College Football Daily Fantasy Helper: Friday 9/2/22

College Football is back and FanDuel's college football DFS main slate on Friday includes six games.

In case you're unfamiliar with how it works, you can check out the rules and scoring on FanDuel, where you can hit the lobby each week to see the full array of slates and contests being offered.

As for the basics, your roster consists of a quarterback slot, two running backs, three wide receivers (which also includes tight ends), and one "Super FLEX". In the Super FLEX spot, you can insert one player from any position, including quarterbacks.

Here, our goal is to help you field a roster full of fantasy goodness, and in true numberFire fashion, we'll use our DFS projections, game projections, and market share report to tackle as many slates as possible in the lead-up to the College Football Playoff. In this piece, we are breaking down Friday's main slate, which locks at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Let's look at which players are in great spots as well as identify some players with low salaries who will allow you to roster the high-salary players.

Quarterbacks

Payton Thorne, Michigan State ($11,500) – The quarterback options on Friday night aren't as plentiful as last night. Thorne offers a safe floor as a dual-threat quarterback. The matchup with the Western Michigan Broncos is appealing as well. Thorne accounted for 14 total touchdowns in non-conference games last season. Meanwhile, Western Michigan surrendered 46 total touchdowns in 13 games last season.

Taylor Powell, Eastern Michigan ($8,700) – After stints at Missouri and Troy, Powell will finish his collegiate career at Eastern Michigan. The senior quarterback is a prototypical pocket passer. Powell saw action in six games last season while at Troy. Over those six games, he averaged 208.5 passing yards per game. I like the former SEC quarterback's chance at having success in his Eagles' debut. He catches an FCS opponent, the Eastern Kentucky Colonels. Eastern Kentucky allowed an average of 25.0 points per game last season.

Parker McKinney, Eastern Kentucky ($7,500) – The Colonels are not afraid to air it out. McKinney attempted at least 40 passes in four out of his final five games last season. He is also a major threat as a runner. The junior racked up 596 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns on 97 carries a season ago (10 games). The matchup with Eastern Michigan could very well break the scoreboard. Eastern Michigan was atrocious defensively in 2021. The Eagles allowed 435.5 yards per game to opposing offenses (107th nationally). McKinney makes for a fantastic source of salary relief at quarterback.

I like Max Duggan ($8,200) as a tournament play if he gets the start at quarterback. His ceiling is enormous as a dual-threat quarterback for the Texas Christian Horned Frogs. He is listed as a co-starter on the season-opening depth chart.

Others to Consider: Grant Wells ($10,000), Riley Leonard ($9,000), D'Wan Mathis ($6,600).

Running Backs

Chase Brown, Illinois ($9,500) – The versatile running back exploded in the season opener for 151 rushing yards, 16 receiving yards, and 3 total touchdowns. Brown handled nearly all the carries while the game was competitive. He also led the team by playing 30 out of 40 passing snaps. He will be very popular because he is a high-floor and high-ceiling play.

Jarek Broussard, Michigan State ($9,000) – Despite losing Kenneth Walker, the Spartans reloaded at running back with Broussard and Wisconsin transfer Jalen Berger ($8,000). Broussard, a transfer from Colorado, was the team's top playmaker last season. He's in a good spot to start his 2022 campaign. The Spartans should be able to take advantage of Western Michigan's run defense. The Broncos allowed an average of 4.43 yards per carry a season ago. Berger is also a solid play.

Keshawn King, Virginia Tech ($5,700) – Malachi Thomas is out, and Jalen Holston is a game-time decision. If Holston misses, King could start at running back. The former four-star recruit has played sparingly over the last two years. He did manage to tally 340 rushing yards and 154 receiving yards in a limited role last season. King is under-salaried for his role especially if Holston is out.

Others to Consider: Jaylen Coleman ($8,800), Samson Evans ($8,400), Alex Fontenot ($7,800), Kendre Miller ($7,300), Blake Watson ($7,100), Braedon Sloan ($5,100).

Wide Receivers

Quentin Johnston, TCU ($9,500) – The physically imposing pass catcher emerged late in the 2021 season. Johnston recorded three 100-plus receiving yard games over his final five games. He'll square off with a Colorado Buffaloes squad that ranked 90th in passing yards allowed per game last season (242.3). I like his chances of getting past the Colorado secondary on Friday night. Johnston had an eye-opening 18.7 ADOT (average depth of target) a season ago.

Dylan Drummond, Eastern Michigan ($7,700) – The Eagles return their top three pass catchers from 2021. I have a feeling Drummond will be the least popular of the three; Hassan Beydoun ($8,900) and Tanner Knue ($8,400) are the others. He also carries the lowest salary of the trio despite posting the highest ADOT (12.1). They're all viable plays.

Ali Jennings III, Old Dominion ($6,600) – Jennings III is coming off a breakout season for the Old Dominion Monarchs. The sophomore racked up 62 receptions, 1,066 receiving yards, and 5 touchdowns in 2021. He recorded at least four receptions in each of the final seven games. The matchup with the Virginia Tech Hokies isn't ideal, but he does have an appealing total receiving yards prop in the FanDuel Sportsbook which is set at 75.5 yards. Jennings III is a good source of salary relief.

Others to Consider: Jayden Reed ($9,400), Jalon Calhoun ($8,200), Corey Crooms ($7,200), Tre Mosley ($6,700), Jayden Higgins ($6,600), Isaiah Williams ($6,400), Adonicas Sanders ($6,000)