This article is part of our FanDuel College Football series.
College Football DFS Picks: FanDuel Main Slate Picks and Lineup Strategy for Championship Week
It's Championship Week in the FanDuel main slate which means a slightly smaller card (8 games) but with tons of intrigue in every one of those contests. Kansas State vs TCU (61.5) and Clemson vs North Carolina (O/U 63.5) look like the big targets at first glance but let's see if there are some sneaky plays out there.
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FanDuel CFB DFS Picks: Quarterback
Drake Maye ($11,700) tops the QB salary chart but he's looked human the last two games with a ceiling of 233 yards passing and just 1 TD. With Caleb Williams and USC losing to Utah in the PAC 12 Championship Game on Friday night, could TCU's Max Duggan ($10,700) step into a Heisman favorite spot with a big performance against Kansas State?
John Rhys Plumlee ($11,000) UCF at Tulane
He tweaked his hamstring last week, but UCF coach Gus Malzahn has said that John Rhys Plumlee is ready to go for the AAC Championship Game at Tulane. This is a conference championship game that is actually hosted by the higher seed so the Knights will be on the road, but in a trip to Tulane a couple weeks ago Plumlee threw a TD and ran for 176 yards and 2 scores for a 32 fp day.
DJ Uiagalelei ($9,500) Clemson vs North Carolina
Even though it's still a long shot - USC's loss to Utah on Friday night does still leave a faint glimmer of hope for Clemson to earn the final spot in the CFP. Sure Ohio State is 11-1 with their only loss coming to #2 Michigan, but wouldn't the Tigers have a claim at 11-2 while being a conference champion? Either way last week's 31-30 home loss to South Carolina was brutal for Clemson, and DJ Uiagalelei was largely to blame (8/29, 99 yards) but he'll be in a ping pong game with the UNC offense and Dabo Swinney knows his team needs a blowout to impress the committee.
FanDuel CFB DFS Picks: Running Back
Hard to stray from Deuce Vaughn here as he'll be getting 20-25+ carries in the Big 12 Championship Game and has made the perfect lineup in three of the last five. Other options include:
Tyjae Spears ($9,800) Tulane vs UCF
Let's see what Tyjae Spears can do with a full workload against UCF, because he had 130 yards on just 8 carries when the teams met up in week 11. Spears has been about as consistent as they come with 120+ yards rushing in six straight games.
Donovan Edwards ($9,000) Michigan vs Purdue
You have to take a look at Donovan Edwards this week don't you considering he ran the ball 22 times for 216 yards last week against Ohio State? Edwards is the undisputed feature back in Michigan's offense now that Blake Corum has decided to undergo knee surgery and he's running behind an offensive line that had Corum a Heisman contender most of the season.
FanDuel CFB DFS Picks: Wide Receiver
UNC WR Josh Downs is priced $1k higher than any other WR on this slate providing a ton of value below him especially considering he has just 9 catches total the last two games. Could the #1 WR on the slate actually be a low-ownership GPP play?
Charlie Jones ($8,500) Purdue vs Michigan
Ownership might stay a bit lower on Charlie Jones considering Michigan doesn't give up a ton. What the Wolverines do though is apply pressure, and when Purdue QB Aidan O'Connell is under duress he looks for his safety blanket Jones who should get double-digit targets in the Big Ten Championship Game.
Tez Johnson ($8,100) Troy vs Coastal Carolina
Tez Johnson only had 3 grabs for 30 yards last week and he's averaging just 6 fp the last two games mostly because Troy has won by an average margin of 23.5 ppg. Johnson has a ceiling of 24fp this season and the Chanticleers will give up some passing yards (293.0 over their last three).
College Football DFS GPP Plays
QB - Aidan O'Connell ($6,200) Purdue vs Michigan
One would think ownership is low for Aidan O'Connell here considering what Michigan's #2 ranked defense held Ohio State to 23 points last week. C.J. Stroud still had solid numbers in that game aside from his 2 INTs (349 yards, 2 TDs) and O'Connell has been a low key big game player the last two years. He had 375 yards and 3 total TDs to lead the upset over Iowa in 2021, had 390 and 4 TDS at Ohio State, and tossed 5 TDs against Tennessee in the Music City Bowl. There is a precedent here.
RB - Jordan Mims ($8,200) Fresno State at Boise State
Boise State has the somewhat under-the-radar 7th ranked total yard defense in the country which should keep ownership off of Jordan Mims on Saturday. What you like about Mims is that he has ceiling game potential, with scores in 10 of 12 games this season including three in the opener and three last week against Wyoming. One of the times Mims didn't score this season was week 6 in a 40-20 loss at Boise, but you like that he got 21 carries (61 yards) even down by 20. A closer game might mean more production here.
WR - Jacoby Jones ($7,300) Ohio vs Toledo
Toledo allows less than 200 yards passing per game, but Ohio's Jacoby Jones has had nice production lately (perfect lineup in two of the last three) and had a season-high in targets (8) last week. Jones also returns kicks, so any extra opportunities to break one you take a look at.