NCAAF
College Football Daily Fantasy Helper: Tuesday 12/28/21
Will Rogers and Mississippi State should light up the scoreboard on Tuesday. Who else should we consider targeting?

College Football Bowl Season continues this week! FanDuel's college football DFS main slate on Tuesday includes five 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

Will Rogers, Mississippi State ($11,200) – Rogers tallied at least 300 passing yards in 11 games this season. He recorded at least three touchdown passes in eight out of 12 games. The Mississippi State Bulldogs signal-caller racked up 35 total touchdown passes. I'm expecting Rogers to have a field day against the Texas Tech Red Raiders' shaky pass defense. The Red Raiders rank 118th in passing yards allowed per game (266.4).

Malik Cunningham, Louisville ($10,800) – Here is my obligatory Malik Cunningham recommendation. The junior quarterback's usage is off the charts. From a rushing standpoint, Cunningham is one of the nation's most productive ball carriers; he ran for 968 rushing yards and recorded 19 rushing touchdowns this season. That's before we talk about his passing game where Cunningham averaged 227.8 passing yards per game. He posted 18 passing touchdowns through 12 games. He will be very popular.

Donovan Smith, Texas Tech ($7,500) – Smith provides dual-threat ability at an affordable salary. The freshman quarterback has recorded six touchdown passes through four starts. He also recorded 53 total rushing yards in those four games. Smith has been accurate despite his inexperience. He completed 63.1% of his pass attempts this season. The matchup with Mississippi State is solid; the Bulldogs rank 68th nationally in passing yards allowed per game (230.1).

Others to Consider:
Dorian Thompson-Robinson ($10,400), Devin Leary ($10,000), Clayton Tune ($8,700), TJ Finley ($7,600)

Running Backs

Brad Roberts, Air Force ($9,500) – The Air Force Falcons fullback averaged an impressive 23.3 carries per game this season. The junior cleared 100 rushing yards in eight out of 12 games while recording 13 rushing touchdowns this season. He is in an advantageous situation on Tuesday. The Falcons opponent, Louisville, ranks 73rd nationally in rushing yards allowed per game (156.7). Additionally, they have yielded 21 rushing touchdowns through 12 games.

Tank Bigsby, Auburn ($8,000) – Bigsby is back with the Auburn Tigers after exploring the transfer portal. Since TJ Finley has taken over as quarterback for the Tigers, Bigsby has received 22 carries and 29 carries, respectively. On paper, the matchup with Houston is difficult. They are ranked 11th nationally in rushing yards allowed per game (105.7). Hopefully, that will keep Bigsby's popularity in check. I will note that the Houston Cougars were ripped in the AAC championship game for 187 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns by Bearcats' running back Jerome Ford.

Tony Mathis Jr., West Virginia ($6,200) – Mathis Jr. figures to operate as the West Virginia Mountaineers lead back with Leddie Brown opting out of the bowl game. Mathis Jr. played the majority of the second half against the Kansas Jayhawks in the regular-season finale. The sophomore running back recorded 118 rushing yards on 22 carries in that game. He is significantly under-salaried for his role change.

Others to Consider:
Zach Charbonnet ($9,000), Jo Marks ($8,400), Ky Thomas ($8,500), Dillon Johnson ($6,900), Jalen Mitchell ($6,700), Ricky Person Jr. ($6,400), Zonovan Knight ($6,300)

Wide Receivers

Makai Polk, Mississippi State ($10,000) – Polk has recorded at least 59 receiving yards in 10 consecutive games. He enters the bowl game with eight-plus receptions in each of his last four games. We could see a ceiling game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders. The Red Raiders have surrendered an eye-opening 28 passing touchdowns this season.

Emeka Emezie, North Carolina State ($8,000) – Emezie is a feast or famine type play. Over the last four games, the Wolfpack's leading pass catcher posted two games with less than 10 receiving yards. He also posted two games with 100+ receiving yards and two touchdown receptions. I like his chances of succeeding against the UCLA Bruins and their vulnerable pass defense. The Bruins rank 110th nationally in passing yards allowed per game (260.2).

Kaylon Geiger Sr., Texas Tech ($5,600) – Leading wide receiver Erik Ezukanma has declared for the NFL Draft and will not suit up on Tuesday. Consequently, Geiger Sr. will become Donovan Smith's top option in the passing game. Albeit a small sample, Geiger Sr. drew a season-high 10 targets in Week 5 when Ezukanma was sidelined. Geiger Sr. is one of the best sources of salary relief on the slate.

Loic Fouonji, Texas Tech ($5,000) If you're looking for a wide receiver that will fly completely under the radar, consider Geiger Sr.'s teammate. He drew six targets and ran 25 routes in the one game when Ezukanma was sidelined (Geiger Sr. ran 30 for reference purposes). Fouonji is Ezukanma's direct replacement on the depth chart for Tuesday's bowl game. His floor is zero, but he'll likely see significant action. He is one way to get contrarian on a five-game slate.

Others to Consider:
Nathaniel Dell ($8,700), Kyle Philips ($8,400), Jaden Walley ($7,800), Thayer Thomas ($7,400), Greg Dulcich ($7,300), Chris Autman-Bell ($6,700), Devin Carter ($6,500), Lideatrick Griffin ($5,200)

Related News

An Introduction to FanDuel Research

Jim Sannes  --  Dec 28th, 2021

College Football Betting Guide: National Championship (TCU vs. Georgia)

Michael Rondello  --  Dec 28th, 2021

Covering the Spread: College Football National Championship Betting Preview

Jim Sannes  --  Dec 28th, 2021