College Football DFS Picks: Thursday Slate Plays on DraftKings and FanDuel for Week 3

Week 3 begins with a two-game slate on Thursday. The action starts at 4:30 p.m. ET with a potential blowout game and another contest featuring a re-imagined Navy squad.

Slate Overview

Memphis (-14.5) vs. Navy O/U: 47.5

Miami (N/A) vs. Bethune-Cookman O/U: N/A

We have no current odds available for the second game, but the Army-Memphis contest is an interesting match to consider. Long considered a run-first offense, the Midshipmen are passing the ball quite often under new leadership. Although Notre Dame blew them out, they threw for 161 yards in a shutout win against Wagner, a stat that's unheard of from Navy. They will be a stronger foe for Memphis, who's yet to be tested this season.

Weather

Bethune-Cookman @ Miami - 60 percent chance of rain

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CFB Thursday Night Slate Plays

Quarterback

Seth Henigan, Memphis (DK $7,700, FD $10,800) vs. Navy

Due to the blowout scenario for Tyler Van Dyke, I will fade the Miami quarterback in favor of Henigan, who will have to do a lot more to stay on top of Navy. The Tigers haven't played anyone of note yet, so I'm looking at the body of work over what's happened recently. Henigan has enjoyed two solid seasons with Memphis, compiling 6,893 yards, 47 touchdowns and eight interceptions over that span while also adding five touchdowns on the ground. Based on those numbers, I'll take four quarters of Henigan over what will likely be only three quarters of Van Dyke.

Tai Lavatai, Navy (DK $6,600, FD $7,100) @ Memphis

The salary points for Lavatai are excellent on both sites, and he's a unique option that would be probably be overlooked on larger slates. He'll be played liberally in this spot, as I think the Van Dyke fade may prove to be a popular call, but it may be a spot where people want to go for a different position in the Superflex slot. While the Midshipmen are on pace to have their best passing numbers in decades, keeping things in perspective is essential. Lavatai is still a run-first quarterback. The numbers seem a little low on that end, but we need to consider that he played in a blowout loss to Notre Dame. I suspect he'll run the ball 14-16 times in this game. Memphis' defensive front is a bit depleted from last season, and while they've looked good against lesser competition, they've yet to meet a true dual threat like Lavatai.

Running Back

Henry Parrish, Miami (DK $7,800, FD $8,000) vs. Bethune Cookman

It's natural to hammer the rushers against weak competition, and Parrish is clearly the lead back in this scenario. I suspect we will see other talents emerge as the game gets out of hand, however. Parriah will be dependable for the first half and could end up with the best stat line, but Ajay Allen (DK $4,700, FD $5,800) and Donald Chaney (DK $4,600, FD $6,200) will also emerge as the game progresses. Given his upper-body injury, I see no need for the Hurricanes to use Mark Fletcher right now given his upper-body injury. The team will likely give him another week to rest.

Daba Fofana, Navy (DK $5,400, FD $6,500) @ Memphis

You can count on Navy to run the ball, and Fofana comes in with some favorable pricing on both sites. The problem here is that there are any number of Midshipmen who will receive touches in this game, and they have received equal time. Beyond Fofana, I would probably pivot to Brandon Chatman (DK $5,200, FD $5,400) next.

Blake Watson, Memphis (DK $6,300, FD $10,000) vs. Navy

Watson is a lock for DraftKings at this salary, and while I believe the number on FaDuel is a little high, he's worth the investment, given the other options in this slate. He's easily the most proven back in the pool, with 2,028 yards and 13 touchdowns over his first two years with Old Dominion, and he's had equal success so far in Memphis. Granted, the competition has been incredibly soft, but Watson is used to defenses of Navy's caliber. 

Wide Receiver

Joseph Scates, Memphis (DK $5,000, FD $7,800) vs. Navy

I'm picking Scates over the other Memphis receivers, although we shouldn't discount the rest of the group. Scatess missed Week 1 but seemed to bounce back in Week 2 and is past the injury that dated back to last season. While Scates is more of a deep-threat receiver, Roc Taylor (DK $5,200, FD $6,200) is someone to target as a possession guy on DraftKings due to the full-point PPR on that site. DeMeer Blankumsee (DK $5,500, FD $7,000) fits a similar role.

Miami receivers (various) vs. Bethune-Cookman

I faded Van Dyke out of caution, but I want to have a piece of this passing offense. My current strategy is to take one starter (Jacolby George, Xavier Restrepo or Colbie Young) and pair him with someone like Tyler Harrell or freshman Isaiah Horton. I am fine with taking only starters on DraftKings, but George and Young are pretty expensive on FanDuel and will be tough to grab if I am going elite across the board with other picks.