As we close out 2019 on Tuesday, the New Year’s Eve college bowl game slate offers viewers and bettors a number of evenly-matched teams. Of the four games on the DraftKings slate, all have over/under totals between 48 and 54, and no team is favored by more than a touchdown. That means paying attention to likely scoring is less important than normal, and perceived volume is king. Here are a selection of players, such as Wyoming’s Xazavian Valladay, likely to see plenty of touches today.
Quarterbacks
James Blackman, Florida State ($6,700 on DraftKings, $7,500 on FanDuel) – While Blackman didn’t close the regular season in spectacular fashion – just 14 of 23 for 150 yards and no touchdowns against Florida – we can expect the Seminoles to rely more on the pass with their running back core sitting this one out. The ‘Noles Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl opponent, Arizona State, is just 253rd in college football against the pass. They are most assuredly not terrrrrrific.
Malcolm Perry, Navy ($8,900 on DK, $11,000 on FD) – While Perry is unlikely to carry the ball 29 times like he did against Army (or gain 304 yards rushing, for that matter), the QB will still tote the rock plenty in the Midshipmen’s run-heavy offense. Navy faces Kansas State and its middling rushing defense in the Autozone Liberty Bowl.
Running backs
Jamale Carothers, Navy ($5,900 on DK, $8,800 on FD) – Because Navy rarely passes, there are enough carries going around to play what are, essentially, two Midshipmen running backs. If Perry isn’t carrying the ball, he will most likely be handing off to Carothers.
Xazavian Valladay, Wyoming ($6,000 on DK, $8,400 on FD) – While we could probably never spell his name in Scrabble, we can draft this relative DFS unknown for the Cowboys as they take on Georgia State in the Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl. Although Valladay got just 14 carries in his last game against Air Force, he averaged 30 carries and 131 yards per game in his three previous contests. With Georgia State’s weak rushing D, we have a case of an unstoppable force meeting a very movable object.
Wide receivers
Frank Darby, Arizona State ($5,600 on DK, $7,700 on FD) – With the Sun Devils’ star receiver, Brandon Aiyuk, sitting out the Sun Bowl, we can expect Frank Darby to pick up the slack. He’s a great value as a mid-priced receiver likely to see a lot of targets.
Tamorrion Terry, Florida State ($6,600 on DK, $8,500 on FD) – While Blackmon tossed for just 150 yards against Florida, Terry caught 131 of those. On the year, he has 51 receptions for 1,023 yards and eight touchdowns, making him the Seminoles’ top receiving threat.