College Football DFS: Friday Picks
Week 3 of the college football season kicks into gear Friday night, and we've got five Power Four teams in action and plenty of exciting players once again.
DraftKings and FanDuel are both up and running Friday night, and below we break down some of the best plays on each slate.
Friday College Football DFS Slate Overview
Vegas tells us that Indiana (53.5) and Syracuse (50.5) are expected to score the most points on the slate, which should come as little surprise considering both programs will line up against FCS schools (Indiana State and Colgate, respectively). Thus, it'll be wise to target players from both the Hoosiers and the Orange, as both programs should be in line for blowouts over their overmatched foes. It's worth noting, however, that the Syracuse game is only available on the DraftKings slate.
As for the games that should be more of a fair fight, Kansas State at Arizona is expected to yield 54.5 points, followed by New Mexico at UCLA (53.5) and Colorado at Houston (44.4). Out of this handful of games, certain aspects of particular defenses look vulnerable through two weeks, which should also help guide your DFS selections. For example, as uninspiring as UCLA's offense has been, it's about to face a Lobos defense that's allowing 28.0 points-per-game along with 258.0 passing yards and 161.0 rushing yards, the latter coming on 5.1 yards per carry.
UCLA, on the other hand, is allowing a whopping 217 yards per
College Football DFS: Friday Picks
Week 3 of the college football season kicks into gear Friday night, and we've got five Power Four teams in action and plenty of exciting players once again.
DraftKings and FanDuel are both up and running Friday night, and below we break down some of the best plays on each slate.
Friday College Football DFS Slate Overview
Vegas tells us that Indiana (53.5) and Syracuse (50.5) are expected to score the most points on the slate, which should come as little surprise considering both programs will line up against FCS schools (Indiana State and Colgate, respectively). Thus, it'll be wise to target players from both the Hoosiers and the Orange, as both programs should be in line for blowouts over their overmatched foes. It's worth noting, however, that the Syracuse game is only available on the DraftKings slate.
As for the games that should be more of a fair fight, Kansas State at Arizona is expected to yield 54.5 points, followed by New Mexico at UCLA (53.5) and Colorado at Houston (44.4). Out of this handful of games, certain aspects of particular defenses look vulnerable through two weeks, which should also help guide your DFS selections. For example, as uninspiring as UCLA's offense has been, it's about to face a Lobos defense that's allowing 28.0 points-per-game along with 258.0 passing yards and 161.0 rushing yards, the latter coming on 5.1 yards per carry.
UCLA, on the other hand, is allowing a whopping 217 yards per game on the ground, so New Mexico's ground game could find some success. Houston, meanwhile, has played two cupcakes in SF Austin and Rice, but the Cougars' offense looks serviceable and now gets to play a Colorado team that's struggled immensely, especially in run defense, allowing an average of 202 yards (5.2 yards per carry) on the ground.
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
DFS Plays on DraftKings and FanDuel for Friday, September 5
QB Noah Fifita, Arizona vs. Kansas State ($7,100 on DraftKings, $9,700 on FanDuel)
Fiftia is way down the quarterback board on both slates. He's the second-cheapest option on FanDuel, and he slides right into the middle price-wise on DraftKings. Still, the Wildcats' gunslinger could be in store for a big performance against Kansas State. Fifita is up to seven total touchdowns through two games, including five last week against Weber State in a game where he also completed over 77 percent of his passes. Friday, he'll line up against a Kansas State defense that's allowed 27.7 points per game and is coming off an upset loss to Army. For the price, you bank on Fifita's talent here against a defense that hasn't shown anything remotely special in 2025.
RB Lee Beebe, Indiana vs. Indiana State ($5,100 on DraftKings, $8,200 on FanDuel)
You're gonna want to get in on Indiana's offense against Indiana State, and the prices on both slates reflect that. But if you're looking for a Hoosier at somewhat of a bargain who could still be in line for a big day, look no further than tailback Lee Beebe. He's off to an excellent start for Indiana, totaling 163 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries (7.4 yards per carry) through two games as the backup halfback. He has 11 carries in each of Indiana's wins against overmatched opponents Old Dominion and Kennesaw State, and there's no reason why his workload shouldn't remain consistent or even expand change here in Week 3. He's only the 8th-most expensive running back on DraftKings, and while he's pricier on FanDuel, he looks like your best bet value-wise on this Hoosiers' offense.
WR Keagan Johnson, New Mexico vs. UCLA ($6,200 on DraftKings, $5,300 on FanDuel)
Johnson looks like a great value play here, especially on the FanDuel slate, where there are 25 wide receivers that are cheaper than him. He got banged up in Week 2, which is why he only tallied one catch for eight yards, but he should be ready to roll against the Bruins, and his stat line should look much closer to the Lobos' opener when he caught seven passes on nine targets (albeit only for 38 yards). Still, this UCLA defense has been atrocious, allowing 36.5 points per game, the most of any team on the slate. That includes 8.7 yards per attempt and 2.5 passing touchdowns allowed per game. Our model expects New Mexico to be able to muster 18.5 points in Pasadena, and Johnson should be a key contributor.
DraftKings College Football DFS Picks for Friday, September 5
QB Conner Weigman, Houston ($6,400) vs. Colorado ($10,400 on FanDuel)
Weigman is quite a bargain on the DraftKings slate as just the 6th-most expensive quarterback out of nine available gunslingers. Meanwhile, he's off to a solid start with five total touchdowns and 409 all-purpose yards while completing over 65 percent of his passes through two games. His early-season stats don't exactly jump off the page at you, but his opponent's defensive stats certainly do. The Buffaloes are currently allowing 30.4 fantasy points per game against quarterbacks, the most in the Big 12. Colorado's defense has been highly questionable, and that should allow Weigman to thrive Friday night. Bottom line: Weigman is one of DraftKings' cheapest options at quarterback, and he's off to a solid start in 2025 and set to play one of the worst defenses on the slate.
RB Dean Connors, Houston ($5,700) vs. Colorado ($9,600 on FanDuel)
Connors is another Cougar who could be a prime beneficiary of a suspect Buffaloes defense Friday night. He's the 5th-most expensive option on DraftKings while checking in as the second-priciest tailback on FanDuel. Colorado gives up a lot of fantasy points to quarterbacks, but its run defense has also been extremely porous. The Buffaloes are allowing 202 yards per game on the ground at a clip of 5.2 yards per carry, tied for the highest of any defense on this slate. Connors, meanwhile, has tallied 182 yards and two scores on 6.2 yards per carry through two games. He also has four catches and should be a lock to touch the ball around 15 times at least. His value, or projected fantasy points per $1,000, sits at 2.33, the highest for any tailback on the DraftKings slate.
WR Treyvhon Saunders, Colgate ($5,100) vs. Syracuse (N/A on FanDuel)
FanDuel doesn't feature the Syracuse versus Colgate contest, but this could be a super sneaky play on the DraftKings side of things. Usually, it wouldn't be all that wise to bank on an FCS receiver ahead of what should be a bloodbath against a Power Four team. However, Colgate could lose by a significant margin, and Saunders could still feast. The senior wideout has 23 catches for 363 yards and three touchdowns through two games as the focal point of Colgate's passing attack. Meanwhile, Syracuse's pass defense hasn't been anything to write home about, allowing 265 yards per game and 2.0 touchdowns. Furthermore, Syracuse has allowed 24.0 fantasy points per game to wide receivers, one of the worst marks in the ACC. Colgate should be playing catch-up all game, and that bodes well for Saunders, too, as they'll likely air it out while chasing points all night.
Also Consider: 
RB Will Nixon, Syracuse ($4,600) vs. Colgate (N/A on FanDuel)
FanDuel College Football DFS Picks for Friday, September 5
QB Nico Iamaleava, UCLA ($9,800) vs. New Mexico ($7,800 on DraftKings)
It's been an inauspicious start to UCLA's season, and the quarterback Iamaleava certainly deserves some of the blame. Still, it's hard to pass up on him on the FanDuel slate when he's the 4th-cheapest quarterback out of six options and he's playing a New Mexico defense that's allowing 258 yards per game through the air. Iamaleava has definitely gotten off to a slow start, but he looked better in Week 2 against UNLV despite the loss, completing over 70 percent of his passes for 255 yards and two total touchdowns. With the second-best value of any quarterback on this slate, Iamaleava is a no-brainer here.
RB Scottre Humphrey, New Mexico ($7,400) vs. UCLA ($6,400 on DraftKings)
Humphrey has the second-best value of any tailback on the FanDuel slate, as he's just the 8th-priciest. Still, he's set up for success this Friday as the Lobos face the most permeable run defense on the slate in UCLA, which allows a staggering 217 yards per game on the ground, 5.0 yards per carry and 2.5 touchdowns per game on the ground as well. UCLA is also allowing the most fantasy points per game (21.9) to running backs out of any team in the Big Ten. Humphrey, meanwhile, is off to a great start, logging 174 yards and two scores on 6.2 yards per carry (28 carries).
WR Kwazi Gilmer, UCLA ($7,500) vs. New Mexico ($7,000 on DraftKings)
I like Gilmer here for many of the same reasons I like Iamaleava. The FanDuel slate lets you get in on the UCLA passing game for relatively cheap (Gilmer is just the 8th-most expensive receiver while boasting the second-highest value). He's been one of Iamaleava's favorite receivers through two weeks with 17 targets, and last week he posted eight grabs for 87 yards in the loss.
