryland Def against Bowling Green
Still need a player? Check out Justin Heisey’s Week One Waiver W
ire.
For more great College Fantasy Football information please check out CFF on Campus. Each Thursday Bogman, Laub, and Heisey preview the coming week’s schedule, go over the best CFF waiver wire adds, and provide plenty of fantasy nuggets to help keep you on top of your league.