The 2025 Tadpole Bowl will kick off with a live draft in Atlanta, Georgia, later this month. I used the data to determine the impact of a major scoring difference between this league and others that we play in.
Of course, I’m talking about return yards! Players accrue .05 points for every return yard. This feels nominal, and for the most part, it is, but there are a few players we must keep an eye on and consider higher up in our drafts with this scoring change. From my research, many players who return kicks and punts are tertiary receiver options or backup running backs. Some players we’re drafting are also featured in special teams. Let’s take a look…
Xavier Townsend, Iowa State, WR
Townsend is a UCF transfer heading to Ames to replace the Jaylin Noel role in the offense. What’s eerily similar here is that Townsend was a great returner for UCF, and Noel had that same role with Iowa State. There is a direct path to predicting this role for him in 2025.
Townsend had 283 total return yards last season, but they came in just four games as he sat out early enough to redshirt and be eligible for another season. Those return yards would equate to 3.54 fantasy points per game! This is a pretty significant amount of fantasy points for a guy we think should also have a high target share in a very predictable offense.
Caullin Lacy, Louisville, WR
Lacy was banged up in 2024, so he only totaled 226 return yards in five games. It feels like a small number, but that amount of yardage would equal 2.26 fantasy points per game. What’s really interesting here is the sporadic usage he had last season. Those return yards came in just two of the five games he played.
This wasn’t some spur-of-the-moment thing, as he had 250 return yards in 2023. That season, he had punt return yardage in eight games. Lacy has been a pretty quality returner in his time at Louisville, and with the staff still intact, there’s no reason to believe he won’t provide us with return yardage production in 2025.
Makai Lemon, USC, WR
Lemon may be the most impacted player by return yardage scoring in the Tadpole Bowl. He saw a 2.14 fantasy points per game increase in 2024 thanks to this scoring, and what’s even more intriguing is that 506 of the 514 return yards he had last season came in the final six games. This feels like a situation where he was thrown into the role midseason and ran with it.
Basic math tells me that if he maintains this role from the start of the season, we’re looking at over four fantasy points per game added to his projections. In 0.5 PPR scoring, this could be the difference between being WR25 (Ryan Williams – 14.1 FPPG) and WR4 (Tai Felton – 18.1 FPPG). In full PPR, Ryan Williams ended with 16.29 FPPG, so those four additional points would have taken him from WR27 to WR8! Either way, this is a huge scoring advantage for Lemon.
Dylan Edwards, Kansas State, RB
The projected RB1 for Kansas State saw a role last season by returning kicks to the tune of 438 yards in 12 games. His usage fluctuated, but that’s no surprise, as touchbacks plus fair catches can easily make a guy look like he didn’t return kicks/punts in a game.
One interesting note is that he had zero return yards in the bowl game when he was the Wildcats’ RB1. PFF has him not playing that role in the game, which could mean that the 1.83 FPPG we may expect isn’t there in 2025. It would make sense that the smaller dynamic back would focus his energy on running back over special teams. This will be something to monitor, considering how highly ranked he is as the RB1.
Keelan Marion, Miami, WR
Marion transferred into Miami this spring, so his role in special teams and receivers is certainly up in the air. If you’re looking to throw a dart at a receiver in this offense, this is a nice cherry on top. He saw a 1.82 FPPG increase to his production with this scoring. Last year’s returner for the Hurricanes was Ray Ray Joseph, who is still on the roster. He also returned punts. Do they shift any responsibilities to Marion and let Joseph focus on one? This will be an interesting situation to monitor, but it isn’t as impactful as the above.
