Welcome back for Week 5 of our Devy Players of the Week series. In this series, I cover the top college performers from each offensive fantasy position (QB, RB, WR, TE) every week. Because this is Devy, I will focus on spotlighting players I believe could play a role on our Dynasty rosters down the line. Let’s jump in and see who made some noise this past weekend in CFB!
Quarterback
Arch Manning – Texas
26-31, 335 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs
6 carries, 33 yards, 1 TD
The Longhorns opened conference play with a dominant win over Mississippi State, 35-13. The Bulldogs are far from an impressive football program, sitting dead last in the SEC, so Arch will have much tougher tests in his college career. Quinn Ewers has missed the past two games due to an abdominal strain but is expected to be ready for the Oklahoma game on 10/12. HC Steve Sarkisian has suggested that Ewers is still the QB1 and will take over that role once he’s ready, meaning this may be the last Arch Manning start we see in 2024. But what we’ve seen from Arch in this small 2.5-game sample size is enough for me to have him as a Top 2 Devy QB, right in line with Nico Iamaleava. Arch has the potential to turn into just as talented a passer as his uncles in the NFL, and he can do something those two never could: he can run.
Jalen Milroe – Alabama
27-33, 374 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
16 carries, 117 yards, 2 TDs
Could we have asked for a better college football game this weekend than the Georgia vs. Alabama game? That game was NUTS. So many future NFL stars balling out, including Jalen Milroe. The Heisman frontrunner is putting to bed any concerns we may have had about his ability as a passer, shredding this Bulldog defense and putting up 41 points in the process. Milroe was throwing dime after dime in this contest while getting it done on the ground. He finished with nearly 500 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns against the #2 ranked team in the country. The Heisman award is now Milroe’s to lose, and I’d say it’s very likely that Milroe is now a Round 1 NFL draft pick. If he gets the draft capital and steps into a starting role on Day 1 in the NFL, Jalen Milroe is the one guy I would consider over Tetairoa McMillan and Ashton Jeanty as the 1.01 in Dynasty Superflex Rookie drafts. He could be the next Jalen Hurts, an average real-life quarterback but an elite fantasy option.
Running Back
Ashton Jeanty – Boise State
26 carries, 259 yards, 4 TDs
1 reception, 7 yards
What else can we say about Ashton Jeanty that hasn’t already been said? I mean, some of these big plays he’s been making are breaking my brain. His ability to fight through contact and turn on the burners is unmatched. He finished with 266 scrimmage yards and four touchdowns against Washington State this weekend and now has scored 3+ touchdowns in three of four games this year.
*Click image for full tweet and video*
No other RB in the country could do what he’s doing this season, and I don’t think that’s debatable anymore. Jeanty should absolutely be in the conversation for 1.01 in our rookie drafts next season. At minimum, he will be the Dynasty RB5 before he takes an NFL snap. If he gets a dream landing spot (like Rd1 to the Cowboys), Jeanty could be in the convo for Dynasty RB1. Through four games, Jeanty has 845 rush yards and 13 touchdowns. Insanity.
DJ Giddens – Kansas State
15 carries, 187 yards, 1 TD
1 reception, 22 yards
DJ Giddens has been flying under the radar a bit, given the number of elite running backs in college football this season. But this kid deserves his flowers, as he’s been putting up a really impressive 2024 season for the Wildcats. Giddens and company took down #20 Oklahoma State this weekend in convincing fashion, 42-20. Giddens finished with over 200 scrimmage yards and a score, leading the charge. He’s now at 695 scrimmage yards and three touchdowns through five games this season. Giddens is a junior and I imagine will stay for his senior season to continue building up his draft stock. With this level of consistency, Giddens could emerge as one of the top backs in the 2026 class. He doesn’t blow you away with any single trait, but he’s a jack of all trades.
Wide Receiver
Ryan Williams – Alabama
7 targets, 6 receptions, 177 yards, 1 TD
The one player who impressed me even more than Jalen Milroe in the Bama vs UGA game was 17-year-old true freshman Ryan Williams. This young man is as elite an athlete as anyone in the country, and he put those skills on display last night. The speed, quickness, hands, body control, and after-the-catch ability are all some of the best I’ve seen. Williams absolutely deserves to be placed in the same tier as Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith and is now a Top 5 Devy asset overall. This play below left me in awe. The ability to adjust to the throw and haul that pass in was tough enough, but the cutback move and the burst to get into the endzone was even more impressive.
*Click image for full tweet and video*
Invest in Ryan Williams with confidence in your Devy leagues. It’s tough to overpay for an asset like this. He’ll be a WR1 in Dynasty from Day 1.
Tre Harris – Ole Miss
15 targets, 11 receptions, 176 yards, 1 TD
At this point, I may as well just set aside a spot for Tre Harris in my DPOW article every week. You could argue there hasn’t been a more consistent producer at the wide receiver position all year. Ole Miss suffered their first lost of the year to Kentucky, but Harris was the one bright spot in an otherwise underwhelming offensive performance by the Rebels. Harris has an absurd 41.96% targets per route run this season, already amassing 60 targets in five games. He’s being slightly undervalued in Devy circles due to his age, but at this point I’m confident in saying Tre Harris is a Round 1 NFL talent and will be a late-first round selection in our Dynasty Superflex Rookie drafts. I plan to have plenty of shares in my leagues; he’s one of the best WR options from an analytical and a film standpoint.
Tight End
Harold Fannin Jr. – Bowling Green
12 targets, 12 receptions, 192 yards, 2 TDs
Okay, I’ve seen enough. Harold Fannin is the TE1 of this draft class. I don’t care if he plays for Bowling Green; he has to be on every NFL scout’s radar at this point. This is Fannin’s third appearance in this DPOW series, adding 12 receptions, 192 yards, and a pair of touchdowns this weekend against Old Dominion. Fannin’s TPRR is now up to 36.29% this year, and his YPRR is up to 4.36. He’s a highly athletic playmaker who can line up out wide, in the slot, or in line. It’s not often we see someone’s NFL stock rise as quickly as Fannin’s had. He’s going to be a very fantasy-friendly TE in the NFL.
Bryson Nesbit – North Carolina
10 targets, 5 receptions, 33 yards, 1 TD
I’ll go ahead and give Bryson Nesbit my final DPOW spot, mostly because there were very few impressive TE performances this week. It was nice to see Nesbit earn the target share he did, seeing 10 targets on 35 routes run. It didn’t turn into much production, but the senior was able to find the endzone once in their loss to Duke. Nesbit is more of a WR/TE hybrid, as he’s slightly undersized for the traditional TE role and rarely plays in-line. He’s got the athleticism and ball skills to become an NFL talent, but I’d like to see a little more out of him in terms of production before I project him to be a true Dynasty asset.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and I hope you got some valuable information you can use for your fantasy team! If you’d like additional insight into Dynasty Football news and analysis, please follow me on Twitter at @jim_DFF. Until next time, keep grinding out there, DFF family! #DFFArmy #AlwaysBeBuilding
