CFB Waiver Wire: Players to Pick Up Week 5

Welcome to another installment of the waiver wire watch. Throughout the college football season, I'll pick two guys from every conference who either caught my eye in the previous week or who have a favorable match-up in the near future. As always, I'll get to any questions or comments you have in the comments section below.

AAC

Jordan McCloud, QB, South Florida
The Bulls pulled the starting job from Blake Barnett after the first two weeks and McCloud thanked them with five total touchdowns (three passing and two rushing) in Week 3. The freshman dual-threat quarterback was on a bye this past week which means that he can be added right away for fantasy teams looking for a signal caller. While I'm a bit worried about the success being against just South Carolina State, I also know that SMU will prefer an up-tempo shootout with the Bulls this week.

Gabriel Davis, WR, UCF
Davis had a breakout Week 4 in the Knights' first loss with 10 catches for 151 yards and two touchdowns. He's available in roughly half of fantasy leagues and should be owned in all of them as UCF has one of the most efficient offenses in the nation. The junior has at least three catches in all four games this year and a total of five touchdowns. I haven't even gotten to the fact that he's averaging a ridiculous 19 yards per catch this season. UCF could realistically put up 60 or 70 points on Connecticut this week.

Last Week; Temple QB Anthony Russo (25/51, 258 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT) & Tulane RB Darius Bradwell (20 rushes for 113 yards)

ACC

Tommy DeVito, QB, Syracuse
It was tough to recommend DeVito after Clemson completely demolished the kid to the tune of negative 42 rushing yards in Week 3, but it probably should have been done as he came out and totaled five touchdowns versus Western Michigan. With the Orange welcoming in Holy Cross this week, DeVito should have yet another big performance. For reference, Dino Babers allowed his starting quarterback, Eric Dungey, to throw five touchdown passes in a 62-10 win over an FCS team in 2018, so I expect DeVito to play quite a bit.

Scotty Washington, WR, Wake Forest
I've received a ton of questions on Washington over the last couple of weeks and my answer has been simple on the senior receiver, keep him in the lineup because Wake Forest is a high-volume passing team. Quarterback Jamie Newman has been balling out and both Washington and Sage Surratt are having monster years. While Washington had just two catches for 31 yards in Week 3, he did see seven targets which suggested that he would have a big game in Week 4. That he did with nine catches for 141 yards and two touchdowns. He's not going to slow down versus Boston College and has at least seven targets in every game this year.

Last Week; Louisville WR Chatarius Atwell (Five catches for 69 yards, 1 TD) & Miami RB DeeJay Dallas (14 rushes for 34 yards, 1 TD, 1 catch for 19 yards)

BIG 12

Brock Purdy, QB, Iowa State
Repeat recommendations are bittersweet because it means that the player came through, yet not enough people jumped on the waiver wire to pick them up. Purdy will definitely change the latter after becoming the first Iowa State player to surpass 500 total yards of offense in Week 4. The yardage was just a bonus as he racked up a total of six touchdowns and a monster fantasy performance. The Cyclones will begin their Big 12 slate next week which means that Purdy is fantasy-viable for the rest of the season.

James Gilbert, RB, Kansas State
To avoid going double repeat recommendation with TCU's Darius Anderson who I also like in Week 5 (vs. Kansas), I'm going to recommend Gilbert. Kansas State is coming off a bye and will head to play Oklahoma State. Pretty much any game with the Cowboys ends up being a high-scoring affair and the Wildcats showed some serious promise with a win against Mississippi State in Week 3. Even though Gilbert had a quieter day (17 carries for 59 yards) in the win over the SEC foe, his volume of rushing attempts in a run-heavy offense perks my interest.

Last Week; Iowa State QB Brock Purdy (21/27, 435 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 75 yards & 3 TD rushing) & TCU RB Darius Anderson (19 rushes for 161 yards, 2 TD, 2 catches for 32 yards)

BIG TEN

Ronnie Bell, WR, Michigan
Michigan has some serious soul-searching to do on offense as it couldn't get anything going against Wisconsin. Bell led the team in targets with nine and receiving yardage at 81 yards. His typical target share should yield a productive outing against Rutgers. If Michigan wants to get the fans back on their side, they're going to need to score as many points as possible on the Scarlet Knights. I'm counting on the Wolverines being motivated this week.

Nate Stanley, QB, Iowa
Coming off a bye, the Iowa Hawkeyes have the easiest Big Ten matchup of the week with Middle Tennessee. When excluding the in-state rivalry game with Iowa State, Stanley has been quite productive with three touchdowns apiece in Iowa's wins over Rutgers and Miami of Ohio. The senior's good for a spot-start this week and should toss multiple scores against a Middle Tennessee squad who gave up 40 and 41 points to Michigan and Duke respectively.

Last Week; Indiana QB Peyton Ramsey (23/27, 247 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT) & Nebraska RB Maurice Washington (10 rushes for 89 yards *Left game with injury)

C-USA

Tyler Johnston III, QB, UAB
Johnston is fresh off two consecutive starts with over 30 fantasy points as he racked up seven passing scores against South Alabama and Akron. He's actually minimized running back Spencer Brown's value to a degree because the Blazers are choosing to throw the ball a lot more. That game plan shouldn't change this week against a Western Kentucky team who isn't very good.

Jaelon Darden, WR, North Texas
It was recently announced that stud receiver Rico Bussey is out for the season with a torn ACL. That's terrible timing as the Mean Green get to play Houston and their inept defense this week. Enter Darden, who was already leading the team in target share with over 30 percent of the team's targets this year. Through four games, the junior has 22 catches for 220 yards and three touchdowns. Not only is he good for this week, but he can be utilized deep in to the season as North Texas should have no problems scoring on other C-USA teams.

Last Week; Florida Atlantic WR John Mitchell (Four catches for 71 yards) & Marshall TE Xavier Gaines (Bye Week – Keep on Radar)

MAC

Kato Nelson, QB, Akron
I'm all-in on Nelson's dual-threat ability this week because Akron plays the Minutemen of Massachusetts who I consider to be the undisputed worst team in college football. UMass gave up 62 points to Coastal Carolina in Week 4, 52 points to Charlotte in Week 3, 45 points to Southern Illinois is Week 2 and wait for it, 48 points to Rutgers in Week 1. If you're not looking for fantasy players going up against this awful team, you're not trying.

Jon Wassink, QB, Western Michigan
If you don't want to put your hope in an Akron player or if Nelson is not available, you can pivot to Wassink who gets to play Central Michigan this week. He most recently threw for 356 yards and two touchdowns in a shoot-out at Syracuse. Wassink is a senior signal-caller and should get enough opportunity to have a couple of scores.

Last Week; Eastern Michigan QB Mike Glass III (26/39, 279 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT, 16 yards rushing) & Toledo TE Drew Rosi (One catch for five yards)

MWC

Jaylen Warren, RB, Utah State
Owned in just over 50 percent of fantasy leagues, Warren is still available for a lot of people to take advantage of the upcoming match-up with the Colorado State Rams. He's scored a touchdown in every game this season and he'll have an opportunity to get multiple scores against the Rams who play absolutely no defense. Warren should be owned in 100% of leagues this week. If Warren is not available, teammate Gerold Bright is also an option in deeper leagues.

Nate Craig-Myers, WR, Colorado State
Speaking of those Rams, we need to reload after recommending Dante Wright and Marvin Kinsey Jr. earlier this season. Fellow wideout Warren Jackson is already owned across most leagues, so let's move on to Nate Craig-Meyers, the Auburn transfer who is eligible and ready to play for the Rams. The talented junior should get more and more comfortable in the system each week and was active versus Toledo this past week. As mentioned before, the Rams will have to keep throwing the ball each and every week as they try to compensate for their awful defense.

Last Week; Colorado State RB Marvin Kinsey Jr. (23 rushes for 246 yards, 2 TD, 1 catch for two yards) & Fresno State QB Jorge Reyna (26/39, 312 yards, 2 TD, 36 yards rushing)

PAC-12

Tyler Huntley, QB, Utah
Without Zack Moss, it looks like the Utes will have to rely on Huntley's legs a lot more as the sophomore Devin Brumfield is not as effective as Moss. Brumfield is a decent add if there's a need at the RB position because Utah wants to run the ball. Utah has to take on Washington State this week and that means Huntley may have to throw the ball if the game goes towards the opponent's preferred tempo. Either way the game goes, fantasy owners should flock to Huntley who could have a big week.

Michael Pittman Jr., WR, USC
Pittman was unbelievable in a 30-23 win over Utah on Friday Night with 10 catches for 232 yards and a touchdown. He's caught at least six passes in every game this season and is a valuable part of USC's new Air-Raid offense. This recommendation is tempered by the fact that USC is down to their third-string quarterback in Matt Fink, but that didn't seem to matter to Pittman when he had his big game in the upset of Utah. Pittman is clearly as dangerous a target as teammate Tyler Vaughns and both should be owned in all fantasy leagues.

Last Week; Arizona State WR Brandon Aiyuk (Nine catches for 122 yards, 1 TD) & California QB Chase Garbers (23/35, 357 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT)

SEC

Kyle Trask, QB, Florida
Trask did enough in his first start against Tennessee (20/28 for 293 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT) to prove that he can likely string together some fantasy production versus Towson in Week 5. I wouldn't dare use him against Auburn and LSU in following weeks, but he can be used as a spot-start this week in what's a fairly quiet SEC slate.

Isaiah Spiller, RB, Texas A&M
This is a great opportunity to jump on Spiller as he had just nine yards on six carries in the loss to Auburn on Saturday. The freshman running back did not start the game as that designation went to sophomore Jacob Kibodi, yet he did not look very good either with just 21 yards on six carries. Regardless of who gets the start versus Arkansas (a much worse team than Auburn), I expect both of them to have huge weeks and I tend to think that Spiller is the better player overall.

Last Week; Arkansas QB Nick Starkel (28/50, 356 yards, 3 TD, 5 INT) & Alabama WR DeVonta Smith (two catches for 26 yards)

SUN BELT

Josh Pederson, TE, UL-Monroe
Here's a diamond in the rough as Pederson is a tight end who ranks near the top in target share for his team. Through three games, he has 12 catches for 146 yards and two touchdowns. That's plenty of production for a tight end for your fantasy line-up. Moreover, the Warhawks will play some soft defensive coverages in the Sun Belt, so Pederson could fix a long-term problem at the position.

Justin Tomlin or Shai Werts, QB, Georgia Southern
Tomlin started in place of the injured Werts in their team's most recent two games and nearly led them to an upset win over Minnesota in Week 3. If Werts still can't get go, I would pick up Tomlin because the Eagles next two games with the Ragin' Cajuns of Louisiana and Jaguars of South Alabama sets up well. Conversely, If Werts is coming back, pick him up as he was dropped in most leagues after going down with a shoulder injury against LSU.

Last Week; Troy QB Kaleb Barker (27/37, 214 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT, 42 yards and 1 TD rushing) & Appalachian State WR Corey Sutton (7 catches for 58 yards)

INDEPENDENTS

Cole Kmet, TE, Notre Dame
Welcome back Kmet as he was a force to be reckoned with versus Georgia with nine catches for 108 yards and a touchdown. It just goes to show you what the Fighting Irish were missing when Kmet was out with the collarbone injury. His large frame and catch radius was on full display as he tipped down a touchdown catch against the Bulldogs. He entered the year as one of the top tight end prospects, so if he's available in your fantasy league, go out and get him right away.

Last Week; Liberty QB Stephen Calvert (10/16, 319 yards, 2 TD)

DEFENSE RECOMMENDATIONS

Notre Dame (vs. Virginia) – This game could very easily be a low-scoring game as both teams have a good defense.

Pittsburgh (vs. Delaware) – The Panthers should be riding high with a win against UCF and should shut down FCS foe Delaware.

UAB (at Western Kentucky) – The Blazers have not allowed more than 20 points in any game and have 13 sacks and turnovers.

Last Week; Virginia (vs. Old Dominion – 17 PA, 6 Sacks, 1 TA, 1 TD), Iowa State (vs. Louisiana-Monroe – 20 PA, 3 Sacks, 3 TA, 1 TD), Boise State (vs. Air Force – 19 PA, 1 Sack, 1 TA)

SUMMARY & TOP RECOMMENDATIONS

Utilizing the two players for each conference, I'll list out who my top recommendations are on a weekly basis by position:

QB: Iowa State Brock Purdy, Akron Kato Nelson, Syracuse Tommy DeVito
RB: Utah State Jaylen Warren, Kansas State James Gilbert, Texas A&M Isaiah Spiller
WR: North Texas Jaelon Darden, USC Michael Pittman Jr., Wake Forest Scotty Washington
TE: Notre Dame Cole Kmet, UL-Monroe Josh Pederson
D/ST: Pittsburgh (vs. Delaware)