5 Running Backs to Target in FanDuel CFB
This week I am going to dive into the running backs on Fanduel. This is a breakdown of each running defense that plays on the early and late slates along with the meaningful running backs that may be able to attack them. I’ve included yards per carry allowed because I feel like that is a strong statistic to judge a defense by.
The Breakdown
| Team | Yards/Carry Allowed | Yards/Game Allowed | TD/Game Allowed | Opponent | Notable Lead RB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UTEP | 7.2 | 242 | 1.67 | Kansas State | Charles Jones |
| Tulsa | 6.7 | 231 | 2.00 | Texas State | Robert Lowe |
| Bowling Green | 6.5 | 279 | 4.00 | Massachusetts | Jamal Wilson |
| Rice | 6.2 | 183 | 2.00 | Southern Mississippi | Ito Smith |
| New Mexico State | 6.1 | 299 | 3.00 | LSU | Kenny Hilliard |
| San Jose State | 6.1 | 285 | 3.33 | Nevada | Don Jackson |
| Troy | 6.1 | 267 | 3.50 | Louisiana-Monroe | Centurias Donald |
| Southern Mississippi | 5.9 | 255 | 2.25 | Rice | Jowan Davis |
| USC | 5.9 | 246 | 2.67 | Oregon State | Terron Ward |
| UNLV | 5.8 | 305 | 2.75 | San Diego State | Donnel Pumphrey |
| SMU | 5.7 | 258 | 3.33 | TCU | |
| Texas State | 5.7 | 233 | 2.00 | Tulsa | |
| North Carolina | 5.5 | 223 | 3.33 | Clemson | |
| Nevada | 5.4 | 141 | 1.00 | San Jose State | |
| South Carolina | 5.3 | 169 | 1.75 | Missouri | Russell Hansbrough |
| Kansas | 5.2 | 185 | 1.67 | Texas | |
| Colorado State | 5.2 | 212 | 1.67 | Boston College | |
| Colorado | 5.1 | 181 | 1.75 | California | Daniel Lasco |
| Massachusetts | 4.6 | 221 | 2.75 | Bowling Green | Travis Greene |
| Akron | 4.5 | 179 | 1.67 | Pittsburgh | James Conner |
| LSU | 4.5 | 159 | 1.25 | New Mexico State | |
| Central Michigan | 4.5 | 164 | 1.25 | Toledo | Kareem Hunt |
| Mississippi | 4.4 | 145 | 0.33 | Memphis | Doroland Dorceus |
| Wyoming | 4.4 | 161 | 1.75 | Michigan State | |
| Arkansas | 4.3 | 140 | 1.00 | Texas A&M | |
| Oregon State | 4.3 | 113 | 2.33 | USC | Javorius Allen |
| Purdue | 4.2 | 149 | 1.75 | Iowa | |
| Maryland | 4.2 | 199 | 1.25 | Indiana | Tevin Coleman |
| Duke | 4.1 | 182 | 1.25 | Miami (Florida) | Duke Johnson |
| North Carolina State | 4.1 | 159 | 1.00 | Florida State | |
| Washington State | 4.0 | 174 | 1.75 | Utah | |
| Kentucky | 4.0 | 165 | 0.67 | Vanderbilt | Ralph Webb |
| Missouri | 3.9 | 149 | 2.00 | South Carolina | Mike Davis |
| Tennessee | 3.9 | 129 | 1.33 | Georgia | Todd Gurley |
| South Florida | 3.8 | 142 | 1.75 | Wisconsin | Melvin Gordon |
| Louisiana Tech | 3.8 | 142 | 3.00 | Auburn | Cameron Artis-Payne |
| Indiana | 3.8 | 126 | 1.33 | Maryland | |
| Wake Forest | 3.8 | 160 | 1.00 | Louisville | Dominique Brown |
| Minnesota | 3.7 | 132 | 1.00 | Michigan | Derrick Green |
| Florida State | 3.7 | 171 | 1.67 | North Carolina State | Shadrach Thornton |
| Vanderbilt | 3.7 | 156 | 2.00 | Kentucky | |
| Nebraska | 3.7 | 116 | 1.00 | Illinois | Josh Ferguson |
| Texas | 3.6 | 181 | 1.67 | Kansas | Corey Avery |
| Clemson | 3.6 | 116 | 2.33 | North Carolina | |
| Toledo | 3.6 | 134 | 1.25 | Central Michigan | |
| California | 3.6 | 111 | 1.00 | Colorado | |
| Illinois | 3.5 | 173 | 1.25 | Nebraska | Ameer Abdullah |
| Stanford | 3.5 | 138 | 0.33 | Washington | Lavon Coleman |
| San Diego State | 3.4 | 117 | 2.00 | UNLV | |
| Miami (Florida) | 3.3 | 148 | 1.25 | Duke | Shaun Wilson |
| Boston College | 3.2 | 98 | 0.25 | Colorado State | |
| Memphis | 3.2 | 116 | 1.67 | Mississippi | |
| Texas A&M | 3.2 | 125 | 0.00 | Arkansas | Alex Collins |
| Northwestern | 3.1 | 140 | 0.67 | Penn State | |
| Air Force | 3.1 | 83 | 1.33 | Boise State | |
| Iowa | 3.0 | 96 | 0.50 | Purdue | Raheem Mostert |
| Notre Dame | 2.9 | 99 | 0.00 | Syracuse | Prince-Tyson Gulley |
| Utah | 2.9 | 117 | 0.33 | Washington State | |
| Kansas State | 2.9 | 101 | 1.00 | UTEP | Aaron Jones |
| Washington | 2.9 | 114 | 0.25 | Stanford | |
| Louisiana-Monroe | 2.9 | 111 | 1.67 | Troy | |
| Georgia | 2.8 | 104 | 1.33 | Tennessee | Jalen Hurd |
| Pittsburgh | 2.7 | 91 | 1.25 | Akron | |
| Syracuse | 2.7 | 104 | 0.67 | Notre Dame | |
| Michigan State | 2.7 | 75 | 1.00 | Wyoming | Shaun Wick |
| Wisconsin | 2.6 | 91 | 1.00 | South Florida | |
| Michigan | 2.5 | 80 | 0.50 | Minnesota | David Cobb |
| Auburn | 2.5 | 86 | 1.00 | Louisiana Tech | |
| Louisville | 2.5 | 78 | 0.25 | Wake Forest | |
| TCU | 2.2 | 93 | 0.50 | SMU | |
| Boise State | 1.8 | 54 | 0.50 | Air Force | Jacobi Owens |
| Penn State | 1.8 | 50 | 0.75 | Northwestern |
5 Running Backs to Target in FanDuel CFB
1) Charles Jones – Kansas State is a team that likes to run an option type attack with a good running quarterback. Jones is the top running back by a good margin on this team, although he will lose some carries to his QB. Despite losing those touches to Waters, Jones has still found the end zone five times this year. If you are a numbers guy and you see a running back who averages nearly 1.67 touchdowns a game facing a defense that surrenders 1.67 rush TDs a game, then you have to think the odds are great that he reaches the end zone multiple times this week.
2) Robert Lowe – Perhaps the best play on the board in his slate of games is Lowe. Tulsa is putrid on ground defense. Combine that with Lowe’s eye popping 6.4 yards per carry, and it appears that Lowe may do whatever he pleases on the field this weekend. Lowe has 56 carries on the year and the next closest RB on the team has 17, so there is no worry of a committee here.
3) Travis Greene – Travis is an accomplished running back that has been in the FanDuel player pool for a few weeks now. He has not disappointed with his play either and now has his best matchup of the year. He is by far the team’s leading rusher and the only thing that slowed him thus far was a blowout against a very stout Wisconsin defense. None of those concerns are going to be factors this weekend though. His team is favored, will likely be playing from ahead and has a cupcake matchup. Greene put up 5 TDs in the first 3 games while boasting 5.7 yards per carry prior to running into the Badgers. Expect a heavy dose of Greene on Saturday morning.
4) Don Jackson – Jackson is the leading running back on a team that will run a ton. Jackson will lose carries to his quarterback who also likes to get busy on the ground. At over 6 yards per carry and an insane 3.3 TDs per game, San Jose State is a prime target for Jackson to exploit.
5) Donnel Pumphrey – Pumphrey is one of the more versatile RB’s on the list this week. He averages a healthy 5.7 YPC and also a bonus 7.9 yards per reception this year. Pump has found the end zone 5 times in 3 games and 2 of the games have come against legitimate D-1 schools. UNLV is not a defense that will offer resistance as witnessed by the stats and by the game last week against Houston. Fire the kid up if you can squeeze the $7,400 price tag on your roster.