Each week, the CFG staff will outline a few college fantasy football players to start and sit at each position.  We conclude the series with a look at wide receivers and tight ends.

Week 1 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Series
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers / Tight Ends

 

WIDE RECEIVERS & TIGHT ENDS - WEEK 1


Todd DeVries
Since my partners in crime below went heavy on the BCS players, I’ll try to give my segment a non-BCS flavor (slim pickings since many small schools played on Thursday night).

Start ‘Em (non-BCS)

WR Phillip LIvas, La Tech (vs. Grambling)
Livas figures to be one of the key cogs in the new high-octane Bulldog passing game.  The guy is Dexter McCluster-ish as he is a threat in the backfield and returning kicks.  He is said to be healthy and ready to roll.  I expect him to be too much for Grambling to handle.

WR Kris Adams, UTEP (vs. Arkansas Pine-Bluff)
With Donald Buckram unlikely to play much due to an injury, I think Adams steps up and finds the endzone in this mismatch.  The guy has skills as evidenced by his 50-958-14 statline from 2008.

TE Justin Jones, East Carolina (vs. Tulsa)
Jones is a receiver playing the tight end position.  He had a great spring and fall camp, and I think it will carry over to the opener.  Note: Jones has publicly praised Dominique Davis for the QB position.  If Davis winds up starting, I like Jones even more.


Sit ‘Em (non-BCS)

WR Eric Page, Toledo (vs. Arizona)
I wouldn't feel comfortable putting Page in my lineup this week against a decent defense like Arizona.  Unless you are thin at WR this week, give him a rest.

WR Philip Payne, UNLV (at Wisconsin)
Not feeling the match up here for obvious reasons.  Payne is a redzone threat but I'm just not sure how many times the Rebels will visit the redzone in this one.

TE Vance McDonald, Rice (vs. Texas)
It would be surprising to me if Rice was able to score more than one TD against the Longhorns.  This is an obvious sit this week.



Joe Arpasi

Start ‘Em

WR - T.J. Moe, Missouri (@ Illinois)
The most consistent part of the Missouri WR core this fall has been T.J. Moe. His play has been so impressive that Jerell Jackson has been moved from Moe’s current position to playing an outside WR. You can expect to see Moe heavily involved in the gameplan in a game that should be competitive for a full four quarters.

WR - Tracy Moore, Oklahoma State (vs. Washington State)
Any of us Pac-10 guys will tell you that playing any good fantasy prospect against Washington State is a winning fantasy strategy. Moore looks to become Oklahoma’s version of James Cleveland (Houston). Even if Hunter is eating up a good chunk of the offensive production, Moore’s big frame makes him a top notch redone target for QB Brandon Weeden.

TE - Joe Halahuni, Oregon State (@ TCU)
When it comes to finding a good TE, the key is to look for a tough match-up. TE’s see a larger workload in tough games a defenses plan to stop the receivers on the outside. The TCU defense will not give QB Katz much time to throw. So when he doesn’t have enough time to get the ball outside to James Rodgers, Katz should end up using Halahuni as a dump option.

Sit ‘Em

WR - Darvin Adams, Auburn (vs. Arkansas State)
My gut says that Auburn may only do minimum damage in the air in this blowout. The coaches like to run, and Arkansas State doesn’t provide much resistance on the ground. Adams will need to bust several long receptions (most likely due to broken tackles) in order for him to have a 15 fantasy point performance.

WR - Kendal Wright, Baylor (vs. Sam Houston State)
Same story, different setting. Baylor should have plenty of room to run on the ground. If they do throw you can expect to see Robert Griffin evenly distribute the ball to his passing targets. Its just unlikely that Griffin will lean on Wright the same way he will when Baylor faces a tougher foe.

TE - D.J. Williams, Arkansas (vs. Tennessee Tech)
Arkansas should put up plenty of points in this one. But the ground game will steal many of those scoring opportunities. With a smaller amount of passing TD opportunities, the talent at WR should dominate the receiving production. Just don’t expect much out of Williams if you are forced to start him.

Kevin Mount

Start 'Em (BCS-only)

WR Ryan Whalen, Stanford (vs. Sacramento State)
His value should go up for the first week with fellow starter Chris Owusu out of the lineup. He should get his numbers early in this contest and then take a seat on the bench with the rest of the Cardinal starters. Should be easy pickings for Whalen in this one.

WR Detron Lewis, Texas Tech (vs. SMU)
Lewis seems to be the forgotten man in Lubbock, but that might change with Alex Torres having back issues. The match up with SMU should be very fantasy friendly and Lewis should be an integral part of it. He should be able to grab a couple of long passes on Sunday.

TE Michael Egnew, Missouri (vs. Illinois)
Egnew looks to be the top TE for the Tigers and could see a bunch of balls thrown his way against a weak Illini secondary. Missouri has a history of producing quality producers from the TE position, and Egnew could be the next in line. He could easily find the end zone against Illinois this week.

Sit Em (BCS-only)

WR Greg Childs, Arkansas (vs. Tennessee Tech)
While he will probably have one deep TD reception, I don’t expect huge numbers out of Childs as he probably won’t play too much and the receptions could be distributed amongst many targets.

WR James Rodgers, Oregon State (vs. TCU)
Basically the same logic applies here that does with his brother, Quizzy Rodgers. While they are both electric playmakers, I think they might find it really tough sledding against TCU.

TE Kyle Rudolph, Notre Dame (vs. Purdue)
Normally he would be a top-notch option for this week, but the nagging hamstring injury has me very concerned about his productivity the first week. I’m not sure how much explosion or speed he will have with a bum hammy. Might want to look elsewhere this week.