This article is part of our FanDuel College Football series.
CFB FanDuel DFS Breakdown for Monday Main Slate
New Year's Day has long been synonymous with college football, and 2024 (welcome to the new year) is no different. Five games are taking place Monday, and for DFS purposes, there's a bit of relief to this slate. That's because among those five games, we have the first two playoff games, the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl. Bowl season is replete with guys in the transfer portal or stars sitting out for NFL Draft preparation. These games? Not so much. So let's see what we have going down Monday to kick off a new year with DFS success.
College Football DFS Tools
- FanDuel Lineup Optimizer
- Matchups Page (Vegas odds, opponent averages, etc.)
- Advanced Lineups Page
- Stats
- Team Trends
- Targets
- Defense vs. Position
- Team Rankings
CFB DFS Plays on FanDuel for Monday, January 1
Quarterback
Bo Nix, Oregon ($12,500) vs. Liberty
Nix wants to play in the Fiesta Bowl, and that is to the benefit of DFS players. He was staggeringly efficient this season, completing 77.2 percent of his passes with 40 touchdowns against a mere three interceptions. With all due respect to Liberty, who earned this spot by being the highest-ranked Group of Five teams, it's a Conference USA squad. The Flames played nobody. Their best win was against New Mexico State in the conference title game. This feels like the easiest matchup, probably comfortably so.
Tanner Mordecai, Wisconsin ($8,300) vs. LSU
Mordecai's first season at Wisconsin, under Luke Fickell and his new conception of the program's offense, didn't go swimmingly. It was a far cry from when he threw for over 30 touchdowns in two campaigns with SMU. However, he's done it in the past, and LSU's defense was porous, especially the secondary. The Tigers ranked 105th in passing yards allowed per attempt.
GPP Play: Deacon Hill, Iowa ($5,800) vs. Tennessee
Hill has the lowest salary of any quarterback expected to start Monday. Hell, he's behind a couple of backups. However, Tennessee allowed 7.4 yards per passing attempt this season and 9.4 over the final three weeks of the season. There are a few great defenses playing Monday, including Iowa's. This is a gamble, obviously. Iowa's passing game is not for the weak of heart. If you want to give it a shot, though, Hill could be a massive steal. If he's even good, you are getting bang for your buck.
Running Back
CJ Baxter, Texas ($7,700) vs. Washington
Baxter, a venerated true freshman, was not expected to have a lead role for the Longhorns. Once Jonathon Brooks went down for the year, though, he was thrust into the limelight. Baxter has clear skills. He ran for 90 yards and a touchdown on only 10 carries against Kansas State. Against Iowa State, he ran 20 times for 117 yards. If the Huskies have a weakness, it's stopping the run, as they ranked 70th in yards per carry.
Jordan James, Oregon ($7,500) vs. Liberty
Backing up Bucky Irving, James averaged 7.1 yards per carry and picked up 11 touchdowns. This is quite the run offense. Will Irving shoulder the load in a bowl game against Liberty? Perhaps James, a true sophomore, will see more work. Even if he doesn't, James has shown he doesn't need a ton of touches to do damage, and Liberty will be stepping up in competition by several levels.
GPP Play: Cade Yacamelli, Wisconsin ($5,300) vs. LSU
With Braelon Allen gone and Chaz Mellusi out for the season, the theory is that Jackson Acker listed as probable after missing the regular-season finale for the Badgers, will be the lead back. However, this is just a theory. It's just as probable that it will be Yacamelli. Yacamelli was just as active as Acker down the stretch, but Acker's salary is $7,000. Why not go with the lower-salaried back against a Tigers defense that ranked 85 in yards allowed per carry. LSU's defense has the worst numbers of any of these teams, so other than Liberty, this is the defense to target.
Wide Receiver
Tez Johnson, Oregon ($9,400) vs. Liberty
The one notable loss of talent for the Ducks for this game is Tony Franklin. The former number-one receiver for Oregon is in NFL Draft prep mode, but Johnson is far from a feeble next-man-up. You won't have to twist Nix's arm to get him to target his adopted brother, and Johnson is no slouch. In a secondary role, he picked up 56 catches for 863 yards and four touchdowns. Now, he steps into the number-one role against the Flames.
Jalen McMillan, Washington ($8,000) vs. Texas
McMillan started the year on fire, and then he injured himself against Michigan State (a game wherein he had four catches for 96 yards, by the way). A talented Washington team with big-picture ambitions was quite careful with McMillan. He didn't see a significant role until the Pac-12 title game against Oregon. There, he had nine catches on 14 targets for 114 yards. Yeah, he's back to full strength, and the restrictions are fully off now that the games really count. Texas ranked 29th in passing yards allowed per attempt. That's not bad, in a vacuum, but six of these 10 teams rank higher, and one of the two that doesn't is Liberty.
GPP Play: Roman Wilson, Michigan ($6,600) vs. Alabama
What if Michigan actually has to throw the ball? I know it feels almost fantastical, but it might happen. The Wolverines may not be able to rely solely on running the ball, something the team has been deeply desirous to do, even against high-level defenses. When Michigan has thrown, though, Wilson has been the primary receiver, and he is a big-play guy. He turned his 41 catches into 662 yards and 11 touchdowns. Wilson averaged 11.6 yards per attempt. If Michigan wins this game, I think Wilson will have a touchdown to his name. Do you believe in the Wolverines against the Tide? Then, believe in Wilson.
