CFB Start vs. Sit: Players to Start, Players to Bench for Week 2

It's Week 2, which means we have now seen every FBS team play once, and in some cases twice. Shoutout to the New Mexico State Aggies! That means looking at numbers from this yield is an act of the "It's just one game, but…" variety. Some might assert such conclusions would be overreactions. However, there is so much turnover now. Turnover on coaching staffs, turnover on rosters, you name it. Last season can tell us some, and 2024 can tell us a bit, but what happened in Week 1 (and Week 0) feels just as relevant in modern college football. With that in mind, here are my players to start and to sit for Week 2 of the college football campaign.

AAC Starts and Sits

START

 Braylon McReynolds, RB, UAB vs. ULM

McReynolds and Roderick Robinson split touches pretty evenly in UAB's opener, with McReynolds tallying 56 yards on the ground and 25 through the air. I like him in this matchup because McReynolds had 637 yards and three touchdowns on the ground last year for Louisiana-Monroe. This is a chance for the back to face his former team, and ULM allowed 345 yards and four touchdowns on the ground to Mississippi State in Week 1.

SIT

 Keveun Mason, RB, Temple vs. Penn State

Mason is likely in for some whiplash in Week 2. He opened the season with 158 yards and two touchdowns, but that was against Rhode Island. Now, he has to face Penn State, which just blanked Marshall. Plus, if Sam Brown returns from injury for this game, Mason may end up with fewer carries than he had against Rhode Island.

ACC Starts and Sits

START

 Gio Lopez, QB, Wake Forest at Purdue

Lopez was productive at South Alabama, earning him a spot with an ACC team…North Carolina. He got caught up in the turmoil of Bill Belichick's first season and left for another school in the state, Wake Forest. Lopez's debut as a Demon Deacon was against Akron, but he threw for 350 yards and three touchdowns and added 39 yards on the ground. Purdue has been horrendous the last couple of seasons. In its 2026 opener, it beat Indiana State with ease, but an FCS team scored 19 points, and Indiana State QB Elijah Owens ran 11 times for 60 yards.

SIT

 Jordan Allen, WR, Georgia Tech vs. Tennessee

Allen was the top target for Georgia Tech in Week 1, catching eight passes for 113 yards, though he also fumbled twice, losing one. In terms of track record, though, as a true freshman in 2025, he had all of 22 catches for 320 yards. There are a lot of easy opponents, specifically FCS teams, on the docket for ACC teams in Week 2. Allen and company are facing a ranked SEC team that didn't allow a touchdown in Week 1 until the fourth quarter, when it was up 49-3 on Furman.

Big Ten Starts and Sits

START

 Mekhi Nelson, RB, Nebraska vs. Bowling Green

Everybody loves a flashy freshman, so Jamal Rule's performance against Ohio turned heads. However, don't overlook Nelson. He turned 10 carries into 64 yards and a touchdown and had two catches for 65 yards and a score in that game as well. The Cornhuskers play another MAC team in Week 2, and Bowling Green just lost to FCS squad Tarleton State.

SIT

 Jordan Marshall, RB, Michigan vs. Oklahoma

The arrow is as down on Michigan as any team after Week 1, especially the Michigan offense. Marshall almost got to 1,000 yards last year, but he had 44 yards on 11 carries against Western Michigan, and how much room is he going to have to work with if Oklahoma doesn't have to worry about the passing game for the Wolverines? The Sooners, by the way, pitched a shutout in Week 1.

Big 12 Starts and Sits

START

 Braden Pegan, WR, Utah vs. Arkansas

The Big 12 is feasting on FCS teams in Week 2, and I do try to avoid recommending starts in those matchups when I can. Utah is facing an SEC team, sure, but one that had a bad defense by SEC standards in 2025, and it didn't shut down North Alabama in Week 1 per se. Pegan swapped Utah State for Utah, and in his debut with his new program, he had four catches for 81 yards and a touchdown and added a rushing score. He managed 926 yards with the Aggies last year, including seven catches for 66 yards and a touchdown against Vanderbilt.

SIT

 Jaylen Raynor, QB, Iowa State at Iowa

You start players from the annual Cyclones-Hawkeyes game at your own peril. Raynor has plenty of experience starting at the collegiate level, but for Arkansas State. He totaled four touchdowns in his Iowa State debut, but it was against Southeast Missouri. A trip to face Iowa is something the quarterback has never faced. I don't want to trust him to handle it with flying colors, do you?

Conference USA Starts and Sits

START

 Roman Gagliano, QB, Middle Tennessee State at Marshall

Gagliano turned MTSU's season around in 2025 after taking over under center as a redshirt freshman, and the 2026 season started off just fine. He went 20-for-26 for 200 yards and two touchdowns and added 25 yards and a score on the ground. Marshall was shut out by Penn State in Week 1, but it also allowed six touchdowns, and even Penn State's backup QB Alex Manske went 6-for-8 for 57 yards.

SIT

 Sean Wilson, WR, Delaware at Vanderbilt

Things will be fine for Wilson. They were fine last season when he had 68 catches for 877 yards, and they were fine against Merrimack when he had six catches for 73 yards. In Week 2, though, Wilson is visiting an SEC team. He'll be facing an SEC defense that only allowed nine points in Week 1. Keep Wilson in mind, but keep him on the back burner in Week 2.

MAC Starts and Sits

START

 Elijah Faulkner, RB, Massachusetts vs. Sacred Heart

There is basically no avoiding recommending a MAC player facing an FCS team in Week 2. Massachusetts is now a MAC team, and though it has a lengthy history of football futility, it scored an upset over Rutgers in Week 1. Faulkner was the hero, and the workhorse. He had 19 carries for 62 yards and had two catches for 23 yards and two scores. If he is the focal point against Sacred Heart, the matchup is decidedly easier.

SIT

 Austyn Dendy, RB, Bowling Green at Nebraska

I'm going back to this matchup, this time with Nebraska being the defense to avoid. Dendy wasn't the issue for Bowling Green in its loss to Tarleton State, as he had 60 yards and a touchdown. Nebraska will be tougher, though. Yes, Ohio scored 21 points against the Cornhuskers, but compared to a bunch of FCS opponents, Dendy is visiting a Big Ten opponent.

Mountain West Starts and Sits

START

 Jai'Den Thomas, RB, UNLV at North Texas

UNLV is one of the teams that have already played two games. Thomas has been front and center in both games, and he has 187 rushing yards and 52 receiving yards. He also had over 1,000 yards and double-digit touchdowns in 2025. North Texas had a terrible run defense in 2025, and its performance against Indiana in Week 1 did not alleviate any concerns.

SIT

 DJ Scott, RB, North Dakota State at Air Force

NDSU has also played two games, and Scott has 111 rushing yards and two touchdowns. However, 60 of those yards and both of those touchdowns came against Fordham, an FCS team. This is the Bison's first road game as an FBS team, and Air Force shut out Duquesne in its first game.

Pac-12 Starts and Sits

START

 Chris Dawn, WR, Texas State vs. UTSA

This isn't so much about Dawn's numbers in Week 1. He had four catches for 40 yards, but on the road against Texas. Dawn was also targeted eight times, which indicates the hope was to get him the ball plenty in an uphill battle. He did have 65 catches for 1,007 yards last season as well. It's too be determined what UTSA is, as it beat UT Rio Grande Valley 45-16 in its opener, but now it is on the road facing an FBS opponent.

SIT

 Eli Wood, WR, Utah State at Washington

Keep Wood logged away somewhere. The Virginia transfer was targeted 11 times against Idaho State in his Utah State debut, and he had six catches for 90 yards and a touchdown. However, this week he has to visit Washington, which absolutely shut down Washington State's offense in a Week 1 Apple Cup, and it didn't allow a single passing touchdown.

SEC Starts and Sits

START

 Nate Frazier, RB, Georgia vs. Western Kentucky

Frazier only touched the ball four times against Tennessee State. He had 72 yards and three touchdowns. An easy opponent, you say? Absolutely, but Western Kentucky was smashed for 49 points by Nevada in Week 1, so it may not be all that much tougher for Frazier, and he's likely to touch the ball more times than one can count on one hand as well.

SIT

 Cam Coleman, WR, Texas vs. Ohio State

Coleman had 70 yards and two touchdowns in his Texas debut, but only three catches on four targets. Sure, that may have been about an easy game against Texas State unfolding, but Ryan Wingo had seven catches on eight targets. Maybe Coleman isn't going to be the top receiver for the Longhorns, at least not yet. Either way, Texas versus Ohio State is an eye-catching matchup for viewers, but both defenses are much too talented to risk starting guys you don't have to.

Sun Belt Starts and Sits

START

Trey Owens, QB, Arkansas State vs. West Georgia

I am recommending a player facing an FCS school, but he's also a guy who threw four picks last week, so I think that balances things out. Four picks in one game is either incompetence of bad luck. Owens went 21-for-30 with 325 yards and a touchdown to go with those interceptions, and he ran seven times for 33 yards. He was also on the road against Memphis. Now Owens gets to face West Georgia, a bad team by FCS standards. The Wolves have lost 47-0 to Kennesaw State and 24-10 to Chattanooga.

SIT

 Steven Robinson, RB, Southern Miss at Auburn

Robinson had 23 carries for 123 yards and three touchdowns in Week 1, but that was against Alcorn State. Auburn's offense has questions, but the defense seems stronger. On a neutral field, it held Baylor to 16 points, and Baylor's top back, Dawson Pendergrass, only managed 88 yards on 25 carries.