It’s week 3. This is the time to determine whether your team is a contender or a pretender. If you are not a championship contender, you should consider trading upperclassmen with no NFL potential. That doesn’t mean you should not be active on the waiver wire. Pickups could be trade pieces or help your roster headed into 2025.
But the point remains, if you are a lower scoring team with 1-2 or 0-3 record, it might be time to fold it in and start trading assets. Generally speaking, the person who starts selling off assets first gets a better rate of return than those who make the same decision but later.
As a reminder, this year, players identified in the weekly waiver wire column will be given one of three levels of interest: (1) monitor; (2) consider; or (3) priority. A player with a “monitor” designation should be added to your watch list. These players are not recommended as immediate pickups. A player with a “consider” designation should be considered as a potential pickup for that week. Finally, and as the name suggests, a player with a “priority” designation is one who should be considered a must-pickup for that week.
This column is geared towards C2C players. There will be a separate waiver wire article for traditional CFF. However, there is likely to be an overlap between the players mentioned in both articles.
Understand that there are several different types of college fantasy leagues. Your takeaways from this weekly article should be calibrated for your specific league and format. For example, if your league has unlimited waivers, you could potentially consider any players identified in this weekly piece. On the other hand, if your waivers are limited, you must be selective about your waiver wire pickups.
To take it a step further, readers will need to consider whether they intend the pickup to serve pure college fantasy purposes or, if playing in a Campus2Canton league, whether the proposed waiver wire pickup is a potential NFL talent. That distinction can be a difficult one to make, especially when made (1) with limited data to consider and (2) with limited time in which to make the decision.
One more note: With 134 FBS teams, this list is unlikely to be exhaustive. To stay up to date, tune into the Campus2Canton podcast feed and YouTube.
With that said, here are the waiver wire candidates following Week 3, in the order of suggested level of interest:
Reed Harris, WR Boston College. Level of Interest – Monitor.
Harris was a recipient of a fluky touchdown against Missouri after the secondary failed to react to a dropped snap. Harris has three receptions on the season. One was the 67-yard touchdown on the botched snap. Another catch resulted in a 72-yard touchdown. The redshirt freshman is built like a tight end at 6’5″, 230 pounds, and has NFL roots; his father, Andre, was a defensive back for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Harris has had 46, 20, and 32 snaps in the first three weeks. The big athlete is at least worth monitoring to see how he develops.
Jordyn Tyson, WR Arizona State. Level of Interest – Monitor.
Tyson was a relatively hot commodity two seasons ago with a late breakout for the pre-Coach Prime Colorado Buffaloes. At the end of that 2022 season, he suffered an ACL, MCL, and PCL tear, which sidelined him for much of 2023. Tyson now looks to be fully recovered and is the leading receiver for a resurgent Arizona State team. If not for the injury, Tyson would have gone into 2023 as a coveted pickup. He should be back on watch lists now if he is not rostered.
Fluff Bothwell, RB South Alabama. Level of Interest – Monitor.
South Alabama’s trashing of Northwestern State allowed several players to pad stats, including the 5’10″, 220-pound true freshman running back. Bothwell is second in running back snaps behind junior Kentrel Bullock. Bullock was the first back on the field, but Bothwell broke out with 143 yards on the ground this past week. The competition figures to get tougher for South Alabama than Northwestern State, and Bothwell is not the team’s bellcow, but he’s built like one. Monitor the freshman for the time being to see if he can overtake the upperclassman.
Coleman Owen, WR Ohio. Level of Interest – Consider.
Owen is the clear leader in the Bobcats’ receiver room. His 21 receptions through three games are more than double the next leading Ohio receiver (8). Ohio gets Kentucky this week, and then on to MAC play. Owen should be considered for your stretch run to the playoffs.
De’Zhaun Stribling, WR Oklahoma State. Level of Interest – Consider.
The veteran is tied for snaps with Brennan Presley and just ten behind snaps leader Rashod Owens. He had 83 yards in Week 1 and 174 yards in Week 3. All three starting receivers are worth rostering for the Cowboys. Stribling is rostered in just 14% of leagues.
Cade McDonald, WR Miami of Ohio. Level of Interest – Consider.
McDonald is the clear primary receiving target for the Redhawks following the departure of Gage Larvadain to South Carolina. McDonald has more than doubled up his teammates in receiving production, with 16 receptions for 240 yards through two games. He’s also been efficient, with 20 targets on the season. McDonald gets Notre Dame next before Miami’s schedule lightens up.
Mac Delena, WR Fresno State. Level of Interest – Consider.
A week after putting up 235 yards against Sacramento, Delena had two receptions, 82 yards, and two touchdowns against New Mexico State. Yes, he is a real person and the fifth-leading receiver in the country at the moment.
