With only a few weeks left in the college fantasy regular season, the waiver wire market really is starting to dry up. This feels like one of the final weeks where you’re going to see guys truly emerging as teams prepare for the stretch run. The chances of an offensive system significantly improving between now and the end of the season are getting slimmer, and outside of injury, you’re not going to see major shifts in how the ball is distributed in the passing game or the running game for most teams.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t guys to grab if you know where to look. There are just fewer options now. As such, this week’s waiver wire article will be a bit shorter when it comes to new names, but there are still some folks from previous weeks who are available.
The seven QB names listed as feature names and as honorable mentions, I have a feeling, are going to be the group of guys you’ll see me regularly bring up from now until the end of the season. At running back, some guys like Jordan Brunson remain the premier grabs on the wire, despite being listed as HMs this week.
Outside of that, the pickings were really slim across the board at the position. The strongest group this week is the receivers, but unfortunately, a good number of them are on bye this week, so if you’re looking for immediate help, you’re going to have to wait with most of these guys.
With all that being said, let’s look at who you could be grabbing off the waiver wire to enhance your playoff runs! All players mentioned are rostered at a sub-30% rate in Fantrax CFF leagues.
Quarterbacks
Bear Bachmeier – BYU – Ros: 26%
There’s something to be said about having a guy who is consistent in just getting you points every week, even if they’re never quite game-breaking. CFF Championship rosters of years past have been littered with guys like Joey Aguilar at App State and Rocco Becht at Iowa State, who provide their teams a nice, safe floor any given week.
I think this is where the true freshman quarterback for BYU, Bachmeier, is falling into. If I were to tell you that Bachmeier is QB16 on the season so far in total points through 8 weeks, would you believe me? I wouldn’t blame you if you didn’t. However, that is the power of consistency. Outside of a 13.7 fpt performance against Stanford in Week 2, which was his first start against a Power 4 opponent, Bachmeier has found himself finishing in the top 48 QBs any given week and never below that. He hasn’t hit below 20 fpts at all this season, again, outside that game against Stanford.
A lot of his production comes from his legs, where he manages to find a way to get 40+ yards in nearly every game, regardless of who he is against. Even better, those scrambles and runs often result in a score. In his last three games, Bachmeier has found the endzone four times on the ground.
Meanwhile, his passing can leave something to be desired (<200 yards passing in his last two games), but that is often dictated by matchup and game script, although you can count on him passing for at least one TD a game. His upcoming matchups might be two of his toughest defenses he’s played in Iowa State and Texas Tech, who are not afraid to get into low-scoring defensive battles. Tech’s defense is particularly worrisome, as they are first in the country against the run, which could remove some of Bachmeier’s floor. However, both Iowa State and Texas Tech are average against the pass (54th and 63rd, respectively), so there’s still an opportunity for Bachmeier to get his 20 pts a game.
Joe Fagnano – UConn – Ros: 7%
Our other quarterback for today also dons the blue and white, just for a team two time zones away. Joe Fagnano is another player who consistently feels like he’s under the radar in CFF spaces, despite performing well. I think it’s the UConn stigma, as we typically think of them as a not-so-great offense, but that isn’t what they are this year. UConn is legitimately great. They’re 5-2, with both losses coming by less than a score, and they just took down an ACC opponent in Boston College. This offense is top 25 in both points per game and total yards per game. So why wouldn’t we want the dual-threat quarterback at the center of this?
So far this season, Fagnano is in the top 36 in total points scored. He’s had his fair share of stinkers, most of which come because Cam Edwards is doing a little too well in the run game. But when Fagnano hits, he hits, lately going for 30+ fpts. As UConn continues to try to put together its second 9-win season in a row, its strategy is clear. They are going to run it up on everybody, because why not? Even better, we don’t see their starters pulled often at all, which gives them more opportunities than most would get in a blowout. UConn has Rice, UAB, and Duke coming up in the next few weeks. Both Rice and UAB are very susceptible to the run, so maybe watch out starting Fagnano in those games, as Edwards could eat.
However, that matchup vs. Duke in a few weeks is looking very nice for Fagnano. Duke is solid vs the run (33rd in FBS), but very weak against the pass (114th in FBS). UConn has already taken down one ACC member; who’s to say they can’t do it again? Add in that even if Duke gets out to a lead, it’s all the more reason to expect Fagnano to get a ton of touches in that game. Fagnano is an excellent spot start over the next few weeks if you need it.
Honorable Mentions
- Alonza Barnett, QB – James Madison – 25%
- Broc Lowry, QB – Western Michigan – 5%
- Cale Hellums, QB – Army
- Nick Minicucci, QB – Delaware – 24%
- Connor Weigman, QB – Houston – 27%
Running Backs
Kevorian Barnes – TCU – Ros: 27%
While I’m sure there were plenty of us in the CFF world who were watching TCU struggle to run the ball and hoping they’d just turn full air raid. The staff at TCU is on its knees, thanking God that Kevorian Barnes is healthy once again. Barnes has been, without a doubt, the most consistent RB for the Horned Frogs and was key in their win over arch-rival Baylor.
On the day, Barnes recorded a season-high 25 carries, which translated to 106 yards and a pair of TDs on the ground. One can say this game was a fluke, but I’d call it the natural result of a crescendo over the last couple of weeks. Barnes has been getting 15 touches each of his last two games against Colorado and Kansas State, with each one showing improvements in his health and efficiency. I think you’re looking at the clear RB1 for TCU from now on, and we know that Sonny Dykes isn’t afraid to ride one guy, just look at Kendre Miller and Emani Bailey.
In the coming weeks, Barnes will get his opportunities to solidify his place for a great 2nd-half CFF run. This week, he has West Virginia, which is 109th in the country against the run. After a bye, he’ll get Iowa State how is average against the run, so if he gets solid volume against the Mountaineers, there’s little reason not to expect TCU to get him that volume again against the Cyclones.
At the end of the day, regardless, Barnes is the clear RB1, even if he isn’t always a workhorse, on a team that will score 35 pts a game. There are very few safe bets like that this late in the season on the wire, so grab him before it is too late.
Rodney Fields – Oklahoma State – Ros: 18%
Do we want to trust an Oklahoma State player? That feels like a messy proposition, but given the barren wasteland that is the RB waiver wire, we have to be comfortable with uncomfortable. That’s probably exaggerating, if I’m being honest, because since Gundy has been fired, the Cowboys, while not good, have definitely stabilized in some aspects.
The most clear example is them finally settling on a clear RB1 in Rodney Fields. Fields has seen 16 and 24 touches and 100+ yards each in his last two games respectively since Gundy was fired and I don’t see much to suggest that is going to change. Pretty everyone else OkState has tried at RB hasn’t worked out, between Kalib Hicks, Trent Howland, Sesi Vailahi and Freddie Brock. Only one of those guys breaks four yards per carry (Vailahi), and Fields out-produces him by 1.3 yards per carry.
With no answer at QB and the season all but punted, what’s left of the Oklahoma State program needs to start building for next year. Even in games where the game script demanded they pass more, Oklahoma State, clearly, was more interested in learning how to sustain drives with a solid run game than they were with winning the game against Cincinnati. I think they’ll keep this mindset going forward as they work to get back to basics, no matter how badly they’re trailing on the scoreboard, which will be huge for Fields’ volume going forward.
Fields has a tough matchup against Texas Tech (1st in run defense in FBS), so maybe sit him for that one, but afterwards, he’ll have games against Kansas, Kansas State, UCF, and Iowa State to close out the season. I’m still not confident Oklahoma State can score more than two TDs in any of those games, but if they can, you can bet Fields will be a part of that.
Honorable Mentions
- Jordan Brunson, RB – Miami, OH – 4% (This is the most important RB pickup this week)
- Coleman Bennett, RB – Kennesaw State – 5%
- Jekail Middlebrook, RB – MTSU – 20%
- Kendrick Raphael, RB – California – 13%
- Owen Allen, RB – Air Force – 3%
Wide Receivers
Iverson Hooks – UAB – Ros: 11%
There’s something heartwarming about seeing a program finally cut out (a completely avoidable) cancer. UAB is already looking like a different team with Trent Dilfer no longer running things. In fact, the rally was so strong that UAB did the unthinkable and knocked off a ranked Memphis team as a 3-TD underdog. A huge part of that was 1, a QB change that makes me wonder what the heck this staff was looking at in practice, and 2, that QB’s connection and reliance on Iverson Hooks.
The Blazers’ passing game took a big blow when WR1 Corri Milliner effectively left the program earlier this year. What was crazy is that the gameplan didn’t shift to relying on their clearly good WR2, Hooks. It took Dilfer being fired for the staff to say, “hey, let’s get the ball into the hands of our best remaining receiver.” Hooks saw a season high 11 targets on the day and brought in all 11 of them for 172 yards and 3 TDs on the day.
I don’t see how this interim UAB staff can look at this performance and come away with any other conclusion than just “let’s keep feeding this guy”. To be fair, it’s not like they haven’t been feeding him, but in this game, they were much smarter about it and actually letting Hooks go down the field. Hooks is on bye this week, but then comes back to an ACC schedule that has plenty of potential. UConn, North Texas, USF, Tulsa. Those are four of his fove remaining matchups and I feel very confortable starting him in all of those.
Jackson Harris – Hawai’i – Ros: 18%
If you’ve listened to me long enough, you know I’ve not been a fan of Pofele Ashlock for some time now. I knew it was a matter of time before there was a straight-up better WR on this Rainbow Warriors offense and Stanford transfer, Jackson Harris, has clearly become that guy. Despite having four targets for every seven that Pofele Ashlock receives, Harris almost outproduces Ashlock on the season. Simply put, Harris gets higher value targets and does more with them.
Since coming back from injury, Harris has put together three straight 100+ yard games and has seen 9+ targets in all three. He’s had 16+ yards per reception and an ADOT greater than 15 yards in all of those games as well. That’s a recipe for sustainable production down the line, especially as this offense continues to look really solid (I might owe Timmy Chang an apology).
As for what is coming up, Hawaii is on a bye this week (I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for so many of the best options this week to be on a bye), but then they get a dream matchup against San Jose State, whose secondary is bottom four in the country in terms of stopping the pass. The Rainbow Warriors should eat there. San Diego State is, on paper, a tougher matchup, but if Chang really does have this offense humming, that may not matter. The only other thing to keep in mind is that Harris will have one additional bye week during the playoffs.
Isaiah Sategna – Oklahoma – Ros: 25%
I think Nate Marchese may have brought up Sategna a few weeks ago, but screw it, I’m reiterating him today. Love Deion Burks, but the injuries to Oklahoma’s boundary receivers (as well as the disappearance of Elijah Thomas, seriously, what happened to that guy?) have forced Burks out of the lucrative slot and on the boundary. That not only hurts Burk’s potential, but it has opened the door for Arkansas transfer, Isaiah Sategna, to take over the coveted slot position in Arbuckle’s offense.
The volume has been there fore Sategna recently against SEC competition. Against both South Carolina and Texas, Sategna saw 11+ targets. He only got five against Kent State, but to be fair, in that game, he only needed five to put up his best performance to date.
Sategna didn’t have the greatest days against Texas and South Carolina, despite the volume. However, much of that had to do with those teams having solid defenses, but also Mateer still recovering form his injury. Another week removed from that injury should help the passing game.
What should also help is that Oklahoma’s next two matchups are a breath of fresh air. They’ll be facing Ole Miss, whose defense was just diced up by Georgia last week and should be had by any good OC (of which I happen to believe Ben Arbuckle is). After that, they’ll get Tennessee, whose secondary is the worst in the SEC. If the volume stays, Sategna should eat against both of these teams.
Honorable Mentions
- CJ Williams, WR – Stanford – 23%
- Cooper Barkate, WR – Duke – 24%
- Amare Thomas, WR – Houston – 20%
- Jordan Hudson, WR – SMU – 12%
- Braden Pegan, WR – Utah State – 16%
Tight Ends
Brody Foley, TE – Tulsa – 6%
Last but not least, as always, is the Tight Ends. I’m not gonna lie, y’all, this just isn’t a year for elite TE production. At this point last season, four TEs had crossed the 100 fpts mark. This season, there are zero. In fact, zero have even hit the 90 pt mark. With that bring said, a big performance can kick off everyone’s interest in a guy and that’s what is going on with Brody Foley.
Foley was great last week, getting seven targets for 126 yards and a TD. Foley isn’t a stranger to solid yardage, as he’s averaged 19.2 yards per catch, which is elite for a TE. The crazy part is he isn’t even targeted that far downfield at an ADOT of 9.2. He’s really good at creating production, with him having a team-high 10.2 yards after catch per reception. No wonder the Hurricanes kept looking his way. Even tho they lost, I have a feeling that if Foley continues to perform, those seven targets he got in the game against East Carolina will become the norm more and more. He is currently sitting as the TE9 on the season and is unrostered in 94% of leagues. We should fix that.
Honorable Mentions
- Boden Groen – Kansas – Ros: 5%
- Richie Anderson, TE – Fresno State – 2%
- Bruin Felicshmann, TE – Air Force – 10%
- Joshua Long, TE – Eastern Michigan – 5%
