College Football Fantasy Five: Under the Radar & Undervalued Wide Receivers for 2022

Nick Grays identifies his top five receivers flying under the radar in college fantasy football drafts heading into the 2022 season, including Iowa State's Xavier Hutchinson.
College Football Fantasy Five: Under the Radar & Undervalued Wide Receivers for 2022
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 College Football Fantasy Five: Under the Radar & Undervalued Wide Receivers for 2022

With RotoWire recently releasing their top wide receivers in the College Football Draft Kit: 2022 Wide Receiver Fantasy Rankings, it's a perfect time to highlight the players that marginally missed the list and are still hot targets in upcoming college fantasy football (CFF) drafts. If you like this list, check out other positions and the rest of our draft kit:

2022 College Fantasy Football Draft Kit

Under The Radar and Undervalued Wide Receivers for 2022

5.) Mitchell Tinsley, Penn State

Tinsley was far too productive with 87 catches for 1,402 yards and 14 touchdowns on 126 targets at Western Kentucky in 2021 to not be on the radar of fantasy managers. He averaged a ridiculous 23.5 fantasy points per game. Although Sean Clifford is not Bailey Zappe and Penn State will not be throwing the ball as much as Western Kentucky, he will be worth a roster spot on your fantasy team as I expect him to out-produce Parker Washington who is still learning to be a lead receiver. Jahan Dotson's 91 catches for 1,182 yards and 12 touchdowns are not going to be completely replaced by Washington, so go out and get Tinsley in upcoming drafts. Just look at what he can do after the catch:

4.) Ryan O'Keefe, UCF

O'Keefe has breakout potential as he showed during the 2021 season with five or more catches in each of his last nine games. Over that span, he averaged 21.9 fantasy points per game and was one of the top waiver wire adds for the year. His 114 targets were good enough for a 30 percent target share in 2021. I wouldn't expect it to be that high once again, but a bonus with O'Keefe is how great he is in around the line of scrimmage as he turned 16 rushing attempts into 274 yards and a touchdown. 

3.) Kris Thornton, James Madison

Thornton is worth a dart throw for prospective fantasy managers as he will undoubtedly be the number one receiver for the Dukes. It will be James Madison's first year in the Sun Belt Conference and we're not talking about a conference that is known for its defense. The standout receiver averaged 20.7 fantasy points per game in the FCS during the 2021 season, including a four-touchdown game where he balled out with 49.2 fantasy points in Week 10. While the Dukes are transitioning to a new quarterback this year, the volume will be plenty worth it with Thornton. 

2.) Jake Bobo, UCLA

With so many players switching college squads these days, it's pretty easy for a player to go completely unnoticed for fantasy. That's what is happening with Bobo right now, who was Duke's top receiver during the 2021 season and will likely be a popular target in Chip Kelly's better-than-average offense. I went over UCLA's offensive trends earlier this year and with an experienced quarterback in Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Bobo could become a dangerous weapon on the west coast.

1.) Xavier Hutchinson, Iowa State

Hutchinson broke a school record with 83 catches during the 2021 season and decided to wait on moving on to the NFL. He'll have the opportunity to elevate his stock even further by being the focal point of the Cyclone's new-look offense as they return just five starters. Iowa State said goodbye to its top quarterback, running back and top two tight ends. While I'm not sure that's great for team chemistry or wins on the football field, it will mean all kinds of volume for Hutchinson, who can more than handle it with 200 targets over the last two years. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grays covers college football for RotoWire by night and is a Financial Analyst by day.
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