This article is part of our Start vs. Sit series.
The end of October is here, and Halloween is around the corner. For Week 9, though, I want your lineup decisions to be all treat, no trick. These are my players to start and to bench for your college football lineups in Week 9.
AAC Starts and Sits
START
Mario Williams, WR, Tulsa at North Texas
Williams has played for Oklahoma and USC, and while he was always a tertiary player, the very fact he saw the field for both programs speaks to his talent. Now, he's the top receiver for Tulane, and he has 26 catches for 439 yards and two touchdowns through seven games. The lack of touchdowns is a bit of a concern, but that can be a bit anomalous, and this matchup is to his benefit. North Texas has allowed 285.4 passing yards per game but also has allowed over 35 points per contest. Expect some TDs for Tulsa!
SIT
Blake Horvath, QB, Navy vs. Notre Dame
Navy is undefeated, and that's fun. Horvath has been excellent for the Midshipmen, and that's exciting. With all due respect, though, Navy has faced a breezy schedule. Notre Dame is more than a single step up. This defense is, like, three steps up from anything Navy has faced. The Fighting Irish have held opponents to 165.9 passing yards, 113.1 rushing yards, and 11.9 points per game. Louisville dropped 24 on Notre Dame, but it is the only team to score more than 16 against it.
ACC Starts
The end of October is here, and Halloween is around the corner. For Week 9, though, I want your lineup decisions to be all treat, no trick. These are my players to start and to bench for your college football lineups in Week 9.
AAC Starts and Sits
START
Mario Williams, WR, Tulsa at North Texas
Williams has played for Oklahoma and USC, and while he was always a tertiary player, the very fact he saw the field for both programs speaks to his talent. Now, he's the top receiver for Tulane, and he has 26 catches for 439 yards and two touchdowns through seven games. The lack of touchdowns is a bit of a concern, but that can be a bit anomalous, and this matchup is to his benefit. North Texas has allowed 285.4 passing yards per game but also has allowed over 35 points per contest. Expect some TDs for Tulsa!
SIT
Blake Horvath, QB, Navy vs. Notre Dame
Navy is undefeated, and that's fun. Horvath has been excellent for the Midshipmen, and that's exciting. With all due respect, though, Navy has faced a breezy schedule. Notre Dame is more than a single step up. This defense is, like, three steps up from anything Navy has faced. The Fighting Irish have held opponents to 165.9 passing yards, 113.1 rushing yards, and 11.9 points per game. Louisville dropped 24 on Notre Dame, but it is the only team to score more than 16 against it.
ACC Starts and Sits
START
Damien Martinez, RB, Miami (FL) vs. Florida State
Martinez was a star for Oregon State last year, and while his role has been slightly less with the Hurricanes, he's still producing. Plus, he only got three carries against Ball State because Miami didn't want to risk his health. Martinez has averaged 4.9 yards per carry and has six touchdowns, and now he faces a reeling Florida State. The careening Seminoles defense has allowed 172.0 rushing yards per contest, most in the ACC.
SIT
Key'Shawn Smith, WR, SMU at Duke
Smith has chemistry with (relatively) new starting quarterback Kevin Jennings, and in each of his last two games, he's had four catches with over 50 yards and a touchdown. Even though Mike Elko is gone, though, Duke's defense remains tough. The Blue Devils have only allowed 153.6 passing yards and 17.3 points per contest, so Smith may struggle to turn a couple of good games into a full-on streak.
Big Ten Starts and Sits
START
Woody Marks, RB, USC vs. Rutgers
Well, at least if USC loses this one, Lincoln Riley knows he won't get the tarmac treatment because it's a home game. Also, if the Trojans rely on Marks, they may score enough to get the win. The Mississippi State transfer has keyed the offense, rushing for 661 yards and five touchdowns while adding 25 catches for 186 yards. Only the woeful Boilermakers have given up more than the 170.3 yards per game on the ground Rutgers has allowed.
SIT
Elijah Sarratt, WR, Indiana vs. Washington
Sarratt made the jump from James Madison with Curt Cignetti, and he's taken well to Big Ten football. Although, of his 578 yards and three touchdowns 137 of those yards and one of those touchdowns came against Western Illinois. There are a couple of problems for Sarratt this week, though. One, Washington has only allowed 123.0 passing yards per game. Two, Indiana's starting quarterback Kurtis Rourke is going to miss this one with a thumb injury.
Big 12 Starts and Sits
START
Josh Hoover, QB, TCU vs. Texas Tech
Hoover needs to hold onto the ball better – he's lost five fumbles in seven games – but the upside is worth it with the TCU quarterback. He's thrown for 2,270 yards with 16 touchdowns through seven games, and he has run for three scores as well. Now Hoover gets to enjoy a home game against the Big 12 team that is the easiest to throw on. The Red Raiders are giving up over 300 yards per game through the air, and only Ball State has allowed more in FBS football.
SIT
Devin Neal, RB, Kansas at Kansas State
Neal will likely finish with over 1,000 yards and double-digit touchdowns again, but even for all his skill, a trip to the Little Apple to face this Kansas State defense could prove a significant challenge. The Wildcats have allowed a paltry 83.1 rushing yards per game. Neal has two games where he has been held under 80 yards rushing and two games where he doesn't have a touchdown. Those games don't overlap, but that could happen in Week 9.
Conference USA Starts and Sits
START
Tre Stewart, RB, Jacksonville State vs. Middle Tennessee State
The Blue Raiders are really bad against the pass, but Jacksonville State has little interest in throwing the ball, so I will still go with Stewart for fantasy purposes. He hasn't been involved much to start the season, but over the last four weeks, he's rushed for 401 yards and nine touchdowns and added another score through the air. Middle Tennessee State has given up 162.6 rushing yards and 35.4 points per game, so even with a run-first offense, the Gamecocks should be just fine.
SIT
Qua'Vez Humphreys, WR, Sam Houston State at FIU
I try to avoid Tuesday games for my Conference USA recommendations, but there is nobody from Wednesday's two games I would make a point of sitting. Humphreys has 298 yards and four touchdowns, but much of that was early in the year. What's concerning to me is that he has four catches over his last four games on 19 targets. That is a red flag. So is a matchup with a Florida International defense that has held opponents to 199.4 passing yards per contest.
MAC Starts and Sits
START
Jaden Nixon, RB, Western Michigan vs. Kent State
Nixon couldn't steal carries from Ollie Gordon at Oklahoma State, but that's understandable. He struggled to start the season against Wisconsin and Ohio State, but over his last five games he has 592 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. All that, and he hasn't even faced the worst run defense in the FBS yet! Kent State has allowed 251.1 yards per game on the ground, not to mention 45.9 points per contest.
SIT
Terion Stewart, RB, Bowling Green at Toledo
Stewart has missed two games, so that has limited his numbers. However, his two 100-yard games are against Fordham and the aforementioned Kent State. Also, three of his four touchdowns were against Bowling Green's FCS opponent. Toledo has given up 121.4 rushing yards and 18.9 points per game, so this is not an easy matchup, and Stewart has only excelled in easy matchups this season.
Mountain West Starts and Sits
START
Avery Morrow, RB, Colorado State vs. New Mexico
In each of his last four games, Morrow has gotten at least 20 carries, and he's gone over 100 yards every time. I fully expect that to happen against the Lobos, who play exciting games in part because of their defensive limitations. New Mexico has ceded 240.1 passing yards and 43.0 points per game.
SIT
Jaden Smith, WR, Nevada at Hawaii
Last week, Smith had nine catches for 134 yards. The week prior, he didn't have a single catch and was only targeted once. His performances have been inconsistent in Smith's first season at the FBS level. Playing at Hawaii always carries a bit of weirdness with it, and this year the Rainbow Warriors have also played solid defense. Hawaii has allowed 211.7 passing yards and 23.6 points per contest. Not great numbers, but imposing enough when adding in home-field advantage.
SEC Starts and Sits
START
Andrew Armstrong, WR, Arkansas at Mississippi State
Armstrong has been a bit unlucky. He has 45 catches for 646 yards through six games but only one touchdown. Last year he had five touchdowns on 56 catches, though, and he did finally find the end zone against LSU last week. The Bulldogs have established themselves as the worst defense in the SEC. They have allowed 33.3 points per game, and no other team has given up more than 23.6.
SIT
Diego Pavia, QB, Vanderbilt vs. Texas
Don't overreact. The Longhorns did not look good against Georgia last week. After that, Texas has allowed a whopping…133.0 passing yards, 104.3 rushing yards, and 9.7 points per game. So yeah, Texas still has all the makings of one of the best defenses in college football. Pavia has been efficient, and he engineered an upset of Alabama, but he has only had over two total touchdowns once, and he has not thrown for 300 yards yet.
Sun Belt Starts and Sits
START
Colton Joseph, QB, Old Dominion vs. Georgia Southern
Even if Grant Wilson is ready to return from his injury, the Monarchs would be making a mistake to give him the starting gig back. Joseph, a redshirt freshman, has run with it, and I mean that literally. He's run the ball 51 times for 343 yards and five touchdowns, and in his three starts, he's thrown four touchdowns against two picks. Georgia Southern has given up 268.0 passing yards per game but also 175.0 rushing yards per game as well.
SIT
Fluff Bothwell, RB, South Alabama vs. Louisiana-Monroe
I regret to inform a hopeful nation that the bloom is off the Fluff Bothwell rose. The true freshman started the season with gusto, but over the last three weeks, he has 102 rushing yards, no touchdowns, and an average of 3.3 yards per carry. The Warhawks have allowed 151.5 rushing yards per game, which is fine, but they had to visit Texas, who hung 239 rushing yards on them. Even with that game, Louisiana-Monroe has only allowed 20.0 points per contest.
