College Fantasy Football News

Drafting Tips for 2003

By John Horvath, Contributing Writer for CFFL.com

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Players who need to be on your radar in 2003

Because of the turnover in college football, there are always players who will seemingly come out of the woodwork and put up very solid, if not monster fantasy numbers.  The best (simply because it's the easiest to predict) place to look is at the guys who are replacing last year's studs.  While production tends to tail off, some schools have more than adequate replacements coming in to fill the holes.  Here are a handful of guys who need to be on your draft radar. 

Quarterback 

BJ Symons, Texas Tech - He's stepping into the very large fantasy shoes of Kliff Kingsbury, and while you probably shouldn't expect the 5000 yards and 45 TD that Kingsbury produced, it's not like anyone else in college will be mirroring that, either.  Here's what BJ Symons has going for him:  First, he's been around a while.  He arrived at Tech in 1999 and has had plenty of time to absorb the system.  And what a system it is!  They throw the ball so much in Lubbock, that 3500 yds and 25 TD is a given, in my estimation.  I'm expecting closer to 4000/35.  Symons is said to have a stronger arm than Kingsbury, make good decisions and he's surrounded by players who can make plays.  Head coach Mike Leach also had the foresight to give him some game time to prepare him to be the full-time guy in 2003.  Add to all of this a defense that, well, absolutely stinks, and you can expect Tech to be in a position to have to throw the ball.  Expect big things.

Stan Hill, Marshall - It used to be safe to expect that any QB playing at BYU would put up huge, borderline obnoxious passing numbers.  Well, Marshall is the BYU of the 21st century.  Like Symons, Stan Hill is replacing a local legend who put up huge numbers.  He is a junior who played very well while Lord Byron was nursing his gimp leg last year.  Hill even brings some mobility to the table.  Besides being in an offense that is conducive to QB (to say the least), you need not look further than the receivers to whom he'll be throwing to have good reason to believe that Hill will produce. In a year or two, Darius Watts and Josh Davis will both be playing on Sundays.    Bottom line is that Bob Pruett will be running a very similar offense at Marshall with Hill that he did with Leftwich.  Pruett's expects similar results and so should you.  3500/25 sounds about right, along w/ a rushing TD or two.

Others to watch: Brock Berlin (Miami), Chance Mock (Texas)

Runningback 

Quincy Wilson, West Virginia - Avon Cobourne and his 1710/17 are off to the NFL, but it's not as if the Mountaineers are in dire straights without him.  Quincy Wilson actually averaged almost a yard and a half more per carry (6.4) than did Cobourne in 2002.  Cobourne saw 335 carries to Wilson's 140.  Wilson will be counted on to be the man this year and there is a distinct possibility that he will duplicate if not eclipse Cobourne's numbers from last year.  Remember, this is an offense that likes to pound the ball (714 rushing attempts last year, compared with only 148 passes).  While the offensive line loses a couple of starters, 7 of their top 10 will be back this year.  If there's anything that could hold back Wilson from a big year, it's the offensive line.  I'm still expecting big things.

David Mikell, Boise State - Last year, Brock Forsey was a touchdown machine, finding the endzone 26 times to go along with his 1648 rushing yards.  Forsey is gone, and his replacement is David Mikell, a player who earned regular playing time and put up 1526 yds (5.5 ypc) in his time on the field.  Mikell has shown good hands and is very fast (4.43).  As a bonus, he has been very dangerous in the return game.  It is yet to be seen whether he will continue in this role, but it's just another way he might help out your team (depending on your scoring system, of course).  The one knock on Mikell is that he's been banged up a bit in the past.  He seems primed to finish his career on the blue turf with a bang!

Frank Gore, Miami - Frank Gore is the replacement that gets the most press.  In fact, he gets so much press that in my first draft of this article, I only put him in the "others" list you'll find below.  You've probably heard about how he was first string over Willis McGahee before he blew out his knee and about the 9.1 ypc so many times that you're sick of it.  I know I sure am!  I'm gonna tell you why you really should consider picking Gore.  He plays for Miami.  Period.  So what, you say? Miami is the Denver Broncos of the NCAA – just plug in a RB and the train rolls on. James Jackson is gone?  No problem!  We'll just start Clinton Portis. No more Portis? No problem!  In steps Willis McGahee. No more McGahee?  No problem!  We've got Gore.  Miami’s cupboard is stocked like none other in college football.  In fact, despite losing two starters on their offensive line last year, the unit appears to be stronger in 2003.  Keep in mind, though, that while Gore is said to be 100% recovered, it'd be smart to get his backup.  No, I'm not talking about “Sweetness Jr.” Jaret Payton.  Incoming recruit and the next in line after Gore (if not sooner), Tyrone Moss, should be someone you target as a backup.  Write that down.

Some others to keep in mind: - Kejuan Jones (Oklahoma), Bobby Purify/Brian Calhoun (Colorado)

Wide Receiver

Let me preface this by saying that wide receiver is the toughest position to predict breakout years, primarily because teams are generally very deep at WR and the heir apparent isn't as obvious.  I generally like to go after studs at WR and trust my research and guts to get a quality player at QB and RB.  Still, here are some guys who will likely outperform their draft position and put up better numbers in 2003 than they did in 2002.

Craphonso Thorpe, Florida State - This track star has the unenviable task of replacing Andre Johnson as the #1 receiver at FSU.  A bit on the thin side, Thorpe is a classic burner who will stretch the defense and make the most out of every catch.  Last year, he averaged 22.2 ypc and scored on 4 of 17 catches!  The offense is bound to put up its fair share of points and Thorpe appears ready to emerge from the shadows to become the next great receiver at FSU.  The only real question mark here seems to be Chris Rix, a QB who can be red hot or ice cold.  Thorpe is a huge big play threat, which makes him a very attractive fantasy receiver.

Britton Komine/Jeremiah Cotcheran, Hawaii - June Jones has his potent air attack in full swing out in Honolulu.  It starts with the QB, and Timmy Chang knows the system.  Since you can trust the QB to put up good numbers, the receivers should be dependable.  Brett Komine put up reasonable numbers in 2001 and finished very strong after a slow start.  He ended up with 886/10 (15.3 ypc).  Jeremiah Cotcheran is a JUCO transfer in his 2nd year with the Warriors.  He's got decent size (6', 190) and blazing speed (4.26-4.3) and could blow up this year in this offense.  Hawaii is committed to throwing the ball early and often.  There's going to be enough balls out there for both of them, but whoever becomes Chang's "go to" receiver will put up some impressive numbers.

Lonnel Penman/Jermaine Moore, San Diego State - Graduation hit San Diego State's receiving corps harder than any other in the country.  In J.R. Tolver and Kassim Osgood, they lost two of the top 4 receivers in the country (both caught over 100 balls for over 1500 yards).  The offense is built around the pass and Penman and Moore appear to be the main replacements.  The good thing about this offense is that it can obviously sustain two top receiving threats.  The obvious downside here is that neither has much game experience.  They're probably not guys you'd want to go after in the early rounds, but both could be your super-sleeper and put up high round numbers at low round price.

Others to watch: Sammy Moore (Washington St.), Kevin Beard/Jason Geathers/Akieem Jolla (Miami)