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FanDuel College Football Picks For Early October 10

By Mike Marteny

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Sep 19, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Phoenix Watt of Norman gets her face painted prior to the game between the Oklahoma Sooners and the Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

There are 17 games in the early FanDuel tournaments on Saturday. It is a marginally smaller pool than last Saturday, but we still have to make wise choices to finish in the money. Last weekend both of my Saturday lineups won money in the big tournaments. Let’s try to build on that! Who are the best options for the early slate of games? Let’s find out!

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To finish in the money, you need to choose the best high priced players, and the best cheap options to let you afford some high priced players. I will give you some of each option at each position and let you choose from there.

Here are my FanDuel college football picks for early October 10:

Next: Who Will Put Up Big Numbers At QB?

Sep 19, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) runs for a touchdown against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane during the first quarter at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Quarterback:

Best Bets:

Seth Russell, Baylor ($9,800): Kansas has the 110th ranked pass defense in FBS. Expect it to be worse after this game. Russell has thrown for 1,281 yards this year with an astonishing 19 touchdown passes. He has also ran for three touchdowns! He likely wont play the entire game against the lowly Jayhawks, but expect him to have at least five touchdowns before departing. That will make him worth the price.

Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma ($8,900): Texas is 119th in pass defense and 109th in rush defense. Mayfield will do some of both. West Virginia was the first team to keep him out of the end zone on the ground. Don’t bet on Texas duplicating that feat. Mayfield’s dual threat capabilities against an equal opportunity awful defense should prove fruitful for those that play him.

Honorable Mention:

Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech ($8,600): The only team that has been able to keep him under 300 passing yards was Arkansas. He made up for it by running for 58 yards and two touchdowns on the ground against the Hogs. His knee showed no ill effects last week, so he should be back to normal. Iowa State has a solid defense, but not solid enough to hold Mahomes under 30 FanDuel points.

Sam Richardson, Iowa State ($7,300): He makes too many mistakes with the ball to ever be among the elite quarterbacks, but at this price against the 121st ranked pass defense of Texas Tech, Richardson is hard to pass up.

Dark Horse:

Joel Stave, Wisconsin ($6,900): If you have read any of my stuff before, you know that I am not a believer in Stave. This will be the one exception. Wes Lunt only threw for 255 yards on Nebraska on Saturday, and they are still dead last in pass defense. Nebraska’s run defense has been stout, and let’s face it, Wisconsin’s run game has suffered since they lost Corey Clement. The Badgers will have to throw, and it is likely that Wisconsin will get something deep. Of course, I said the same thing about an Illinois team with a better quarterback and better receivers.

My pick: Richardson

Next: Can You Afford To Pass On Fournette?

Oct 3, 2015; Bloomington, IN, USA; Ohio State Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott (15) runs with the ball against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium. Ohio State defeats Indiana 34-27. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Running Back:

Best Bets:

Leonard Fournette, LSU ($10,000): Fournette has averaged an astonishing 38.8 FanDuel points a game. And their easiest game, McNeese State, was sacrificed to the Gods of nature. Of course, Auburn and Eastern Michigan are in the bottom five of run defense, but Fournette is part of the reason. Saturday he gets another below average run defense in South Carolina. He is the first LSU tailback to ever record three straight 200 yard rushing games. Will you bet against the fourth? The question here is whether Fournette will outscore Seth Russell, because you likely wont be able to afford both. What I am looking at is the possibility of a bigger step down at RB. That problem is not present at QB. There are at least six guys I want to play at that position. I can’t say the same for RB.

Ezekiel Elliot, Ohio State ($9,400): Elliott salvaged the win for the Buckeyes with a huge fourth quarter against Indiana. This weekend, Maryland and their 103rd ranked rush defense come to the ‘Shoe. Elliott could have another huge day. It is even possible that he could outscore Fournette again!

Honorable Mention:

Nick Chubb, Georgia ($8,500): Tennessee has given up 171.6 rushing yards per game this season, which is 79th in the country. Chubb will find the sledding much easier than it was against Alabama, and he still went for 146 and a touchdown against the Tide. He should be able to do more damage than that against Tennessee.

Samaje Perine, Oklahoma ($7,700): It’s almost like Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley owns a Ferrari Testarossa, but can’t drive a stick. That is the only explanation for the sparing use of Perine over the first month of the season. His air-raid tendencies never had a running back with the talent of Perine at East Carolina. The logical explanation is that he doesn’t know how to properly use him. He may try to figure it out against the horrible Texas defense.

Dark Horse:

Mike Warren, Iowa State ($6,200): Warren set a school freshman record with his 175 yards against Kansas last week. Texas Tech’s run defense is actually worse than the Jayhawks’. Look for Warren to notch his third straight 100 yard rushing game with the potential to go for a lot more!

My picks: Elliott and Warren

Next: Who Are The Best WR's?

Sep 26, 2015; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears wide receiver Corey Coleman (1) and offensive tackle Spencer Drango (58) celebrate Coleman

Wide Receiver:

Best Bets:

Corey Coleman, Baylor ($8,600): Coleman has averaged 34.6 FanDuel points per game, which makes him more than worth the asking price. He gets another soft pass defense in Kansas this week. If you can swing some way to afford him without sacrificing too much at other positions, you know that he is going to get you at least 25 points, and likely more.

Roger Lewis, Bowling Green ($8,200): Lewis has gone over 200 receiving yards in three of the last four games for the Falcons. This is a pass-happy offense, and Lewis gets tons of targets. The only games in which he struggled some were against Tennessee and Purdue, who have solid pass defenses. UMass does not. I’m not saying to expect 200 yards, but it certainly is a possibility. In three games against defenses about the same caliber as Massachusetts, Lewis has 32 catches for 662 yards and six touchdowns. In three games! He will be very productive again on Saturday.

Honorable Mention:

Sterling Shepard, Oklahoma ($7,400): Shepard has yet to have that dominating game that he is capable of. Part of it is the offensive scheme stressing spreading the ball around. The other is opposing defenses keying on Shepard. Texas will likely attempt to do the same, but I don’t give them much of a chance to succeed.

Allen Lazard, Iowa State ($6,100): The sophomore has established himself as Richardson’s favorite target. That is a good thing against a well below average pass defense. Now, I don’t expect him to go nuts on the Red Raiders like Josh Doctson did, but his first career double digit reception game could happen here. At a bargain price, no less!

Michael Thomas, Ohio State ($6,000): The Ohio State offense looked stagnant until Elliott went nuts in the second half. Ohio State will get back on track against a Maryland defense that is likely the worst in the Big Ten(14). Thomas has found the end zone in three straight games, and I wouldn’t bet against him having his first 100 yard game of the season. If the quarterback can throw to him, that is. You know Thomas will be open.

Dark Horses:

Jordan Villamin, Oregon State ($5,900): Arizona is 102nd in the nation in pass defense, and Villamin is coming off a game against Stanford in which he racked up 138 receiving yards. He is the clear top dog for the Beavers right now, and Seth Collins is improving with every game. Villamin could have a nice scoring day against the Wildcats.

Durron Neal, Oklahoma ($5,300): Neal has found himself open quite a bit with opposing defenses trying to make sure that DeDe Westbrook and Sterling Shepard are covered. He will find a lot of open space against Texas as well, unless the rules committee feels sorry for the Longhorns and lets them play two extra defensive backs. However, I don’t see that happening anytime sooon.

My picks: Shepard, Neal, and Lazard.

Next: Who Are The Best TE Options?

Sep 19, 2015; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners tight end Mark Andrews (81) runs for a touchdown against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane during the second quarter at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark D. Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Tight End:

Best Bet:

Mark Andrews, Oklahoma ($3,000): This is the time of the year when freshmen usually start making an impact. We have seen it with Mike Warren at Iowa State. Oklahoma has their own freshman weapon in Mark Andrews. Andrews has eight catches for 154 yards, and three have gone for touchdowns. Mayfield is starting to seek him out in the red zone, an area the Sooners will likely spend a lot of time in on Saturday.

Honorable Mention:

Jake Butt, Michigan ($3,300): If you notice, I have the $300 left over to go from Andrews to Butt, but I still don’t want to do it. Why not? Points will be at a premium in the defensive battle that will be waged in The Big House. I expect Butt to see his share of targets since I doubt anything will be open deep, but Andrews is a more sure bet to add the coveted points for a touchdown.

Dark Horse:

Henry Kreiger Coble, Iowa ($2,400): Illinois allowed Nebraska tight end Cethan Carter more receptions last week than he had all year coming into the game. Kreiger Coble has caught eight passes in the last two games anyway, so he could be a nice sleeper pick against the Illini. He is C.J. Beathard’s safety net right now.

My pick: Andrews

Stay tuned for the rest of Saturday’s FanDuel picks, and the picks against the spread!

Next: ESPN College Pick Em Picks For Week 6

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