College Football DFS Picks: Hawaii Bowl Breakdown and Lineup Strategy

College Football DFS Picks: Hawaii Bowl Slate

Slate Overview

While most of the nation braves the bitter cold for the holiday season, take a break on the couch and enjoy the sunny backdrop of Honolulu for the Hawaii Bowl. Middle Tennessee and San Diego State will play against one another for the first time ever. The Aztecs are favored by a touchdown in a game that has a rather low over/under at 45.5 points which means you will need to be strategic for DFS purposes.

Since there is only one game, DraftKings is operating under Showdown rules. You have $50,000 in salary to spend on six players. It's all offensive players and kickers, for the record. Your captain earns you 1.5 times the points, but their salary is elevated as a result. Here are some line-up considerations you could go with for the Hawaii Bowl.

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Positional Breakdown

Captain

Chase Cunningham, QB Middle Tennessee vs. San Diego State ($16,800)

Because there's a ton of value with the position players in this contest, there's really no reason to look anywhere else but the QB position for the captain spot. I give Cunningham a slight edge over QB Jalen Mayden ($16,200) because I think the Blue Raiders will be more likely to throw the ball. Cunningham averaged 33.6 fantasy points in the last two regular season games on 48.0 passing and 10.0 rushing attempts per contest. He recorded a career-high six rushing scores on the year which provides him with the most upside in this single-game slate. For large GPP contests, you could consider playing a different captain, but Cunningham should remain in your line-up.

Utility

Jaylin Lane, WR, Middleton Tennessee vs. San Diego State ($9,800)

Lane is the Blue Raiders' top playmaker as he averaged 17.4 DK points per contest in 10 games. His 8.2 targets per game means he's likely to get a decent amount of looks against a stingy San Diego State defense. As I mentioned with Cunningham, the game script will favor Middle Tennessee throwing the ball, so look for the Cunningham and Lane stack to be the most reliable, however, likely very popular. Where you can be different is with the San Diego State players.

Jordan Byrd, RB San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee ($4,400)

Byrd was the reliable senior in the backfield for San Diego State in 2022 as he led what proved to be a committee of four different guys. The Aztecs bolster one of the most balanced offensive attacks in all of college football and I don't see that changing in the bowl game. Byrd also had a pair of special teams touchdowns this season, so you never know!

Chance Bell, RB, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee ($3,200)

Bell is a wildcard as he's one of the most experienced players in the bowl game, however, was never really able to get it going during the 2022 season. We've seen many times that a bowl environment can spark motivation for those type of players. Bell came in to the season with nine career touchdowns and he could get his 10th in the Hawaii Bowl. 

Kenan Christon, RB, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee ($3,600)

It's too hard to predict which San Diego State running back will lead the way, so why not play three of them? You can do exactly that at their prices and it could be a strong play with the Aztecs expected to run the ball 30+ times in a low-scoring affair. With this approach, I'm fading Jaylon Armstead ($4,800) which I think is the best way to differentiate yourself from other line-ups. You could play Armstead instead of Bell or Christon, but why not go for the upside with lower ownership.

Jalen Mayden, QB, San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee ($10,800)

With the money saved due to playing the multitude of San Diego State running backs, you can also fit Mayden in the line-up. Since taking over his roster spot in Week 6 against Hawaii, he's averaged 8.1 rushing attempts himself. He's not a run-only quarterback either while averaging 245.9 yards and 1.4 touchdowns on 27.7 attempts per game. What I like about this strategy is that it can win in a low-scoring or high-scoring scenario which is optimal in these unpredictable bowl games.