FanDuel NCAAF Lineup Advice: Week 11 (2019)

After we saw a ton of top teams have a bye last week, we get back to looking at a much more full pool of players to choose from in CFB DFS this week.

If it is news to you that college football is even offered as a fantasy option then this could be just what you have been looking for. CFB offers an extra level of excitement compared to the NFL as you regularly see outrageous scores and performances from college players. It’s not unusual for a quarterback like Jalen Hurts from the Sooners to cross the 40-point mark in fantasy and RBs like Oklahoma State’s Chuba Hubbard are currently averaging around 35 PPG based on FanDuel’s scoring format. You also use the super flex roster spot standard on FanDuel’s platform.

Following college fantasy is a great way to get an early look at guys who will become fantasy-relevant in the NFL one day and is something that the most experienced dynasty and devy fantasy football crowd has been following for a while. There are some great sites out there that offer stats and coverage of college prospects like The Draft Network and The Dynasty Draft Room. You can find endless stats at College Sports Reference, the CFB version of NFL GOAT Pro Football Reference and Expand the Boxscore. I’ll also be looking a lot at college football odds to help choose players from sites like BettingPros.

For this article, we are going to build a lineup on FanDuel’s Saturday main slate and take a look at a few players you may want to consider incorporating in some aspect into lineups of your own this weekend. The prize pools aren’t quite as big in CFB, but you can win upwards of $5,000 for first place in FanDuel’s Wishbone contest that only requires a $9 buy-in. Let’s dive in!

Win $1 Million playing FanDuel’s NFL Sunday Million

Quarterback

Jamie Newman (WAKE): $10,400 at Virginia Tech
It’s hard to pass up on locking Jalen Hurts into your lineup each week and just building around his hefty price tag. With Hurts coming in at a cool $12,000 this week against Iowa State though, I am looking elsewhere. A game I am targeting heavily in DFS this week is the matchup between Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. This game has one of the highest over/under totals of the week at 64 points with the Demon Deacons sitting around 2.5-point favorites. This bodes well for QB Jamie Newman to have a huge game in what should be a highly-competitive, high-scoring matchup.

Newman is currently averaging 30.19 PPG on FanDuel and is coming off one of his best games of the season last week where he led his team to a 44-10 victory over NC State. He threw for 287 yards with three TDs in the contest and added in 30 yards rushing and two additional rushing scores, giving him five total TDs on the day. He has scored no fewer than 21 points in a game this season and has cleared 30 points in three of six games played at FD.

This week, Newman gets gifted a matchup against Virginia Tech who has allowed 290.5 passing yards per game which ranks 118th out of 130 in the nation. They just allowed 30.44 fantasy points to Notre Dame QB Ian Book last week who threw for 336 yards with two TDs and added in a rushing TD of his own as well. Newman has a safe floor and a high ceiling in this matchup and also has one of the best receivers in college at his disposal in Sage Surratt who is an excellent stacking partner this week.

Also Consider:

Brock Purdy (ISU): $9,700 at Oklahoma
Lynn Bowden Jr. (UK): $9,100 vs. Tennessee

Running Back

Breece Hall (ISU): $9,000 at Oklahoma
After utilizing a running back by committee approach earlier in the season, Breece Hall has emerged as a dominant workhorse for Iowa State over the last few weeks. A true freshman who came into Iowa as a four-star recruit, Hall has compiled an absurd 643 yards from scrimmage over the last three games combined with seven rushing TDs during that span. His seven TDs ranks fourth in the Big 12 and “equals ISU’s freshman mark” according to Cyclone Football. He’s averaging 32.7 fantasy points per game over the last three games as well as he gets ready for a tough test on the road against the Sooners this week.

Oklahoma is coming off an upsetting loss against Kansas State where they allowed a total of 219 rushing yards and six total rushing TDs. KSU RB James Gilbert ran for 105 yards on his own while averaging 8.1 YPA. On the season, the Sooners allowed 148.1 rushing yards per game according to Team Rankings which ranks 46th in the nation, but as we saw last week, they’re beatable on the ground. This is the perfect set up for a hot hand like Hall to come in and take advantage.

This game also has one of the highest over/under totals of the week at 67.5 points with the Sooners sitting around 14-point favorites. Something else Hall has shown us in his limited sample as the starter is a great ability to make plays in the passing game as he’s recorded 115 receiving yards in just the last two games combined.

Hall’s price hasn’t quite caught up with his offensive output on FanDuel as he is priced as the RB8 this week. His 32 PPG average over the last three weeks makes him a great value considering you’re getting him for $1,000 less than this week’s RB1, J.K. Dobbins (24.34 PPG).

“Get off me” – Breece Hall pic.twitter.com/dQlheBrbXp

— Tyler Hansen (@t3hansen) October 19, 2019

Lyn-J Dixon (CLEM): $6,200 at North Carolina State
I boasted Dixon as a value play on here recently and he didn’t quite pay off with a big game, but that’s what you get with value picks. You win some, you lose some. I can’t resist utilizing him again though and he is a constant presence in a lot of the lineups I build just because of the amount of talent you can fit in around him with his low price tag. I also love that you know you’re getting a guaranteed 5-10 touches per week from him at this price and when you look at your options at WR around this price, you’re hoping for a splash play from a guy who will maybe see three receptions on five targets in a game.

Another thing I love about Dixon is that you know he will be efficient with the touches he gets. He averaged 8.8 YPA on 62 carries last season and is averaging 6.4 YPA on 67 carries so far this season which ranks fourth-best in the ACC. He offers a change of pace threat behind lead back Travis Etienne but also comes in for cleanup duty when the game starts getting out of hand, which is often with Clemson always heavy favorites. That will be the case again this week with them currently 32-point favorites against NC State who just got steamrolled by Wake Forest.

Dixon had slate-breaking ability on two occasions last season where he rushed for over 100 yards but hasn’t quite shown us that yet this season. With Clemson furious after being ranked fifth in the College Football Playoff rankings despite being the reigning National Champions, I anticipate them looking for blood this week and Dixon gets you a cheap piece of that offense.

Also Consider:

Eno Benjamin (ASU): $8,800 vs USC
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (LSU): $8,300 at Alabama
Ty Chandler (TENN): $7,500 at Kentucky

Wide Receiver

Sage Surratt (WAKE): $9,700 at Virginia Tech
College football is absolutely loaded with talented wideouts at the moment but one of the biggest standouts has definitely been Sage Surratt. As mentioned above, Surratt is a killer stacking partner with Jamie Newman this week against a Virginia Tech defense that has been one of the most generous in the nation in passing yards allowed.

Surratt has given us some monster games this season and currently leads the ACC with 948 receiving yards. He also ranks third in all of CFB with 18 red-zone targets according to Expand the Boxscore. His last performance would be considered a dud by his standards as he put up 9-67-0 (11.2 FPTS) against NC State, but before that he gave us 7-170-0 (20.5 FPTS) vs. FSU and 12-196-3 (43.6 FPTS) vs. Louisville. He’s cleared 150 yards in half his games this season and has nine TDs in just eight games played.

Surratt is the most expensive wideout for a reason this week, but unlike at QB and RB, you can get the most elite player just under $10k. Combine that with Newman being priced as the QB4 and $1,600 below Hurts, and the savings are real there in a high-upside stack.

Sage Surratt is putting the country on notice and in a BIG way 😤👀#GoDeacs | @WakeFB @SageSurratt_14 pic.twitter.com/99DAcKplfT

— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) October 22, 2019

Brandon Aiyuk (ASU): $8,300 vs. USC
One of my favorite players to watch this season has easily been ASU’s breakout WR Brandon Aiyuk. Filling the void left by N’Keal Harry, Aiyuk has stepped in admirably and is one of the best in the nation when it comes to creating yards after the catch.

This USC/ASU game is one I definitely want a piece of in DFS this week. When looking at college football odds, this game is currently sitting at a total of 57 points with it basically a pick’em with ASU 1.5-point favorites. I wrestled with the idea of featuring a few players here, but at the end of the day, Aiyuk gives you the most bang for your buck. He’s averaging 15.89 points on FanDuel this season but is capable of a ceiling much higher. We saw that when he played against WSU and put up a 7-196-3 line, good for 41.1 FPTS.

Both of these defenses rank evenly when it comes to average passing yards allowed per game with a total ~240 YPG, while USC has given up more total yards per game (426.8, rank 80th) than ASU (365.3, rank 39th). There is a huge gap in the talent pool when comparing players in the low-to-mid $8k price point like Aiyuk and the low-to-mid $7k price point which makes him a steal as your WR2.

Brandon Aiyuk after the catch is deadly pic.twitter.com/LZncwrWmQt

— AJ Schulte (@AJDraftScout) October 3, 2019

Tarique Milton (ISU): $7,000 at Oklahoma
Like Lyn-J Dixon is a regular figure in my RB2 slot, I find myself coming back to Tarique Milton as my WR3 often in CFB lineups. The thought process is kind of the same here. Iowa State ranks sixth in the nation with 335.6 passing yards per game and Milton is a regular target as the team’s WR2 offering a big-play threat. This is again a situation of utilizing the odds to help find value in players as well, with this game sitting at a total 67.5 points and the Sooners being 14-point favorites. That should put the Cyclones into a pass-heavy game script giving Milton plenty of opportunities to make a splash play.

He gave us those big lines to open the season with a 8-144-1 performance to open the year against Iowa and followed that up with 3-142-1 against ULM. He most recently showed up with a 4-98 line against Texas Tech. As mentioned in Breece Hall’s write up, Oklahoma wasn’t at their best in the last game and they have also given up some random big games to wideouts like Kansas WR Stephan Robinson going for 5-131-2 against them. There aren’t a lot of great options at $7k and south of that for receivers which makes Milton’s potential ceiling all the more attractive. He also gives you a virtually identical value as ISU wideout Deshaunte Jones who comes in $700 more than Milton this week.

Tarique Milton was a reliable target for Brock Purdy in Iowa State’s week 8 victory! pic.twitter.com/831J6liyIt

— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 25, 2019

Also Consider:

Chris Olave (WR – OSU): $8,600 vs. Maryland
Tamorrion Terry ( WR – FSU): $8,000 at Boston College
Tee Higgins (WR – CLEM): $7,500 at North Carolina
Thaddeus Moss (TE – LSU): $6,100 at Alabama

Super Flex

Skylar Thompson (QB – KSU): $9,400 at Texas
You can approach your super flex spot in CFB lineups in a few different ways, but much like in NFL, I always like to go with a QB here. This gives you an opportunity for a double stack as well by pairing two QBs with their best receiving options if they have a good partner. In Skylar Thompson’s case, he doesn’t really have a legitimate WR1. Dalton Schoen is the leading receiver for KSU (25-389-3) and I did toy with the idea of putting him in here as he fits in at only $6,900 this week, but Tarique Milton gives you a lot more of a ceiling whereas Schoen has tapped out around 69 receiving yards in a game this season.

Thompson has been a solid play despite his lack of passing volume as he gives you plenty of production with his legs. He has 331 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs this season. Eight of those rushing TDs have come just in his last three games alone. He has scored 35.86 and 36.42 FPTS in his last two games, respectively. He has only thrown for over 200 yards twice in seven games featured on FanDuel this season, but this week he could have a great opportunity to load both sides of the boxscore.

The Longhorns have allowed 305.4 passing yards per game to opponents this season which ranks fifth-worst in the nation according to Team Rankings. They’ve also allowed at least three passing TDs in three of their last four games. What also bodes well for Thompson is the rushing production Texas has given up to QBs over their last five games, here is a brief breakdown of that:

Max Duggan (TCU): 72 rush yards, one TD
Carter Stanley (KU): 65 rush yards
Jalen Hurts (OKLA): 131 rush yards, one TD
Austin Kendall (WVU): 23 rush yards, one TD
Spencer Sanders (OKST): 109 rush yards, one TD

Thompson could not only have his best day as a passer this week, but his hot streak of rushing production should be safe to continue as well. You can slide him into your QB spot instead of your SF spot if you want to save a little cash, but I love the potential upside you get with two stud QBs this week while saving money by fading Hurts.

Create Optimal FanDuel lineups using our DFS Lineup Optimizer tool