Week 8 CFB Picks Today: PrizePicks Cheat Sheet for CFB DFS
We have a few massive ranked matchups for Week 8 of the college football season with huge playoff implications — with plenty of exciting CFB DFS options.
Even some of the ranked versus non-ranked games have extra importance, as teams are still close in the conference standings. The conference championship gets you an automatic bid to the College Football Playoff — adding extra excitement to every game.
In the Week 8 CFB Cheat Sheet, we'll analyze some of the best player projections to target this Saturday by looking at key conference games. Grab these CFB picks in your PrizePicks Lineups, and enjoy the games.
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Week 8 CFB Picks for PrizePicks & DFS
Here are the top CFB picks for Saturday, October 19, for PrizePicks and DFS. Add these players to your lineup and stay in the green. Click each projection for more analysis.
Quarterback Picks
Miami QB Cam Ward 349.5 Passing Yards — More (Demon)
Louisville QB Tyler Shough 262.5 Passing Yards — More
Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard 239.5 Pass+Rush Yards — More
Running Back Picks
Auburn RB Jarquez Hunter 49.5 Rushing Yards — More (Goblin)
Michigan RB Kalel Mullings 81.5 Rushing Yards — More
Cincinnati RB Corey Kiner Rush+Rec TD Scorer
Wide Receiver Picks
Northwestern WR A.J. Henning 51.5 Receiving Yards — Less
Arkansas WR Andrew Armstrong 99.5 Receiving Yards — More (Demon)
LSU WR Karen Lacy 5 Receptions — More
QB Picks for CFB DFS Week 8
Miami QB Cam Ward 349.5 Passing Yards — More (Demon)
Miami has escaped a few close calls. They had the last-second game winner against Virginia Tech, which was reviewed and ultimately decided in Miami’s favor. Then, they made a 25-point comeback in the second half to beat California.
QB Cam Ward has been a significant reason for the Hurricanes’ success, leading the FBS with 369.8 yards per game and 20 touchdowns. No lead is safe with Ward under center.
Ward will face Louisville in what could be an offensive battle, and Ward is set up to have a great day. Louisville allowed three of the last four Power Five quarterbacks to throw for at least 275 yards, and they’ve allowed 20+ yards of completion in each of those games.
Ward’s standard PrizePicks projection is 324.5 passing yards.
Demons are high-difficulty projections that can rocket your max payout up to 100x if you pick correctly.
Louisville QB Tyler Shough 262.5 Passing Yards — More
On the other side of that matchup, Louisville QB Tyler Shough can sling the ball, as he’s 14th in passing yards per completion (14.4) and 16th in passing yards per game (279.0).
On paper, Miami looks like a good passing defense, but that had much to do with their early schedule. Two weeks ago, Cal QB Fernando Mendoza burned them for 289 yards and two touchdowns, and the week prior, Virginia Tech QB Kyron Drones threw for two touchdowns.
This will be another multiple-passing-touchdown day allowed by the Canes, as Shough should move the ball well in a close game
Other PrizePicks Projections: Tyler Shough 1.5 Pass TDs (Goblin)
Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard 239.5 Pass+Rush Yards — More
Let’s continue to connect some dots. We mentioned there was one quarterback who didn’t throw for 275 yards against Louisville, and that was Leonard. His passing ability has disappeared since coming to South Bend.
He had his first 200+ passing yard game last week, but that was against Stanford, whose 64.7 PFF Coverage Grade ranks 110th in the nation.
Guess what? He faces Georgia Tech this week, whose 66.8 PFF Coverage Grade is 106th. Their run defense is far superior, as their defensive rush EPA ranks 22nd (-0.080). He’ll see QB Haynes King on the other side, one of the country's better dual-threats, and Leonard will have to do both as well.
Georgia Tech has been poor at getting pressure to the pocket, so Leonard will have to either throw or elect to take off.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Riley Leonard 0.5 Rush+Rec TDs (Goblin)
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RB Picks for CFB DFS Week 8
Auburn RB Jarquez Hunter 49.5 Rushing Yard — More (Goblin)
When you look at Auburn’s record, you think they’re a terrible football team, but when you peel back the layers, you see they have some talent. They are in the top 50 in terms of points allowed (20.8 per game) and rushing defense (120.4 yards per game), and it’s helped the offense stay in games.
It’s this one part giving them issues — turnovers. Their 15 giveaways are the third-most in the nation. Don’t expect them to fix that in the bye week, but they could be better.
Missouri has seven takeaways this year, five of which were interceptions. Auburn RB Jarquez Hunter had some fumble problems early in the season, but hasn’t had any in his last three games, including against Oklahoma, who has an FBS-high eight fumble recoveries.
As long as he keeps the ball, he can have a great day in what could be a closer game than many expect.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Jarquez Hunter 73.5 Rush Yards / 0.5 Rush+ Rec TDs (Goblin)
Michigan RB Kalel Mullings 81.5 Rushing Yards — More
The loss to Washington has ultimately eliminated Michigan from playoff contention, but we knew this program's changes could make it a down year.
The defense is fantastic as usual, with a 91.5 PFF Defensive Grade ranking fifth, but the offense is a shell of itself. More specifically, in the passing game, they have just 690 passing yards, which is 131st out of 133 teams, just ahead of Army and Air Force.
They can run, though, especially when RB Kalel Mullings has the ball. The power back is 22nd in the nation with 6.4 yards per carry, and Illinois is 77th, allowing 4.5 rushing yards per carry.
The Wolverines will be on their third quarterback, sixth-year senior Jack Tuttle, who has thrown just 47 passes since 2022. They will rely on the run game led by Mullings here because they simply have to.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Kalel Mullings 0.5 Rush+Rec TDs / 18.5 Fantasy Score
Cincinnati RB Corey Kiner Rush+Rec TD Scorer — More
With only one conference loss, Cincinnati still aspires for the Big 12 title and a playoff spot. This week, they will play one of the teams above them with a chance to get a leg up in the Big 12 race.
Corey Kiner leads the backfield with 84 carries and 5.9 yards per run. Arizona State has been great against the run with the 11th-best defensive EPA rush rank (0.180), but Kiner has outperformed in tough matchups. UCF is 23rd in that same category, and he ran for 83 yards; Pittsburgh is 13th, and he had 149.
He just needs to break a couple off with his size and speed, and he’ll hit this.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Corey Kiner 81.5 Rush Yards
WR Picks for CFB DFS Week 8
Northwestern WR A.J. Henning 51.5 Receiving Yards — Less
After all the turmoil facing the Northwestern program, we predicted it would be a tough year. That’s exactly how it’s gone down, with a 3-3 record and 1-2 in the conference.
The defense has always been this program’s strength, and its 84.6 PFF Grade is ninth in the Big Ten, but offensively, it has the second-worst PFF Grade in the conference (68.3).
This weekend, they’ll be in a defensive battle against the Wisconsin Badgers, who excel in the secondary and have a 90.7 PFF Coverage Grade, which ranks 14th in the nation.
Looking at A.J. Henning’s recent numbers, it’s easy to believe he could have a good game, but the level of competition has been below average.
He’s faced Maryland, which is 15th in passing yards allowed per game in the Big 10 (258.3), and Illinois, which is 10th (197.3). This week, he faces Wisconsin, which is fifth (168.2).
Expect Henning to fall short of this projection in a touch matchup.
Arkansas WR Andrew Armstrong 99.5 Receiving Yards — More (Demon)
Arkansas is an SEC team still in conference championship contention, as these undefeated teams could knock each other off. They will, however, need to win out. They already have one big win on their resume against Tennessee, and they could get another against LSU this week.
Arkansas WR Andrew Armstrong played a large part in that win over Tennessee with 132 receiving yards. That’s the second game in which he’s gone over 130 yards, and he’s 19th in receiving yards (552) in the country.
The Tigers are fantastic offensively and one of the best in the conference, but they will give up points. Expect Armstrong to be a big part of that.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Andrew Armstrong 0.5 Rush+Rec TD Scorer (Demon)
LSU WR Kyren Lacy 5 Receptions — More
LSU looks like they’re improving every week. As one of the three remaining teams with a perfect conference record and playing Texas A&M next week, they control their own destiny. QB Garrett Nussmeier is finally getting his chance to start, and he’s making the best of it with 1,989 passing yards and 18 touchdowns.
He loves targeting WR Kyren Lacy, and the fifth-year senior has had two games with over 100 yards receiving and made the game-winning catch in overtime last week. He’s averaging over 9 targets per game, and has at least 7 targets in every game.
He’s had exactly five catches in four of his last five games, but he could break that this week. Arkansas is a good pass defense, but they’ve allowed a player to have 6+ receptions in three of four games against Power Four opponents.
Other PrizePicks Projections: Kyren Lacy 89.5 Receiving Yards (Demon)
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