Week 1 of College Football concludes with a multi-layered Saturday night slate for your DFS enjoyment.
As usual, when we cover both sites in the same article, discrepancies appear between the two slates. We will focus on the four games shared by DraftKings and FanDuel, and then move to DraftKings and FanDuel outlier games, where I suspect we'll find some critical site-specific value.
CFB Week 1 Night Slate Overview for Saturday, September 5
Also: Memphis (10.5) vs. Arkansas State O/U: 52.5
All of tonight's spreads are in the double digits, with Clemson coming in as the underdog with the lowest spread. If you played on Thursday or Friday, you already know how difficult these lopsided slates can be, and while I doubt we'll see a Massachusetts-esque surprise in the group, some of these underdog offenses could pop for some production in the second half, if not sooner. It's also important to recognize which coaches like to run it up and who will empty the bench the earliest. If LSU gets a big lead, I doubt Lane Kiffin will take his foot off the gas, and the same could be true for Jon Sumrall at Florida and Pete Golding at Ole Miss. Also, DraftKings has a potential slate-breaker game between Sam Houston and Troy, so we'll learn a bit more about these teams before we settle on a DraftKings roster.
Week 1 Saturday Night Weather Report
MSST/TA&M - slight chance of rain
SHST/TROY - slight chance of rain
FIU/USF - slight
Week 1 of College Football concludes with a multi-layered Saturday night slate for your DFS enjoyment.
As usual, when we cover both sites in the same article, discrepancies appear between the two slates. We will focus on the four games shared by DraftKings and FanDuel, and then move to DraftKings and FanDuel outlier games, where I suspect we'll find some critical site-specific value.
CFB Week 1 Night Slate Overview for Saturday, September 5
Also: Memphis (10.5) vs. Arkansas State O/U: 52.5
All of tonight's spreads are in the double digits, with Clemson coming in as the underdog with the lowest spread. If you played on Thursday or Friday, you already know how difficult these lopsided slates can be, and while I doubt we'll see a Massachusetts-esque surprise in the group, some of these underdog offenses could pop for some production in the second half, if not sooner. It's also important to recognize which coaches like to run it up and who will empty the bench the earliest. If LSU gets a big lead, I doubt Lane Kiffin will take his foot off the gas, and the same could be true for Jon Sumrall at Florida and Pete Golding at Ole Miss. Also, DraftKings has a potential slate-breaker game between Sam Houston and Troy, so we'll learn a bit more about these teams before we settle on a DraftKings roster.
Week 1 Saturday Night Weather Report
MSST/TA&M - slight chance of rain
SHST/TROY - slight chance of rain
FIU/USF - slight chance of rain
CLEM/LSU - 60 percent chance of rain
I hammered the Under for the battle in Death Valley over in the College Capper, and I'm not wavering from that idea. The weather report only firms up my belief that we'll see less DFS production than we expect.
CFB DFS Tools
- DraftKings College Football Optimizer
- FanDuel College Football Optimizer
- Weekly CFB Matchup Info
- CFB Targets
- CFB Stats
- CFB Team Trends
- CFB Advanced Team Stats with Plays per Game, Pass %, Run % and more
College Football DFS Week 1 Night Picks for Saturday, September 5
Quarterback
Bryce Underwood, 
Michigan (DK $8,100, FD $10,200)vs. Western Michigan
While Underwood's tendency for picks kept him off the docket for me often last season, it appears that he's put a lot of work in during the offseason and has a good grasp of Kyle Whittingham's newly installed offense, curated by his Utah OC, Jason Beck. Michigan's Big 10 outlook seems bright overall, and this will be a good opportunity to flex some muscle against Western Michigan. While he may not play all four quarters, Whittingham will want Underwood to get max reps as he gets familiar with the new offense at game speed.
Aaron Philo, 
Florida (DK $8,500, FD $10,000) vs. FIU
One fact sticks out when researching Florida's new signal-caller, and it's the installation of Buster Faulkner as the team's new OC. Faulkner was Philo's OC at Georgia Tech, so he's very familiar with the scheme he's about to run. He also has an excellent running back in Jaden Baugh, who is the cornerstone of Faulkner's system. We have very little hard data on Philo beyond a few limited appearances, but I would argue the talent around him is markedly better than his previous team.
Running Back
Jadan Baugh, Florida (DK $8,700, FD $10,100) vs. FAU
No need to get cute here. Baugh is the best running back option on the shared slate, and I have faith that Faulkner's offensive scheme will reap huge benefits in his junior season. Baugh ran for 1,170 yards and eight touchdowns last season and also distinguished himself as a productive pass catcher with 33 catches. Granted, these are three big spends in a row, meaning this route will force us to get cute with receivers - so be it.
Gideon Davidson, 
Clemson (DK $5,200, FD $6,500) @ LSU
While I predict this game will be a messy defensive battle, Clemson has made it clear that Davidson is the top back, and it's easy to forget that the Tigers are a run-first team at its core. Gone are the glory days of Wide Receiver U, and Christopher Vizzina will need solid run support to unlock the pass against LSU. The dollar amounts for him are just too good to pass up, and although there's a stacked room just behind him, I'll trust what Dabo is saying about the snap share.
Also, it goes without saying that Michigan's Jordan Marshall (DK $8,500, FD $9,300) is an elite play. His overall usage in the lopsided game concerns me, but it's hard to go wrong with him.
Wide Receiver
The issue with stacking a Gator with Philo is the number of targets at his disposal. I could argue for Eric Singleton (DK $5,900, FD $8,100) given his history with Faulkner, but Vernell Brown (DK $5,400, FD $6,500) is returning to Gainesville after a spectacular freshman campaign and shouldn't be ignored. They are my top two options for stacking.
Andrew Marsh, Michigan (DK $4,800, FD $7,800) vs. Western Michigan
Marsh reunites with Underwood for another productive season. He's well-priced and is Underwood's top target by a wide margin. The team may not need to lean on the pass, but they'll need reps in the new offense.
DraftKings-Only Targets
Troy vs. 
Sam Houston State
This overlooked contest should generate a lot of points. The best target from this contest is probably a toss-up between Sam Houston RB Landan Brown ($5,700) and promising 6-3 Troy wideout Howard Kinchen ($5,400).
Mississippi State vs. 
Louisiana-Monroe
Kamario Taylor ($8,800) is a great dual-threat quarterback for Mississippi State, and Bulldog Fluff Bothwell ($8,200) is another standout on the squad. The only target for UL-Monroe that interests me is WR Nic Trujillo ($4,000).
South Florida vs. 
Florida International
It's hard to figure out South Florida after Auburn poached its coach and 11 offensive players. Dartmouth transfer D.J. Crowther ($6,100) seems to have separated himself as a key offensive weapon for the Bulls, but that's all I see worth mentioning. FIU has an upset on its mind, and they're ushering out App State transfer JJ Kohl, ($6,300), who had a great 2025 season. He'll look to find a connection with Greg Gaines ($4,900), who projects as the team's top wideout.
FanDuel-Only Targets
Memphis vs. 
Arkansas State
Memphis QB Marcus Stokes ($9,700) put together a solid game against UNLV, and he ranks as my favorite outlier candidate among the site-specific games. Also, RB Jaylin Carter ($7,400) neared the century mark in the opener.
