All the FBS conferences are in action now, but the MAC seems insistent on not joining in on the fun here at Start vs. Sit headquarters. Last week, the MAC opened its season by playing all its games on Wednesday. This week they had a couple of games on Tuesday, and are finishing out the week with Wednesday games. For our purposes, that kind of leaves the MAC out of the picture. As somebody from Michigan, home to three MAC teams with location-based names, that's a disappointment. However, there is plenty for me to dig into with the rest of the conferences.
AAC
START
Gerrid Doaks, RB, Cincinnati vs. East Carolina
Doaks had 100 carries all of last season as the second-string back for the Bearcats. This year, the job is his, and Doaks has carried the ball 96 times already. The senior has been as good as he was in limited action in 2019, as he's rushed for 511 yards with seven touchdowns. East Carolina is giving up 217.2 yards per game on the ground, and anytime you can target a defense giving up over 200 yards rushing on average, you jump on it.
SIT
Cameron Carroll, RB, Tulane vs. Army
There aren't many good defenses in the American, but the Black Knights are dropping into the action to make things tough for Tulane. Carroll has been a touchdown machine in a run-happy offense, finding the end zone 10 times. However, a game with these two
All the FBS conferences are in action now, but the MAC seems insistent on not joining in on the fun here at Start vs. Sit headquarters. Last week, the MAC opened its season by playing all its games on Wednesday. This week they had a couple of games on Tuesday, and are finishing out the week with Wednesday games. For our purposes, that kind of leaves the MAC out of the picture. As somebody from Michigan, home to three MAC teams with location-based names, that's a disappointment. However, there is plenty for me to dig into with the rest of the conferences.
AAC
START
Gerrid Doaks, RB, Cincinnati vs. East Carolina
Doaks had 100 carries all of last season as the second-string back for the Bearcats. This year, the job is his, and Doaks has carried the ball 96 times already. The senior has been as good as he was in limited action in 2019, as he's rushed for 511 yards with seven touchdowns. East Carolina is giving up 217.2 yards per game on the ground, and anytime you can target a defense giving up over 200 yards rushing on average, you jump on it.
SIT
Cameron Carroll, RB, Tulane vs. Army
There aren't many good defenses in the American, but the Black Knights are dropping into the action to make things tough for Tulane. Carroll has been a touchdown machine in a run-happy offense, finding the end zone 10 times. However, a game with these two offenses could be over in the blink of an eye thanks to all the rushing attempts, and less opportunity means less upside. Plus, Army has given up only 11.7 points per game. Sure, the schedule has been easy, but you can only face the opponents who line up against you.
ACC
START
Emeka Emezie, WR, NC State vs. Florida State
There has been instability at quarterback for the Wolf Pack, but Emenzie has managed through it all. Though he only has 27 catches through seven games, he's tallied 465 yards and three touchdowns. He's leading NC State in receiving yards, and he has had over 80 yards in each of his last three games. For all of Florida State's issues, the defense is probably the most troubling. The Seminoles have allowed 499.0 yards per game against FBS teams, and if we dip into the FCS they allowed 24 points to Jacksonville State.
SIT
David Bailey, RB, Boston College vs. Notre Dame
Sure, the Fighting Irish allowed 40 points to Clemson without Trevor Lawrence, but honestly, that doesn't, bother me much. What really stuck out to me is how Notre Dame handled Travis Etienne, the all-time leading rusher in the ACC. Etienne averaged 1.6 yards per carry versus the Irish, and Bailey is – with all due respect – no Etienne at running back.
BIG 12
START
Charlie Brewer, QB, Baylor at Texas Tech
There are only two Big 12 games this week, so the pickings are slim. It's been a rough year for Baylor, but this matchup could help ease that pain. The Red Raiders have allowed over 40 points per game and over 300 yards per contest through the air. Brewer has thrown five interceptions in five games, which isn't good, but he's also thrown for 11 touchdowns and, basically, any quarterback can excel in this matchup. Even Houston Baptist scored 33 points on the Texas Tech defense.
SIT
Max Duggan, QB, TCU at West Virginia
Duggan's passing numbers are a little limited (five passing touchdowns through six games) but he also leads the team with 329 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns. Unfortunately for Duggan, West Virginia is the clear class of the conference defensively. Sam Ehlinger is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in college football, and the Mountaineers held him to 184 yards passing and 39 yards rushing last week.
Big Ten
START
Bo Melton, WB, Rutgers vs. Illinois
OK, maybe recommending starting a Rutgers player is too cute by half, but I can see some legitimate upside in this offense. Illinois has allowed 475.7 yards per game, and it just allowed 41 points to Minnesota. Melton has caught 15 passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns through three contests. I'm also encouraged that he had seven receptions in the loss to Ohio State last week. Makes me feel like the senior is the clear go-to guy in this passing game when the chips are down.
SIT
Taulia Tagovailoa, QB, Maryland vs. Ohio State
I'm not saying the last couple of weeks have been a total fluke for Tagovailoa. I just think there may be a bit of a reality check coming for Tua's brother. The Buckeyes' defense has not been elite like last season, but the talent is still clear, and they are still in the top 30 defensively. Also, don't let the last two games make you forget that Tagovailoa threw three picks in the season opener against Northwestern.
Conference USA
START
Victor Tucker, WR, Charlotte vs. Gardner-Webb
Tucker has gotten off to a slow start to the season --to be fair it's been chaos for the 49ers -- but he has a touchdown in each of his last two games. On top of that, with the same quarterback under center last year the junior had 909 receiving yards with seven touchdowns. Tucker gets to face an FCS team in Gardner-Webb this week, and if that wasn't enough this is Gardner-Webb's first game of the season.
SIT
Asher O'Hara, QB, MTSU at Marshall
O'Hara is basically a one-man offense for the Blue Raiders. Last season, in addition to throwing for 20 touchdowns, he led the team with 1,058 yards rushing. The redshirt junior is once again excelling on the ground (476 yards and six touchdowns) but he's already thrown eight picks on the year. Ultimately, this is mostly about the matchup, though. The Thundering Herd rank in the top five in yards allowed per game, and two of the teams ahead of them are MAC teams that have played all of one game.
Mountain West
START
Ronnie Rivers, RB, Fresno State at Utah State
Utah State has already given up on Gary Andersen, and when you fire a head coach three games into a season in the midst of a pandemic, you know things are going poorly. Indeed, the Aggies have allowed 520.7 yards per game, including 233.0 on the ground. Rivers already has eight touchdowns through three games, which is insane. That may not be sustainable, but he had 16 touchdowns last year, so it's not like this is a total fluke.
SIT
Chevan Cordeiro, QB, Hawaii at San Diego State
Last week, Cordeiro finally got to play a game at home and he proceeded to throw for 410 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions. He also added a rushing score. Well, now he's back on the road, where he has thrown zero touchdown passes thus far. Also, he has to face the Aztecs who have allowed a mere 233.0 total yards per game. Most teams can't even average that kind of yardage on pass defense.
Pac-12
START
Jarek Broussard, RB, Colorado at Stanford
Broussard came out of nowhere in Colorado's opener to run the ball 31 times for 187 yards and three touchdowns against UCLA (he added two catches for 21 yards for good measure). Sure, it was only one game, but that turns heads. Also turning heads? Stanford's defense allowing 269 rushing yards to Oregon in its opener. Let's see how much these two small-sample size performances pan out.
SIT
Travell Harris, WR, Washington State vs. Oregon
Harris caught seven passes for 107 yards and two touchdowns in Wazzu's opener, so you might be thinking he's going to put up gaudy numbers like many recently receivers in Pullman. Ah, but Mike Leach is gone. Those two touchdowns were the only passing touchdowns the Cougars had, and quarterback Jayden de Laura only threw for 227 yards. A Washington State running back had 18 carries in a game! This passing game isn't likely to be as prolific as it was under Leach, and I also believe in Oregon's defense more than most in the Pac-12, especially with the talent in the secondary and the defensive line there.
SEC
START
Shi Smith, WR, South Carolina at Ole Miss
Smith has been a real target machine for the Gamecocks so far, as he already has 43 catches through six games. There hasn't been a breakout game yet, the senior has 479 yards and three touchdowns, but if there was ever a matchup that could lead to a breakout, it's this one. Ole Miss has allowed 40.7 points per game and over 300 yards per contest through the air. Even Vanderbilt threw for 319 yards against Mississippi!
SIT
Larry Rountree, Missouri vs. Georgia
Even with rough games against Alabama and Florida, Georgia has the best defense in the SEC. The Bulldogs have been particularly good against the run game, giving up only 82.8 yards per contest on the ground. That doesn't bode well for Rountree, who is averaging a career-low 4.3 yards per carry to start this year, and he's coming off a rough game against Florida as well (14 carries for 36 yards).
Sun Belt
START
Wesley Kennedy, RB, Georgia Southern vs. Texas State
Kennedy has averaged 6.8 yards per game and scored five touchdowns, but he's only had 44 carries through six games. However, he's been behind J.D. King on the depth chart, as King has 116 carries. King is out for the season with a knee injury, though, which should mean more carries for Kennedy. That bodes well in a matchup against Texas State, who has allowed 190.6 rushing yards per game.
SIT
Kaylon Geiger, WR, Troy vs. Coastal Carolina
Geiger has 41 catches for 523 yards, which is good, but he only has one receiving touchdown. On top of that, Troy's starting quarterback Gunnar Watson is dealing with a rib injury and may not be able to play. That certainly won't help Geiger's upside. Coastal Carolina is undefeated, and it owes a lot of that to its defense. The Chanticleers rank 11th in yards allowed per game.
