Tonight, the top-ranked Michigan Wolverines face off against the second-ranked Washington Huskies in the CFP National Championship (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN). Michigan currently sits as five-point favorites ahead of this neutral site clash at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, but with Washington continuing to silence its doubters (and the betting market), the Huskies are undoubtedly a live underdog to win it all.
For college football DFS players looking to submit a DraftKings Showdown contest lineup, we've pinpointed several must-starts and underrated sleepers who can help lead you to some cash when the game clock hits triple zeros.
Before we get into our picks and strategy, here are the key scoring settings for DraftKings Showdown contests: They're full-point PPR and there are three-point bonuses for 300 passing yards, 100 rushing yards, and 100 receiving yards. The Captain pick costs 1.5 times a player's original price, but he also gets his point total multiplied by 1.5.
MORE DK SHOWDOWN: How to win a Showdown contest
College Football DraftKings Showdown Picks: Michigan vs. Washington DFS Lineup Advice
$50,000 budget, need at least one player from each team.
Captain (1.5x points, 1.5x salary): RB Blake Corum, Michigan ($15,900)
Corum, alongside Washington QB Michael Penix Jr., figures to be the most popular Captain selections, and although rostering Michigan's RB1 as our Captain won't give us much differentiation, the matchup's too good to pass up. Corum is set to face a Washington defense ranking 99th in EPA/rush (0.050) and in a potential positive game script as five-point favorites, a 20-plus carry is well within reach for the high-volume back.
MORE MICHIGAN-WASHINGTON:
Game preview | Over/Under | Best props | Best QB Props | SN Expert Picks
Corum is as close to a shoo-in to score a TD as it gets, owning -450 odds (implied probability: 81.82 percent) on DraftKings Sportsbook to reach paydirt, as his elite red-zone usage likely lends itself to at least one TD tonight. Corum has every opportunity to end the night as the leading fantasy point getter, warranting his Captain's salary of $15,900.
FLEX QB Michael Penix Jr., Washington ($11,000)
We can't exclude Penix Jr. from our lineup, although we think there's a chance he's held in check by his standards against Michigan's second-ranked pass defense. In a potential negative game script, a high passing attempt night by Penix Jr. should still result in a respectable passing yardage output.
Penix enters the CFP title game averaging 26.2 DK points per game, so it's fair to expect at least 20-plus points in a projected high-scoring game (Over/Under 56 points). He's fresh off a 430-yard, two-TD showing in UW's Sugar Bowl victory over Texas, and although Michigan's coverage unit is significantly more stout than UT's, it's hard to envision the Heisman runner-up getting shut down completely.
FLEX WR Jalen McMillan, Washington ($7,200)
We're stacking Penix Jr. with UW's third-leading receiver, as the salary cap hinders us from rostering either Rome Odunze or Ja'Lynn Polk. That said, McMillan is a solid value pick at $7,200, as he's just as integral a piece in UW's offense as his fellow wideouts are.
UW's primary slot receiver (89.2 SL%) actually has a higher passer rating when targeted (131.9) relative to Odunze (120.8) and Polk (128.5), as his strong rapport with Penix Jr. makes him an intriguing DFS play on Monday night.
FLEX TE/WR Colston Loveland, Michigan ($6,400)
Against Washington's 4-2-5 defensive scheme, Loveland figures to have a matchup advantage against UW's undersized defensive backs. While some DFS players might hesitate to roster any Michigan pass-catchers outside of Roman Wilson, rostering Loveland gives our lineup some differentiation, as he could see several targets from QB J.J. McCarthy in a plus matchup.
Texas utilized its TE, Ja'Tavion Sanders, plenty, knowing he had a matchup advantage in the Sugar Bowl, as Sanders led the Longhorns in receiving (six receptions, 75 yards). Loveland's receiving output might not be as pronounced as Sanders' was, but a 50-plus yard effort with a handful of receptions is well within reach, yielding plenty of upside with a sub-$6,500 price tag.
FLEX TE/WR Jack Westover, Washington ($5,000)
We'll also roster UW's TE1, Westover, as Washington's potential pass-heavy game should lead to its fourth-leading target-getter (50) seeing enough usage to justify his $5,000 salary. While Westover is fourth on the team's pecking order, he's scored four receiving TDs this season, and if he's able to reach paydirt, our lineup is in a strong spot to end the night in the money.
FLEX K Grady Gross, Washington ($4,400)
We're rounding out our lineup with UW's placekicker, as he's just about the only player in the $4,400 or less range with stability. Gross doesn't have a high ceiling with an 8.0 DK point average, but as long as he connects on one to two made field goals while making all of his extra points,
Gross did score a season-high 14 DK points in the Sugar Bowl (three made FGs, 4-4 XP), and although we don't expect Washington to have the same type of scoring output tonight, we'd take an average performance from their steady placekicker.
