College Football Daily Fantasy Helper: Saturday 9/25/21

Week 4 of college football is here! FanDuel's college football DFS main slate on Saturday includes 14 games.

In case you're unfamiliar with how it works, you can check out the rules and scoring on FanDuel, where you can hit the lobby each week to see the full array of slates and contests being offered.

As for the basics, your roster consists of a quarterback slot, two running backs, three wide receivers (which also includes tight ends), and one "Super FLEX". In the Super FLEX spot, you can insert one player from any position, including quarterbacks.

Here, our goal is to help you field a roster full of fantasy goodness, and in true numberFire fashion, we'll use our DFS projections, game projections, and market share report to tackle as many slates as possible in the lead-up to the College Football Playoff. In this piece, we are breaking down Saturday's main slate, which locks at 12:00 p.m. EST.

Let's look at which players are in great spots as well as identify some players with low salaries who will allow you to roster the high-salary players.

Quarterbacks

Max Duggan, TCU ($10,600) – Duggan is my favorite quarterback on this slate. The Texas Christian Horned Frogs signal-caller is in a tremendous spot as the Horned Frogs host in-state rival, the Southern Methodist Mustangs. SMU is allowing 316.0 passing yards per game, which ranks 121st nationally. They've surrendered six touchdown passes through three games. Meanwhile, Duggan is fresh off dusting the California. The junior threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 71 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown to the box score. We could see a ceiling game from the dual-threat quarterback on Saturday.

DJ Uiagalelei, Clemson ($8,200) – Uiagalelei has struggled as a full-time starter in 2021. However, I’m not concerned. DJ U was the number two overall prospect nationally coming out of high school. Additionally, DJ U made two starts in 2020 while filling in for Trevor Lawrence. He topped 30 FanDuel points in both outings. Take advantage of the sophomore’s salary now because it will almost certainly increase as the season progresses. Most Clemson games will end in a blowout, but Clemson is just a 12.5-point favorite on the road facing North Carolina State.

Dennis Grosel, Boston College ($7,600) – Grosel is one of the better sources of salary relief at quarterback due to his dual-threat ability. The Boston College Eagles signal-caller ran for 40 yards and a touchdown in his only start this season. If he can make some plays in the passing game, he should easily pay off his salary this week. Grosel has completed 23 out of 35 pass attempts for 302 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception this season.

Cade McNamara, Michigan ($6,500) – Most DFS players will write off McNamara after looking at his box scores. He’s thrown 37 total passes through three games. That has been by design, though, as the Michigan Wolverines have steamrolled their first three opponents. McNamara is significantly under-salaried if Rutgers can keep this keep game competitive. There’s a good chance that happens on Saturday. According to our betting guide, Michigan is expected to win by 16 points. Consequently, McNamara may have to make some plays in the passing game this week. In last year’s meeting with Rutgers, McNamara torched the Scarlet Knights for 260 passing yards and five total touchdowns.

Others to Consider: Sam Howell ($11,500), Max Johnson ($10,800), Spencer Rattler ($10,200), Tanner Mordecai ($10,000), Adrian Martinez ($9,600), Casey Thompson ($9,500), Will Rogers ($9,400), Connor Bazelak ($8,900), Brock Purdy ($8,000), Graham Mertz ($6,200).

Running Backs

Tyler Badie, Missouri ($10,600) – Badie leads the Missouri Tigers in rushing AND receiving this season. He’s averaging 162.3 all-purpose yards per game. The versatile running back has six touchdowns through three games. The matchup with Boston College should be advantageous. Boston College struggled to defend the run last season, as they allowed an average of 171.4 rushing yards per game in 2020. Boston College has played Colgate, Massachusetts, and Temple this year, and Temple and Massachusetts are two of the worst teams in the FBS. Colgate is also an FCS team. Therefore, there is reason to doubt their strong defensive metrics since 2021.

Breece Hall, Iowa State ($9,900) – Hall is one of the few workhorses in college football. He’s averaging 20.0 carries per game this season. The star running back has recorded 27 total touchdowns in his last 15 games. We must go back to the 2019 season to find the last time that Hall was held out of the end zone in any single game. Additionally, the junior is in a favorable spot as the Iowa State Cyclones travel to Baylor. The Bears struggled to contain the run last season. Baylor allowed an average of 180.4 rushing yards per game and 2.2 rushing touchdowns per game in 2020.

Ty Chandler, North Carolina ($8,800) – Chandler's workload has increased each week. His carry totals have risen from 10 to 15 to 20 across the first three games. The senior exploded for 198 rushing yards and two touchdowns in last week's win over Virginia. He's in a great spot on Saturday as the North Carolina Tar Heels travel to Georgia Tech. Georgia Tech is allowing 161.3 rushing yards per game, which ranks just 84th nationally. They've surrendered four rushing touchdowns through three games.

Will Shipley, Clemson ($7,200) – Shipley appears to have seized control of the Clemson Tigers backfield. The freshman out-snapped backfield mate Kobe Pace 40-to-21 in last weekend's game. Shipley received 21 carries, ran for 88 yards, and scored two touchdowns against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The bottom line is that his salary hasn't fully adjusted to his increased role, and we know that this talent-laden Clemson offense is one with quality parts.

Others to Consider: Bijon Robinson ($11,000), Kenneth Walker III ($10,400), Leddie Brown ($10,000), Deuce Vaughn ($9,100), Jaylen Warren ($8,700), Isaiah Spiller ($8,600), Zach Evans ($8,500), Hassan Haskins ($8,400), Ulysses Bentley IV ($8,300), Kyren Williams ($8,100), Chez Mellusi ($8,000), Trelon Smith ($7,400), Jo'Quavious Marks ($7,300), Pat Garwo III ($6,900), Jahmyr Gibbs ($6,400), Eric Gray ($5,900), Ramir Johnson ($5,500), and Tre Siggers ($5,500).

Wide Receivers

Kayshon Boutte, LSU ($9,700) – Boutte has emerged as the Louisiana State Tigers next star wide receiver. He has an incredible rapport with starting quarterback Max Johnson. In five career games with Johnson quarterbacking, Boutte is averaging 7.8 receptions, 128 receiving yards, and two touchdowns on 11.2 targets per game. Boutte has 24.1% of LSU's overall team receiving yardage this season as well.

Danny Gray, SMU ($8,200) – Gray is one of four SMU players with at least 10 receptions this season (through three games). The speedster leads the Mustangs in targets (23), receptions (16), and receiving yards 228. He also has four touchdowns this season. His game environment is excellent; both SMU and TCU are ranked inside the top 38 nationally in offensive plays run per game. The matchup also has one of the highest game totals this week, with the over/under is sitting at 65.

Reggie Roberson Jr., SMU ($7,100) – Roberson Jr. is back from yet another injury, for he has sustained a season-ending injury two seasons in a row. He appears to have regained his elite form. The senior has racked up 14 receptions, 171 receiving yards, and one touchdown through three games. In past seasons, Roberson Jr. has been unstoppable when he's been on the field. He posted 22 receptions, 468 receiving yards, and 5 touchdowns in four games a season ago. Back in 2019, Roberson Jr. tallied 43 receptions, 803 receiving yards, and 6 touchdowns in eight games.

Zay Flowers, Boston College ($5,900) – As our market share report indicates, Zay Flowers is incredibly under-salaried due compared to his workload overall. Despite just two targets last week, Flowers has a 23.0% target share overall, and he has big-play upside that is ideal for DFS as well with 34.8% of Boston College's total receiving yards. The junior has 41 carries over the course of his Boston College career, and it is apparent that the coaching staff wants the ball in his hands as often as possible.

Others to Consider: Josh Downs ($10,000), Quentin Johnston ($9,200), Erik Ezunkanma ($8,500), Xavier Hutchinson ($8,400), Rashee Rice ($8,300), Jaden Walley ($7,700), Deion Smith ($7,600), Makai Polk ($7,500), Jordan Whittington ($7,400), Cornelius Johnson ($7,300), Michael Mayer ($7,000), Trelon Burks ($7,000), Xavier Worthy ($6,900), Charlie Kolar ($6,900), Bo Melton ($6,800), Grant Calcaterra ($6,600), Antoine Green ($6,100), Jadon Haselwood ($6,100), Chance Luper ($6,000), Joshua Moore ($6,000), Jalen Wydermeyer ($5,700), and Brennan Presley ($5,300).

Matthew Hiatt is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Matthew Hiatt also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username easternmh. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in his articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.