DraftKings CFB DFS Lineup Picks: Daily College Fantasy Football - Friday (12/16/22)

Mike's DraftKings daily fantasy college football lineup picks for the first day of bowl season (12/16/22). His CFB DFS lineup picks and DFS sleepers will help you win.

Bowl season starts today! It's nice that we get some bonus action on a Friday! I'll take college football wherever I can get it! The first two of 43 bowl games are today, so there's still plenty of money left out there on the DFS table!

We kick off bowl season in the Bahamas with UAB taking on Miami of Ohio bright and early. The second game of the doubleheader leaves the evening free for NBA since it starts at 3 pm Eastern in Orlando with UTSA taking on Troy in arguably the best game before New Year's.

In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy college football lineup picks for DraftKings on 12/16/22 locking at 11:30 am eastern. I’ll provide multiple player suggestions for players at quarterback, running back, and wide receiver, aiming to highlight one option at the high, middle, and lower end of the salary scale. Good luck, RotoBallers.

DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Quarterbacks

Frank Harris, UTSA ($8,200)

Harris is by far the most talented quarterback on this small slate and right now is the only one that might stick in the pros. This is not a great matchup with Troy's swarming defense, but I trust the veteran Harris enough to use him here. Louisiana Tech and Texas are the only teams to hold him under 20 DraftKings points this year, and the Louisiana Tech game was a 44-point blowout win, so they didn't need Harris. They'll need him here and I think he comes through in his last game for the Roadrunners.

Gunnar Watson, Troy ($6,300)

Watson had his best game against an FBS opponent in the Fun Belt Championship against Coastal Carolina. Don't expect a repeat against UTSA. That said, Watson's two best games were against Appalachian State and CCU, the two best bowl-eligible teams in the Belt. He seems to be at his best in games where the Trojans are forced to lean on him. That said, Watson only had two of 11 games against FBS opponents where he threw for more than one touchdown. One of those was against CCU.

Why is Watson here if I don't trust him? I realize that most of us run two-quarterback lineups and Dylan Hopkins' sole purpose is to hand off and get out of the way. Brett Gabbert, Miami-Ohio's starter to begin the season, has removed his name from the portal and is staying with the Redhawks. I would think Smith still starts the game, but he likely has a shorter leash than any of the other three on the slate. Harris is the only sure thing. This might be a time to use the superflex on another back!

Also consider: Aveon Smith, Miami(OH) ($6,700); Dylan Hopkins, UAB ($5,500)

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DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Running Backs

Jermaine Brown Jr., UAB ($6,300)

Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year and NFL draft prospect DeWayne McBride is listed as "doubtful" for this game, but there is no reason why. Don't you just love college football DFS? We won't find out his status until sometime right before or during the first half of the game. I like Brown anyway because we know that he's playing...and...well...he has run for over 100 yards four times this season as a backup. If Brown gets the start here, he's going to break the slate. If you're not going to have time before lunch to watch this news, play Brown. The "doubtful" tag is promising for Brown's value, but without any official news, we'll never really know.

Kevorian Barnes, UTSA ($5,200)

Brendan Brady and Trelon Smith are still listed as out, so the freshman will get another start here. This is a tough spot for Barnes against this Troy defense, but the Roadrunners aren't afraid to use him as a receiver out of the backfield either. If you can't afford Vidal, Barnes is an excellent plan B as the second back or as a contrarian superflex play.

Also consider: Kimani Vidal, Troy ($5,900); DK Billingsley, Troy ($4,200)

DraftKings CFB DFS Picks - Wide Receivers

Zakhari Franklin, UTSA ($7,400)

Franklin has an NFL career in front of him, but you aren't keeping him out of this game unless you tie him to his locker. He and Harris are going to finish this thing strong. Franklin has 17 receptions for 270 yards and four touchdowns over the last two games alone. The Roadrunners are going to have to get deep on Troy to win this game and Franklin is capable of doing that.

Mac Hippenhammer, Miami (OH) ($6,500)

The Redhawks had huge quarterback issues when Brett Gabbert first went down and it sent Hippenhammer's season into a tailspin. Since Aveon Smith has come into his own, Hippenhammer has been doing what we expected. He has at least 70 receiving yards in each of the last four games, topping 100 twice and scoring four touchdowns. He's going to score again here, especially if UAB jumps out ahead with their superior running game.

Trea Shropshire, UAB ($5,600)

There's really no reason not to use Shropshire at this price. Despite UAB's outstanding run game, Shropshire has still scored a touchdown in three of the last four games. The only game in which he didn't score was against LSU, but he still caught four passes. If, as expected, McBride sits this one out, we could see UAB throw a little more than normal.

Also consider: Tez Johnson, Troy ($6,100); Rajae' Johnson, Troy ($5,300); Oscar Cardenas, UTSA ($4,800)

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