Welcome back for Week 7 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
Riley Leonard – Notre Dame
16-22, 229 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs
6 carries, 31 yards, 1 TD
This weekend, Riley Leonard and the Irish demolished a Stanford team that looked pretty competent to start the year but has been heading in the wrong direction these past two weeks. Leonard had a career game under center, throwing three touchdowns and rushing for one more. Passing production has been lacking for Riley through six games, throwing for just six touchdowns on the season and still looking to hit the 1k pass-yard mark. However, he’s been a consistent threat on the ground, rushing for over 400 yards and eight touchdowns thus far. He’s surpassed the century mark with rush yards in two games this year, finding the endzone in every game but one. Leonard is likely nothing more than a backup or practice squad guy in the NFL, but if he does get his shot, the rushing upside we’ve seen will make him an intriguing fantasy option.
Cade Klubnik – Clemson
31-41, 309 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs
7 carries, 30 yards
The Clemson Tigers have now won five straight games following their season opener against Georgia, and junior QB Cade Klubnik has led the way with some excellent quarterback play during that stretch. In those five games, Klubnik has thrown for nearly 1,400 yards, including 17 touchdowns and just one interception. He’s also added over 200 rush yards and four rushing touchdowns. Klubnik had his way with the Wake Forest defense this weekend, throwing for 309 yards and three touchdowns. One thing to note is that Clemson’s conference schedule is especially weak this season. They don’t have to play Georgia Tech, SMU, or Miami, which are three of the tougher teams in the ACC. Klubnik’s next real test will be in a few weeks against Louisville, the 25th-ranked defense in the country. I’m not fully convinced Klubnik is an NFL talent, but if he performs well against Louisville, then at Pittsburgh two weeks later, we may have to reassess. Klubnik feels like someone who would be best served staying in college for his senior year and continuing to develop.
Running Back
Ashton Jeanty – Boise State
31 attempts, 217 yards, 1 TD
3 receptions, 20 yards, 1 TD
Only two touchdowns from Jeanty this weekend? Was he sick or something? It’s funny just how high the bar is set for Jeanty after his historic start to the 2024 season. He literally led the FBS in rush yards in Week 7, and our immediate reaction is, “Ehh, he played fine.” Ashton added another 237 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns to his season totals this weekend, averaging a robust 7.0 YPA. It was also nice to see him involved a bit as a pass catcher, which we haven’t seen since his sophomore season. Jeanty is my RB1 of this class and potentially my 1.01 in Superflex rookie drafts, depending on draft capital and landing spot. We’ve seen all we need to see; there’s no doubt this kid will make an immediate impact on our dynasty rosters next year.
Kaleb Johnson – Iowa
21 carries, 166 yards, 2 TDs
3 receptions, 22 yards, 1 TD
Kaleb Johnson and the Hawkeyes took care of business this weekend, taking down the Washington Huskies 40-16. Johnson led the way with 188 scrimmage yards and three total touchdowns, adding to his already incredible numbers this season. If it weren’t for Ashton Jeanty lapping this field in production, we’d probably be talking about Kaleb Johnson much more. He currently sits 3rd in the FBS in rush yards this season with 932 and is 4th in YPA with 8.0 (minimum 50 attempts). He’s 2nd in yards after contact per attempt, 5th in missed tackles forced, and first in breakaway percentage. I mean, his rushing efficiency across the board has been nothing short of spectacular. We need to begin discussing Johnson as a top 5 RB in this draft class if he decides to declare.
Wide Receiver
Chrishon McCray – Kent State
13 targets, 8 receptions, 213 yards, 3 TDs
RS sophomore Chrishon McCray had a career game for the Flashes this weekend, amassing over 200 receiving yards and three touchdowns. McCray was on the preseason all-MAC team heading into 2024, and he’s proven why these past two weeks, combining for over 400 yards and five touchdowns. At the surface, his season totals aren’t overly impressive, but this is due largely to the poor quarterback play at Kent State. This is one of the worst teams in the FBS, and the quarterbacks on this team simply have not been able to feed McCray consistently. From a per-route perspective, McCray has been elite, earning over 35% targets per route run. He’s a bit undersized but is lightning-quick and has reliable hands, and I wouldn’t immediately write him off as a future NFL prospect. I would love to see him transfer to a more competitive program in 2025 and see how he fares in a more pass-friendly environment.
Evan Stewart – Oregon
8 targets, 7 receptions, 149 yards, 1 TD
I’ve been waiting all year to include Evan Stewart in my DPOTW series, and finally, I have the opportunity to do so. Stewart was one of my favorite WR prospects in the 2025 class heading into this season but has been a major disappointment from a production perspective thus far. Many were projecting Stewart to be a first-round selection in the NFL Draft this upcoming Spring, but those projections feel like a stretch now. It was nice to see Stewart post some big numbers, which we haven’t seen since the Boise State game over a month ago. This is a kid who pops on screen every time you watch him. He’s a dynamic route runner who knows how to create separation and can make the highlight grab at any time. I’m rooting for Stewart to build off this performance and continue building his NFL stock back up.
Tight End
Tyler Warren – Penn State
20 targets, 17 receptions, 224 yards, 1 TD
No, those are not season totals you are looking at for Tyler Warren. Those are his numbers from the Week 7 overtime win against USC this weekend. These past few weeks, I’ve been deciding between Colston Loveland and Harold Fannin as my TE1 of the 2025 class, but Warren’s performance this weekend has ended that debate entirely. I know it’s just one game, but this was more than enough for us to deem Warren as the TE1, possibly in a tier of his own. I’ve not watched a ton of Penn State this season, but I’ve heard from several Devy analysts that Warren is a much better overall prospect than Theo Johnson, who has had a solid start to his NFL career this season. Warren tied the all-time FBS record for receptions in a game from a tight end with 17. What an amazing performance from this young man.
Jake Briningstool – Clemson
10 targets, 7 receptions, 104 yards, 1 TD
The senior TE Briningstool was the primary beneficiary of Cade Klubnik’s excellent game this weekend, hauling seven receptions for 104 yards and a score. This was his second 100-yard performance of the season, but he has failed to do much of anything in the other four contests, as consistency has been an issue. I’m not super high on Briningstool as an NFL prospect, but he is someone to keep an eye on as the season continues. He’s coming off a nice junior season where he posted nearly 500 receiving yards and five touchdowns and is pacing to beat those numbers this year. Briningstool is projected as a sixth-round selection in the 2025 Draft, according to NFL Mock Draft Database. We’ll see if he can continue working that draft capital up.
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
