As the College Football season enters week three, College Fantasy Football (CFF) managers are starting to understand better the teams they drafted months ago. CFF managers also begin to have more challenging start/sit decisions as players have either lived up to (or exceeded) expectations or failed to match their draft capital. And some managers may have to find some injury replacement players to start for just this week. I’ve searched through some key matchups that will provide lesser heralded players that could be startable, even for just one week.
Here are my “Under the Radar” fantasy players that could start for your fantasy team in the Week 3 slate at the quarterback, running back, wide receiver, and tight end positions.
College Fantasy Football: Week Three Under the Radar Players
Quarterback
Brayden Schager, Hawaii
Fantrax Ownership: 50%
Fantasy Points Per Game (FPPG): 27.79
The game between Hawaii and Oregon has an over/under of 68.5. Brayden Schager, in his first three games, has thrown for 972 yards and ten touchdowns while completing 62.5% of his passes. The Oregon Ducks have given up an average of 328 yards of offense in their first two games. I expect this game to be a “high-flying” game, and it should provide plenty of opportunities for fantasy points to be scored.
Chandler Morris, TCU
Fantrax Ownership: 46%
FPPG: 31.49
With an over/under of 64 points, Houston versus TCU is expected to be a high-scoring game, with TCU scoring most of those points. Chandler Morris has thrown for 542 yards and four touchdowns in games against Nicholls State and Colorado. Houston allows their opponents 443.5 yards per game, with over 300 yards in the air. With TCU averaging 491.5 yards per game, this sets up nicely for a lopsided game where Morris puts up big numbers.
My only concern for the game is if the lead becomes too large and Morris is relieved of his duties by freshman Josh Hoover, Morris’ overall numbers may be suppressed. I will take the chance because Morris and the TCU offense will have a huge day.
Running Back
Chez Mellusi, Wisconsin
Fantrax Ownership: 33%
FPPG: 18.3
This suggestion may be my most “bold” of the names on this list. Everyone in the CFF world knows Braelon Allen, the lead back for the Badgers and a potential 1st Round pick in the NFL draft. However, Mellusi and Allen have had an even distribution of carries through their first two games. Georgia Southern gives up 145 yards per game on the ground, and Wisconsin will likely use its running attack to win this game.
On the season, Mellusi has 206 rushing yards with three touchdowns. When Wisconsin pulls away in this game, that will provide Mellusi with even more opportunities as the Badgers look to finish the game. The game script sets up nicely for the rushing attack of the Badgers, and Mellusi will be the beneficiary in the game’s later stages.
Johnny Richardson, UCF
Fantrax Ownership: 4%
FPPG: 10.3
With the news that star quarterback John Rys Plumlee will be sidelined for a few weeks, I feel the potent UCF offense will lean on the running game against Villanova, an FCS school. UCF leads College Football with 625 yards of total offense.
Plumlee has been a huge component of that monstrous number, so with little time to devise an alternate game plan, UCF will lean on Richardson and the Golden Knight’s other top runner, RJ Harvey. Harvey is owned in many CFF leagues, but Richardson, with similar numbers to Harvey, is still available in most leagues. Richardson should rack up a bunch of yards (and hopefully touchdowns) in this game.
Wide Receiver
Jay Maclin, North Texas
Fantrax Ownership: 24%
FPPG: 19.9
In one of the highest over/under totals of the week, North Texas takes on Louisiana Tech.
This game has all the makings for the offenses to shine. Jay Maclin has seven catches for 189 yards and three touchdowns. In a game that promises to be a shootout, the best receiver in North Texas is sure to shine. The North Texas defense is one of the worst statistically (allowing almost 600 yards of offense per game), which may force North Texas to throw the ball to stay competitive.
Jordan Watkins, Ole Miss
Fantrax Ownership: 7%
FPPG: 15.74
The Ole Miss offense with Jaxson Dart has been impressive through two weeks. Ole Miss is 13th in the nation in yards (515), 4th in passing yards (399), and 5th in points per game (55).
Ole Miss has an offense that can move the ball and knows how to score touchdowns. Georgia Tech will try to slow down the game, but Ole Miss will do the opposite and force the Yellow Jackets to play from behind. The Harris has been Dart’s favorite target in the end zone, but this game has an uptempo feel where the Dart will spread the ball around to keep Georgia Tech guessing. Jordan Watkins has caught 11 passes for 171 yards and looks primed for a huge game this weekend.
Tight End
Bryce Damous, UAB
Fantrax Ownership: 1%
FPPG: 8.3
One of the most challenging positions to find consistency in CFF is at tight end.
After surveying the landscape, I kept targeting the UAB/Louisiana game as a possible shootout and a game that may provide enough fireworks that even the tight ends post solid CFF numbers. Bryce Damous has nine grabs on the year for 61 yards and one touchdown. This game looks as strong as any to provide you with an “under the radar” tight end and Bryce Damous is that player.