College Fantasy Football: Week 7 in review

Colorado’s Laviska Shenault has emerged as the highest-scoring receiver so far this season in fantasy leagues with 60 catches for 780 yards and six touchdowns and he’s also rushed for five scores. Shenault has entered the Heisman Trophy talk even if that’s probably far-fetched but things might slow down for him at least in the short term. The Colorado receiver was sidelined in the fourth quarter of the Buffaloes’ loss to USC this past weekend with a toe injury. He’s listed as questionable this week against Washington and even if he plays the Huskies’ defense is a tough matchup. Washington is giving up just 178 passing yards per outing and has allowed just five passing scores all season.

GRAB PURDY NOW

Iowa State is entering its bye week but this would still be a smart time to grab quarterback Brock Purdy, who is currently owned in only two percent of leagues, especially after his back-to-back performances in wins over Oklahoma State and West Virginia. Purdy has been one of the biggest surprises in October so far and could be a steal for the rest of this fantasy season. He threw for 318 yards with four touchdowns and a pick and added 84 rushing yards and a score in the win over the Cowboys. In Iowa State’s stunner over the Mountaineers, Purdy had 254 passing yards and three TD passes. The Cyclones are off this week but then have Texas Tech, Kansas and Baylor, all teams that Iowa State should be able to score against especially with Purdy in charge.

TIME TO DROP OKLAHOMA STATE PLAYERS?

Oklahoma State quarterback Taylor Cornelius had 184 passing yards and two interceptions in the loss to Kansas State over the weekend. Running back Justice Hill finished with 11 carries for 41 yards. Leading receiver Tylan Wallace had five catches for 90 yards. That was a disappointing showing for Oklahoma State’s top skill players and now the real difficult stretch starts for the Cowboys after a bye week. They host a tough Texas team, followed by trips to Baylor and Oklahoma before finishing against West Virginia and TCU. All those teams have pretty strong defenses and Oklahoma State does not look like it’s clicking on offense. It might be time to use the bye week to look for other players who are producing.

GRAB BUCKEYE RECEIVERS

Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins is owned in 96 percent of leagues and is the second-highest scorer in fantasy football behind only Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray. He’s thrown for 2,331 yards and 28 touchdowns and is a Heisman Trophy front-runner. But for some reason, Ohio State’s receivers are still under-owned in fantasy leagues. Leading receiver Parris Campbell, who has 43 catches for 557 yards and seven touchdowns is at 45 percent ownership. K.J. Hill, who had nine catches for 187 yards and two scores against Minnesota over the weekend, is owned in only five percent of leagues. And Terry McLaurin, who has seven touchdown receptions and averages nearly 21 yards per catch, is owned in four percent of leagues. Lots of fantasy owners have jumped on Haskins but Ohio State’s receivers are not getting the respect they probably deserve.

DEFENSES NOT GETTING RESPECT

After a strong showing against Missouri’s potent offense, the Crimson Tide have moved to the top-scoring defense in fantasy football ahead of Florida. That makes sense since Alabama basically dominates everything and its defense is owned in 99 percent of leagues. But two defenses in the top five are definitely undervalued and could help win some games. The Gators, despite being on top of the position rankings for weeks, are sitting at 57 percent owned. Some quality teams are coming up but Florida’s defense is still one of the best in the country. Another defense flying under the radar is Boston College at only 41 percent. The Eagles are fourth in points among defenses, better than Michigan, Ohio State, Auburn, Georgia and many others that have higher ownership.