ACC
Notes: Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder is hurting a bit after sustaining a rib injury in Week 9
against N.C. State. However, he is not expected to miss any time ...
Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner's
status is more up in the air after sustaining a concussion on Saturday
against Miami (Fla.). If Skinner isn't ready for Week 10 against Georgia
Tech, then Ryan McManus is expected to
start. Wide receiver Marshall Williams
is also questionable with a hamstring injury ... N.C. State junior wide
receiver Jarvis Williams is turning
into quite a red-zone target. He had three touchdowns on Saturday
against FSU, all less than 10 yards. He has four touchdowns in his last
two games and a team-high seven on the season ... FSU running back Jermaine Thomas had a career-high 186 yards against the Wolfpack. He
came into the game with just 192 rushing yards on the season ... Duke
quarterback Thaddeus Lewis is reaching
that level where no matter the competition he might be a good play in
Fantasy. Lewis had his fourth straight game of 300-plus yards on
Saturday against Virginia, who has a very good pass defense. Lewis has
developed great rapport with Donovan Varner
and Conner Vernon which has allowed his
continued success ... Boston College's Rich Gunnell is turning into Dave Shinskie's
go-to-target. Gunnell has 18 catches for 313 yards and two touchdowns in
his last two games.
Byes: Boston College
Teams playing
FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Clemson vs. Florida
State. Defense used to be a staple at Florida State, but coordinator
Mickey Andrews already looks like he is in retirement mode. FSU is near
the bottom in the nation in defense and has given up 146 points in its
last four games (36.5 ppg). Clemson has managed at least 38 points in
their last three games and should continue to move the ball in Week 10.
Unfavorable
matchup: Duke at North Carolina. The Blue Devils are riding a
three-game winning streak and are serious contenders in the ACC. But
they have had to claw out their last two wins and will likely have to do
the same in Week 10 at North Carolina. For all Carolina's shortcomings
this season, they still rank 15th in scoring defense (16.5 ppg) and
seventh in total defense (265.0 ypg). In five homes games, North
Carolina is allowing 16.2 points per contest.
Big East
Notes: Cincinnati quarterback Tony Pike, who has missed two games with a banged up non-throwing
arm, has returned to practice. However, coach Brian Kelly is going to
wait until later in the week to name either Pike or Zach Collaros the starter for Week 10 against Connecticut ...
Speaking of the Huskies, they suffered a devastating blow after starting
quarterback Cody Endres hurt his
non-throwing shoulder on Saturday against Rutgers. He suffered the same
injury as Oklahoma's Sam Bradford and
has opted for season-ending surgery. Zach Frazer,
who lost the starting job to Endres because of a knee injury, is back
under center ... Louisville running back Victor Anderson is questionable for Week 10 against West Virginia
after sitting out Week 9 with a shoulder injury ... South Florida wide
receiver Carlton Mitchell had a big
game in a Week 9 upset win of West Virginia. He totaled five catches for
132 yards and one touchdown. Unfortunately, he hurt his leg in the
second half, but USF is on a bye until Week 11, so he has time to rest
... In case you missed it, Rutgers wide receiver Tim Brown stunned UConn with an 81-yard touchdown catch with 22
seconds remaining that sealed a comeback victory on Saturday. Brown
finished the game with five catches for 162 yards and two touchdowns.
Brown leads Rutgers with 37 catches for 811 yards and five touchdowns.
Teams know he is going to get the ball, but they still can't stop the
speedy receiver, who has four 100-yard games ... Cincinnati wide
receiver Armon Binns was our Big East
Start of the Week for Week 9 against Syracuse and he didn't disappoint.
He had five catches for a career-high 138 yards and two touchdowns.
Binns has six touchdowns in his last four games.
Byes: Rutgers,
South Florida
Teams playing FCS schools: None
Favorable
matchup: Pittsburgh vs. Syracuse. The Panthers are one of the
nation's highest-scoring teams. They are 15th in scoring offense,
averaging 34.3 points per contest. They now face a team that is 81st in
scoring defense (27.4 ppg) and a squad they posted 34 points against
last season.
Unfavorable matchup: Connecticut at Cincinnati.
The Huskies, who are coming off two devastating losses, hit the road to
face the undefeated Bearcats. Cincinnati has not allowed an opponent to
score more than 17 points in its last four games, elevating them to
ninth in scoring defense (12.9 ppg).
Big 12
Notes: Iowa State quarterback Austen Arnaud said he will return to the lineup on Saturday against
Oklahoma State after missing two games with a bruised hand. Jerome Tiller went 1-1 in his absence ... Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing admitted he has been playing with a sore groin since
mid-October and it probably has attributed to the Jayhawks' three-game
slide. He was finally benched late in the game in Week 9 against Texas
Tech for Kale Pick and Reesing's status
for Week 10 remains up in the air ... Kansas State wide receiver Brandon Banks finally broke the 100-yard barrier in Week 9 against
Oklahoma. It's just too bad he sustained a shoulder injury and is now
questionable for Week 10 ... Oklahoma State running back Kendall Hunter is trying his best to overcome a lingering ankle injury
and hopes to play again this season. Until he is 100 percent, Hunter is
a risky Fantasy option ... Cody Green
has replaced Zac Lee at quarterback for
Nebraska. Green completed 12 of 21 passes for 128 yards in a Saturday
win against Baylor ... Baylor wide receiver David Gettis is becoming a key target for quarterback Nick Florence. Gettis has 11 catches for 186 yards and one touchdown
in his last two games ... Missouri wide receiver Danario Alexander had his third two-touchdown game of the season on
Saturday against Colorado ... Texas A&M has a pretty good two-headed
monster going at running back between Cyrus Gray
and uber freshman Christine Michael.
Gray, who has two straight 100-yard games, leads the Aggies with 567
yards and Michael is second with 469. Both players have five touchdowns
... With two scores on Saturday against Kansas State, Oklahoma wide
receiver Ryan Broyles has 10 touchdowns
on the season. He has managed to succeed without star quarterback Sam Bradford.
Byes: Texas Tech
Teams playing FCS
schools: None
Favorable matchup: Kansas State vs. Kansas.
The Jayhawks woes on defense continued in Week 9 against Texas Tech as
the Red Raiders totaled 42 points. Kansas has allowed an average of 35
points in its last five games. Kansas State is averaging 37.3 points
over their last three outings.
Unfavorable matchup: Iowa State
at Oklahoma State. The Cowboys did allow 41 points in Week 9 against
Texas, but that was the No. 3 team in the country and not Iowa State.
The Cyclones have totaled just 19 points in their last two games and are
set to face a defense that has allowed 17 or fewer points in three of
five games.
Big Ten
Notes: Michigan State running back Larry Caper was knocked out of a Week 9 game against Minnesota with a
concussion. If he can't go in Week 10 against Western Michigan, expect Edwin Baker to start for the Spartans ... Northwestern quarterback Mike Kafka was knocked out Week 9 against Penn State with a leg
injury. However, he is expected to start on Saturday against Iowa ...
Hawkeyes running back Brandon Wegher
did quite well in his first start for the injured Adam Robinson, who is out for the year with an ankle injury. Wegher
rushed for 118 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday's comeback win
against Indiana. The true freshman is a player who could emerge as a
viable Fantasy option since Iowa is very good at running the ball ...
Wisconsin running back John Clay used
the bye in Week 8 to rest a sore ankle and it proved helpful. Clay
rushed for 123 yards and three touchdowns in a win over Purdue on
Saturday after having 134 yards and no touchdowns in his previous two
games ... Penn State's Derek Moye is
starting to put some distance between himself and the team's other
receivers. He had his second 100-yard game in a Week 9 win against
Northwestern and leads PSU with 648 receiving yards. The closest guy has
355 yards ... Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber
showed in Week 9 against Michigan State that there is life after Eric Decker, who is out for the season with a foot injury. Weber
threw for a career-high 416 yards and five touchdowns. Brandon Green, Nick Tow-Arnett and Da'Jon McKnight benefited from Decker's absence.
Byes: None
Teams
playing FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Michigan
State vs. Western Michigan. The Spartans get a break from Big Ten play
to take on a team from the MAC. Defense is not a particularly strong
point for Western Michigan. They are 108th in total defense (426.0 ypg)
and have allowed 26 or more points in six of their last seven games.
Unfavorable
matchup: Ohio State at Penn State. Take your pick in this top 15
matchup. Both Ohio State and Penn State have killer defenses. Ohio State
has posted three shutouts in 2009 and Penn State is first in scoring
defense (9.3 ppg). Last year, Penn State edged out Ohio State, 13-6, and
we expect another low-scoring matchup.
Conference USA
Notes: Memphis running back Curtis Steele sustained a minor leg injury in Week 9 against East
Carolina, but he is not expected to miss any time ... Tulsa quarterback G.J. Kinne is expected to start on Saturday against Houston despite
being knocked out of a Week 9 loss to SMU with a concussion ... East
Carolina running back Dominique Lindsay
has rushed for 100 yards in two of his last three games. Unfortunately,
he has failed to score in that span ... Southern Miss quarterback Martevious Young had the best game of his young career in a Week 9 loss to
Houston. He passed for 334 yards and totaled four touchdowns (three
passing) and didn't throw an interception. Wide receiver Gerald Baptiste also had a career game with eight catches for 186
yards and three scores ... Houston wide receiver James Cleveland had his third multi-touchdown game of the season on
Saturday. He has eight touchdowns in his last six games and is up to
fifth in the nation in receptions per game (7.8) ... UTEP running back Donald Buckram continued his hot streak with his fifth 100-yard
rushing game on Saturday against UAB. He also had his fourth
multi-touchdown game. Buckram has 947 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns in
eight outings ... UTEP wide receiver Jeff Moturi
has at least 100 yards in three of his last four games and is back to
being quarterback Trevor Vittatoe's
go-to-receiver ... UAB quarterback Joe Webb
has four straight games of 100 rushing yards and is just 17 yards away
from a 1,000-yard season on the ground ... UCF's A.J. Guyton has broken 100 receiving yards in his last two games and
is emerging as the team's big-play threat at receiver.
Byes: Marshall,
Southern Miss
Teams playing FCS schools: None
Favorable
matchup: UTEP at Tulane. This is another one of those take your pick
matchups since UTEP and Tulane stink on defense. UTEP is 116th in total
defense (470.1 ypg) and Tulane is 114th in scoring defense (37.4 ppg).
Unfavorable
matchup: UCF at Texas. The Knights hit the road in Week 10 to face a
top national title contender in Texas. The Longhorns have gotten the job
done on defense in 2009, ranking third in total (240.8 ypg) and 11th in
scoring defense (13.6 ppg). They have not allowed more than 14 points in
their last five games.
Independents
Notes: Navy quarterback Ricky Dobbs (knee) entered late during a Week 9 loss against Temple
because he had a stronger arm than backup Kriss Proctor. But Dobbs is still not yet 100 percent recovered from
a cracked kneecap and is questionable for Week 10 ... Fantasy owners
might want to pay attention to the status of Notre Dame wide receiver Michael Floyd, who has not played since the Michigan State game because
of a broken collarbone. Floyd is waiting for medical clearance to return
and could be back as soon as Saturday against Navy. ... Navy running
back Vince Murray has reeled off three
straight 100-yard games ... Notre Dame running back Robert Hughes rushed for a team-high 131 yards during a Week 9 win
against Washington State. It was largely because Armando Allen was hobbled by an ankle injury. Allen is expected to play
a more prominent role in Week 10.
Byes: None
Teams
playing FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Notre Dame
vs. Navy. The Midshipmen do have a pretty good defense, but they are
beatable as Temple showed us in Week 9. Notre Dame has lost just once in
six home games and is averaging 32 points at home as well.
Unfavorable
matchup: Army at Air Force. The Black Knights have hit a wall
offensively. They have failed to score more than 16 points in five
straight games and that has dropped them to 112th in scoring offense
(16.9 ppg). That's not good as they are set to face a top 10 defense in
both scoring (13.6 ppg) and total (266.8 ypg).
MAC
Notes: Buffalo running back Ike Nduka is questionable for Tuesday's game against Bowling Green
with an ankle injury. Mario Henry
(ankle) and Brandon Thermilus (ankle)
are also injured, leaving coach Turner Gill searching for healthy bodies
... Northern Illinois quarterback Chandler Harnish is expected to miss Saturday's game against Eastern
Michigan as he continues to recover from a knee injury. DeMarcus Grady should start again ... Akron wide receiver Andre Jones is starting to become a regular in the Zips passing game.
He has 13 catches for 297 yards and two touchdowns in his last three
games. Jones began the season on defense before injuries forced him back
to receiver, the position he played in 2008 ... Temple running back Bernard Pierce has moved up to third in the nation in rushing (129.1
ypg) after posting 267 rushing yards on Saturday against Navy. Pierce
also has 11 touchdowns in his last six games. Not bad for a guy that had
just 68 rushing yards in his first two games. Pierce has become a
must-start Fantasy option ... Kent State wide receiver Tyshon Goode is also making his move up the Fantasy rankings. The true
freshman had a career-high 11 catches for 198 yards on Saturday against
Western Michigan. He has 23 catches for 378 yards and five touchdowns in
his last three games.
Byes: Ohio, Ball State, Central
Michigan, Toledo
Teams playing FCS schools: None
Favorable
matchup: Northern Illinois vs. Eastern Michigan. The Huskies like to
run the football, averaging 206.0 yards per game on the ground (15th),
and Eastern Michigan has the nation's worst run defense (277.1 ypg). It
could be another brutal game for the winless Eagles, but great news for Chad Spann and Me'co Brown.
Unfavorable
matchup: Western Michigan at Michigan State. The Spartans had a
little slip up in Week 9 as they allowed Minnesota to score 42 points.
Prior to that, they held opponents to 20 or less points in their
previous four games. Michigan State is also 49th in total defense (347.2
ypg).
Mountain West
Notes: Air Force quarterback Connor Dietz is expected to miss a few more weeks with a broken hand,
so Tim Jefferson will continue to
quarterback the Falcons ... BYU wide receiver McKay Jacobson is expected back in Week 10 after missing a few games
with a hamstring injury ... San Diego State wide receiver Vincent Brown is expected to miss the rest of the season with ligament
damage in his right thumb. That means Fantasy owners should start adding DeMarco Sampson, who has 27 catches for 390 yards and seven touchdowns
in his last three games ... Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said he won't
announce a starting quarterback for Week 10 against New Mexico. The Utes
head coach is deciding between Terrance Cain,
who has started every game this season, or Jordan Wynn, who led Utah to a comeback win in Week 9 against Wyoming
after he replaced an ineffective Cain ... Utah running back Eddie Wide has tied a school record with five straight 100-yard
rushing games, making Utes fans forget about Matt Asiata, who is out for the season with a knee injury ... New
Mexico wide receiver Daryl Jones has a
touchdown in two straight games.
Byes: None
Teams
playing FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Colorado
State at UNLV. If the Rebels had a respectable defense, they might be
better than 3-6. But they are just giving up too many yards and points.
UNLV is 112th in total (449.8 ypg) and 109th in scoring defense (33.8
ppg). They have held just one opponent to less than 30 points in their
last seven games.
Unfavorable matchup: San Diego State vs.
TCU. The Horned Frogs have allowed 13 points in their last three games
and are coming off a shutout of UNLV. They are up to first in the nation
in total defense (235.8 ypg) and third in scoring defense (11.1 ppg).
San Diego State managed just seven points and minus-13 rushing yards
last season against TCU. Ouch.
Pac-10
Notes: USC tight end Anthony McCoy is questionable for Week 10 against Arizona State after
sitting out the Oregon game in Week 9 with a sprained ankle ... Cal wide
receiver Marvin Jones has a touchdown
in three straight games and four total in that span. He has definitely
emerged as quarterback Kevin Riley's favorite target not named Jahvid Best ... UCLA quarterback Kevin Prince
has thrown for 300-plus yards in two of his last three games and is
starting to show why coach Rick Neuheisel chose him as the starting
quarterback in the offseason ... UCLA wide receiver Nelson Rosario had a career-high 152 yards in a Week 9 loss to Oregon
State ... Oregon is still going through the motions on a possible
reinstatement of suspended running back LeGarrette Blount, but as LaMichael James
has shown, the Ducks can do without Blount. James has managed to rush
for 100-plus yards in five of his last six games and is up to 15th in
the nation in rushing (114.8 ypg).
Byes: None
Teams
playing FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Arizona vs.
Washington State. Since Nick Foles has
taken over at quarterback for Arizona, the Wildcats have moved the ball
effectively. They are averaging 35 points per game with Foles under
center and are up to 14th in total offense (445.4 ypg). That's good news
as Arizona is about to tangle with Wazzu, who is 119th in total defense
(511.1 ypg).
Unfavorable matchup: Stanford vs. Oregon. The
Ducks did a solid job on defense against USC in a huge Week 9 win, but
this is nothing new for the Ducks. Oregon is a top 20 team in both
scoring (17.1 ppg) and total defense (300.9 ypg). They have held the
opposition to 20 or less points in five straight games.
SEC
Notes: Arkansas running back Michael Smith was held out of a Week 9 win against Eastern Michigan to
rest his sore hamstrings. However, he is not expected to miss Saturday's
SEC showdown with South Carolina ... Auburn running back Onterio McCalebb is likely to sit out again in Week 10 against Furman
to rest an ankle injury that kept him out Week 9 against Ole Miss ...
Kentucky running back Derrick Locke is
not expected to play on Saturday against Eastern Kentucky because of
scar tissue in his surgically-repaired left knee... Vanderbilt's Mackenzi Adams has taken over at quarterback for the injured Larry Smith, who could miss the rest of the season with a tear in his
left hamstring ... Auburn running back Ben Tate
has managed 100 yards in four of his last five games. He has five
touchdowns in that span ... He's baaaaack! Ole Miss wide receiver Dexter McCluster has finally broken out of his season-long slump with
463 total yards (309 rushing) in his last two games ... Georgia coach
Mark Richt is remaining mum on whether he will make a change at
quarterback. Georgia has lost three of four games, leading to
speculation that Logan Gray might
replace Joe Cox under center ...
Mississippi State running back Anthony Dixon
set a school record with 252 rushing yards in a Week 9 win over
Kentucky. Dixon broke the 1,000-yard barrier on the season and is up to
sixth in the nation in rushing (125.1 ypg) ... LSU running back Charles Scott had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season during
a Week 9 win against Tulane. Scott also scored twice... LSU wide
receiver Brandon LaFell had his third
multi-touchdown game of the season in Week 9.
Byes: Mississippi
State
Teams playing FCS schools: Georgia (vs. Tennessee Tech);
Auburn (vs. Furman); Kentucky (vs. Eastern Kentucky); Mississippi (vs.
Northern Arizona)
Favorable matchup: Tennessee vs. Memphis.
The Vols take a breather from the rigors of the SEC play to face
Memphis, who hails from Conference USA. Memphis has allowed an average
of 37 points in their last two games and has dropped to 98th in scoring
defense (30.4 ppg). They are also allowing 197.8 rushing yards per game
(105th) and that's not good going up against a team that likes to run
the football.
Unfavorable matchup: LSU at Alabama. We expect
this game to also be a low-scoring affair as two of the nation's top
defenses meet in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Alabama is fifth in scoring defense
(11.4 ppg) and LSU is seventh (12.1 ppg).
Sun Belt
Notes: Florida Atlantic quarterback Rusty Smith injured his non-throwing shoulder during a Week 9 loss to
Middle Tennessee State. The Owls aren't sure of his status for Week 10
against UAB and said they are preparing as if Jeff Van Camp will make his first career start. The news isn't much
better since tight end Jason Harmon is
also questionable with a hip injury ... The reason for FIU wide receiver T.Y. Hilton's poor play as of late has been because of a nagging
knee injury. It's probably best to keep him reserved in Fantasy until he
is 100 percent ... North Texas quarterback Riley Dodge returned from a high-ankle sprain in Week 9 against
Western Kentucky to total 332 yards and seven touchdowns (four passing).
He finally showed the type of potential he brings to the table, but
before we start recommending picking him up in all formats, let's not
forget he was playing the worst defense in college football ... North
Texas running back Lance Dunbar also
chewed up WKU for 227 rushing yards. It was his second 200-yard game in
three outings and Dunbar has become a must-start Fantasy option ...
Middle Tennessee State running back D.D. Kyles
rushed for a career-high 140 yards in Week 9 against FAU. He has a
touchdown in two straight games as well ... Arkansas State wide receiver Brandon Thompkins has a touchdown in four of his last five games ...
Troy wide receiver Jerrel Jernigan had
13 catches for 203 yards -- both career highs -- in Week 9 against
La.-Monroe. Jernigan has emerged from his early-season slump with 23
catches for 383 yards and two touchdowns in his last three games ...
La.-Monroe wide receiver LaGregory Sapp
has managed 100 yards in consecutive games for the first time in his
career.
Byes: None
Teams playing FCS schools: None
Favorable
matchup: Troy at Western Kentucky. The Sun Belt's top offense, Troy
(455.8 ypg), is going up against the conference's worst defense, Western
Kentucky (518.4 ypg). Enough said.
Unfavorable matchup: La.-Lafayette
at Arkansas State. In reverse fashion, La.-Lafayette is second to last
in scoring offense (22.0 ppg) in the Sun Belt and Arkansas State is
first in scoring defense (19.9 ppg). The Red Wolves haven't allowed more
than 24 points in any of their last four games, so it could be very
tough for the Ragin' Cajuns to move the football.
WAC
Notes: Louisiana Tech running back Daniel Porter (upper body) and wide receiver Phillip Livas (leg) are both questionable for Week 10 against Boise
State ... Idaho running back DeMaundray Woolridge
had his fifth multi-touchdown game in Week 9 against Louisiana Tech ...
Idaho running back Max Komar has 17
catches for 269 yards and five touchdowns in his last two games. He has
emerged as the Vandals' top receiver ... Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick has become just the sixth player in FBS history to
score 200 points and throw for 200 points in a career ... Hawaii wide
receiver Jovonte Taylor had the best
game of his career with six catches for 109 yards and two touchdowns in
Week 9 against Nevada. Taylor has 16 catches for 221 yards and two
touchdowns in his last three games and is emerging as a reliable threat
in the Hawaii passing game.
Byes: New Mexico State
Teams
playing FCS schools: None
Favorable matchup: Utah State at
Hawaii. Both the Aggies and Warriors are in the bottom 20 for scoring
and total defense. It definitely could be a high-scoring affair on
Saturday.
Unfavorable matchup: Louisiana Tech vs. Boise State.
The Broncos are first in WAC play in scoring (16.7 ppg) and total
defense (345.7 ypg). They have outscored opponents 99-16 in their last
two WAC games and continue to dominant. Louisiana Tech also managed just
three points last season against Boise State.
