Fall Camp CFF Stock Report – August 22nd
Fall Camp CFF Stock Report – August 22nd
I have reviewed news from fall camps across the country and now look at how that news impacts player’s college fantasy football value. I then assign a generic positive/negative point score to the impact of the news affecting a player’s value. A history of weekly value updates will be tracked on the Purple Reign Big Boards at the bottom of the article to track how players are trending through fall camp.
STOCK RISING
QB John Mateer (WaSt) +3.50: In the most anticipated QB battle of the season, Mateer came out on top and was announced the team’s starting QB. This sets up Mateer for a ripe fantasy season with the Cougars playing a mostly Mountain West schedule.
QB Jake Garcia (ECU) +1.50: Despite Garcia not taking a game snap at QB since 2022, he entered fall camp the underdog but emerged the starting QB. There’s fantasy potential in the East Carolina offense and the QB position is one to target for sleepers.
RB Demie Sumo (KY) +1.50: Sumo was making a case to be the RB1-B in what was shaping up to be a committee backfield. Then Chip Trayanum suffered a broken hand which will keep him out of action for around a month. This opens the door for Sumo to move up to the RB1 position.
WR Germie Bernard (Bama) +1.50: Bernard continues to run with the first-team offense but many of the names expected to challenge him are running reps with the second team. This development gives the appearance that its wheels up for Bernard to be the solid WR1 in the offense.
QB Will Howard (OSU) +1.00: Howard transferred to Ohio State from Kansas State and many expected him to be favorite for the QB job. After spring camp there was some rumbling that he might have competition for the starting job but Howard came into fall camp and now has officially been named the starter.
QB DJ Uiagalelei (FlaSt) +1.00: By no surprise DJ has been named the starting QB for the season opener.
QB Tyler Van Dyke (Wisc) +1.00: As was expected, Van Dyke was named the starting QB over Braedyn Locke. Van Dyke has had high expectations on his collegiate career but never lived up to them. Maybe his time while playing in offensive coordinator Phil Longo’s offense will give him that opportunity to reach his potential.
TE Mitchell Evans (ND) +1.00: Evans has been working his way back to health from a knee injury. The most recent status update from fall camp shows he has been cleared to play in the season opener.
RB D.J. Jones (Wyo) +1.00: Starting RB Harrison Waylee suffered a serious knee injury and is expected to be out of action for an extended period of time. This opens the door for Jones to secure the starting job. I’m staying cautious with the value of this news as a committee approach is probably likely if Jones can’t demonstrate he is head and shoulders better than the rest of the RB room.
QB Will Crowder (Troy) +1.00: Crowder has been named the starting QB and there is limited fantasy value for the Troy QB.
QB Maddux Madsen (Boise) +1.00: While Madsen was not favored to win the starting QB job going into fall camp, he managed to earn the starting role over Malachi Nelson. The season opener against Georgia Southern will provide a good preview for what type of fantasy value Madsen can provide this season.
QB Brendon Lewis (Nev) +1.00: Lewis was named the starting QB for the season opener in Week 0. This is not a surprise as his main competition Chubba Purdy has been battling injuries in fall camp.
WR Cole Adams (Bama) +0.75: Adams has been running with the first-team offense in the slot WR position but hasn’t officially been named the starter. With Germie Bernard looking to be the solid WR1 on the outside, that leaves the slot role to be the WR2 in the offense. Adams is basically free in fantasy drafts and should be targeted with one of your final picks.
QB Riley Leonard (ND) +0.50: By no surprise to anyone, Leonard has officially been named the starting QB. Last week I reported that his ankle injury has not been bothering his rushing ability. With the news of him being the starter, fantasy owners should no longer have any doubts that Riley is ready to go for the season.
RB Cam Cook (TCU) +0.50: Cook has been impressive in fall camp and appears to have grasped the starting RB role. This was expected from his strong spring camp showing. All we’re waiting on is an official statement that Cook is the Horned Frogs’ RB1. He has been dealing with a hamstring injury that has limited him for several practices which is a slight cause for concern.
QB Behren Morton (TxTch) +0.50: The coaches have placed slight limitations on Morton’s participation in fall camp to ensure he remains healthy. Offensive coordinator Zach Kittley has stated that Morton has not missed any practices and has been making all the throws in camp.
QB Danny O’Neil (SDSU) +0.50: Last week I mentioned that O’Neil was looking to take the lead in the QB battle at San Diego State. He now has been officially named the starter over AJ Duffy.
WR Chris Tyree (UVA) +0.50: It looks like the foot injury that had Tyree in a walking boot is no longer hampering him. He’s been seen as a full participant in practice and appears ready to go for the season opener.
WR Silas Bolden (Tex) +0.50: Local media have been raving about Bolden’s play throughout fall camp. He’s been described as “putting on a show” and making tough contested catches. With how wide open the WR competitions are, he has a real opportunity to be WR1 in the offense.
RB Jovantae Barnes (Okla) +0.50: Barnes seemed like an afterthought when viewing the starting RB job but his play in camp could propel him into a RB1-A position. Gavin Sawchuk will still be in the mix and this situation looks to be forming into a committee approach by the coaches. I’m leaving Barnes as the RB2 in my projections but with a significant bump in workload.
QB Alex Orji (Mich) +0.50: Orji has been leading the way in the QB competition so far through fall camp. He’s been seen as a pace-setter for the position. This isn’t a surprise to fantasy analysts.
QB Kurtis Rourke (Ind) +0.50: Rourke made a big leap in becoming the starting QB after his scrimmage performances. Head coach Curt Cignetti stated that Rourke separated himself “pretty significantly.”
QB Gerry Bohanon (BYU) +0.50: Bohanon is beginning to take command of the QB battle. He brings a dual-threat skillset to the position which increases his fantasy value. It might just be a matter of time before he is named the starting QB.
QB Jase Bauer (SamHu) +0.50: When Bauer announced he would transfer to Sam Houston State there were hopes he could elevate the passing game this season. He was rocky at times throwing the ball last season at Central Michigan so he had to prove he could be the man behind center in fall camp. In the team’s latest scrimmage he was running with the starters which is a good sign of his work to secure the starting QB job.
RB Branson Robinson (UGA) +0.50: Robinson appears to have no rust from the knee injury he suffered and has been impressive in fall camp. He has even taken some reps with the first-team offense. There’s no official confirmation that he will be the RB2 but the reports from camp look like he has a good shot.
QB Elijah Brown (Stan) +0.50: Brown has come into fall came and made a name for himself. Head coach Troy Taylor said the freshman QB is accurate and incredible with anticipation. He has planted himself firmly in a battle for the starting QB position.
QB Nate Johnson (Vand) +0.50: Johnson came into fall camp ready to fight for the starting QB job and he is still in the thick of this competition. Many fantasy analysts expected Diego Pavia to earn this job but so far he has been unable to make a strong case that the job should be his.
WR Liam Clifford (PSU) +0.50: Head coach James Franklin has been singling out the performance of Clifford in fall camp and referring to him as a difference maker. Clifford’s play looks to be securing the slot WR position up but he hasn’t officially been named the starter just yet.
RB Hinckley Ropati (BYU) +0.25: Ropati looks to be next in line behind LJ Martin at the running back position. If Martin does miss time due to his shoulder injury Ropati should get the start but likely split carries to some degree with Miles Davis.
RB Noah Whittington (Oreg) +0.25: Whittington’s foot injury is no longer a concern as he has been fully participating in practices. The back-up RB will get his chances to touch the ball in the offense this fall, especially in blowout wins.
RB CJ Donaldson (WVU) +0.25: Donaldson was expected to be the solid RB2 this season but his play in fall camp looks like he will likely be the RB1-B this fall.
WR Steven McBride (Hawaii) +0.25: McBride was previously suspended from the team due to legal issues but has since rejoined the team and is practicing. While there is rumor that he may only miss one or two games, no official word has come from the team about his playing status.
WR Makai Lemon (USC) +0.25: Lemon’s fall camp performance has been garnering praise for his smooth route running. His fantasy value is only getting a small bump since there has not been word yet if he might challenge Ja'Kobi Lane or Duce Robinson for playing time.
STOCK FALLING
WR Caullin Lacy (Lou) -6.00: Lacy has been a popular name with fantasy owners since he transferred from South Alabama to Lousiville and typically drafted as the first Cardinal WR. He broke his collarbone in practice and is now expected to be out of action for six to eight weeks.
RB Harrison Waylee (Wyo) -5.00: Waylee suffered a knee injury in practice and has undergone surgery. Its still unclear how significant the injury is at this point. We will need more information to determine if he is out for the season or if he may return.
RB Chip Trayanum (KY) -3.00: Trayanum broke his hand in practice and will now miss three to four weeks. He was struggling to separate himself from the other RBs and things were shaping up for a committee situation. When he does return to action the hand may cause the coaches to keep a split carry backfield in play.
QB Katin Houser (ECU) -2.00: Houser was expected to be the favorite in the starting QB battle at East Carolina but he ended up losing that battle. Time to strike his name off your draft boards.
QB Malachi Nelson (Boise) -2.00: The hopes of many fantasy owners that Nelson would provide some fantasy value to the Boise State passing game have gone up in smoke as Maddux Madsen was named the starting QB.
WR CJ Smith (Purd) -2.00: Smith had a good chance to be the WR1 this season. He has suffered a hamstring injury that will keep in out of action until Week 3. The loss of games will likely delegate him down to WR2 on the season.
RB LJ Martin (BYU) -1.50: The confusion from the first week of camp regarding Martin’s shoulder injury is clearing a bit. It appears there was fire to go with the smoke and Martin is questionable for the season opener. This shoulder injury nagged him last season and caused him to miss games. This season could see the same thing as the shoulder may flare up from the impacts he takes in games.
QB AJ Duffy (SDSU) -1.50: Duffy was expected to win the starting job when spring camp started but he was unable to separate himself from the QB room. Entering fall camp he was in a heated QB battle and it turned out to be Danny O’Neil who won the starting job.
RB Montrell Johnson (Fla) -1.00: Johnson underwent surgery on his knee a couple weeks back and at the time the team stated he would not miss significant time. Since then he is still being held out of drills and doing work with trainers. I commented that his lack of conditioning from missing time will hamper his ability to get into game-shape and be able to command a full workload.
WRs Kendrick Law and Kobe Prentice (Bama) -1.00: Maybe the biggest news coming out of fall camp is that Law and Prentice are running reps with the second-team offense. Both were expected to be starters during the summer and this news should make you take them off of your draft boards.
RB Gavin Sawchuk (Okla) -0.75: Going into camp it appeared that Sawchuk had a lock on the RB1 position. That no longer appears to be the case as Jovantae Barnes has been playing his way into making this a committee backfield. I’m leaving Sawchuk as RB1 for now, but his workload has been eaten into by Barnes in my most recent projections.
WR Daniel Jackson (MIN) -0.75: Jackson is dealing with an undisclosed injury that has had him limited in practice for over a week. The fact this injury has been keeping him from full participation and the fact no specifics have been provided about the injury is worrisome.
WR Antwane Wells, Jr. (Miss) -0.50: Wells has not been a full participant in practices and is wearing a non-contact jersey. Its unclear what injury he is suffering from but head coach Lane Kiffin is hoping he will be ready to go at the start of the season. I’m not changing my projection on Wells just yet but if his condition doesn’t improve his fantasy value will take a bigger hit.
RB Jaheim White (WVU) -0.50: Going into fall camp many fantasy analysts saw White as the locked-in RB1. As fall camp has progressed CJ Donaldson has made a case for the RB situation to become a committee approach.
QB Ashton Daniels (Stan) -0.50: Daniels entered fall camp as the assumed starting QB but it appears things are playing out very differently. Word is that there is an open competition for the QB job and freshman Elijah Brown is making a strong push for the position.
QB Diego Pavia (Vand) -0.50: Pavia has not been able to separate himself from Nate Johnson in the battle for the starting QB job. Pavia had an excellent fantasy season at New Mexico State last year but it looks like the SEC is offering up some stiff competition for him.
RB Darius Taylor (MIN) -0.25: Taylor suffered a hamstring injury in practice but the injury isn’t being described as serious. This should raise concerns since Taylor did miss time last season due to injury.
WR Chris Hilton (LSU) -0.25: Hilton has been garnering praise this fall camp but he did suffer a minor ankle injury and sat out the remainder of that practice. Head coach Brain Kelly stated that removing Hilton from practice was precautionary and that he is not expect to miss extended time.
RB Cameron Seldon (Tenn) -0.25: Seldon underwent surgery in the spring on his should and after a couple weeks of fall camp still isn’t fully healthy. At this time his status for the season opener is questionable. With Chattanooga listed as the opener he may get a very small workload to test his shoulder but the team will have no motivation to give him more carries before real competition starts.
RB Ja’Quinden Jackson (Ark) -0.25: Jackson missed some practice time with a minor ankle injury. Its believed the injury is not cause for alarm and that he should be ready for the season opener.
RB Jevyon Ducker (SamHu) -0.25: Ducker is looking like the favorite to win the starting RB job but he has aggravated his foot. He was seen in a walk boot but returned to practice in a limit non-contact fashion.
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