College Fantasy Football Week 8 Waiver Wire & Transfer Targets (2026)

Week 7 delivered absolute chaos.

Auburn went into Athens and stunned No. 1 Georgia with a last-second field goal. Tennessee knocked off Alabama, and BYU added to the madness with a win over Notre Dame.

Just another perfectly normal Saturday in college football.

For fantasy managers, two $6.0M running backs stole the show. Cincinnati's Cole Tabb exploded for 38.9 CollegeFFB points against West Virginia, while Stanford's Micah Ford put up an absurd 52.1 points against Elon.

Of course, chasing last week's points isn't always the best strategy. Ford's big day came against an FCS opponent, injuries are creating opportunities in several backfields, and one of our favorite waiver targets this week didn't even play on Saturday.

As always, we're digging into recent performances, upcoming matchups, and players who might still be available in traditional college fantasy football leagues. We'll also include CollegeFFB prices and Week 8 projections to help you find value for your weekly transfers. We even have a TE that I'm actually excited about!

Let's get into it.

Power 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

Quarterbacks

Aidan Chiles | Northwestern | $6.5M

Week 8: vs. Rutgers | Projected: 21.7 points

Northwestern keeps winning, and Chiles is the biggest reason why.

His return to Spartan Stadium started rough. He was sacked five times and had just 55 passing yards at halftime. But he finished 18-of-27 for 226 yards, tied the game late on a 1-yard touchdown run, then drove the Wildcats 64 yards in the final minute to set up the game-winning field goal against his former team. A week earlier, he accounted for four touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) against Ball State.

The most impressive number: he still hasn't thrown an interception this season.

The ceiling is the question. Northwestern is happy to lean on Caleb Komolafe and the run game, which limits Chiles' passing volume some weeks. But he's efficient, he keeps chipping in rushing touchdowns, and Rutgers is coming to Evanston. At $6.5M, he's a solid mid-priced starter.

Mason McKenzie | Boston College | $6.2M

Week 8: at Georgia Tech | Projected: 21.3 points

Not many people had Boston College beating Pitt on their Week 7 bingo cards.

After falling behind 12-0 in the first quarter, McKenzie threw for a career-high 295 yards and two touchdowns in the 27-21 win, including a 69-yard strike to Landon Wright to open the second half. It wasn't clean. He threw two interceptions, the second with just over two minutes left. But the passing game finally showed a pulse.

The rushing floor is what makes him interesting. He ran for 138 yards and two touchdowns against Virginia Tech earlier this season, and he closed out Pitt with his legs.

Georgia Tech just gave up 34 points to Virginia Tech. At $6.2M, McKenzie is a reasonable bet if you can live with some volatility at quarterback.

Running Backs

Cole Tabb | Cincinnati | $6.0M

Week 8: vs. Texas Tech | Projected: 17.9 points

Tabb managed just 19 rushing yards at Arizona in his last game before Cincinnati's bye. He came out of the off week and ran for 118 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries at West Virginia, adding four catches for 51 yards and a receiving score. That's 38.9 fantasy points, even in a game Cincinnati lost on a walk-off field goal.

It was his third three-touchdown game of the season, and he's averaging over nine yards per carry. When Cincinnati gets near the goal line, Tabb gets the ball.

Two things keep me from going all in. He splits the backfield with Gi'Bran Payne, which caps his carries, and Texas Tech is a much tougher matchup. I'm not expecting another three-score day. But the receiving work raises his floor, and at $6.0M he's one of the better running back values on the board. If he's available in your league, take a serious look.

Micah Ford | Stanford | $6.0M

Week 8: vs. NC State | Projected: 16.3 points

Ford scored three touchdowns against Hawaii in Week 0, then mostly disappeared. Over Stanford's previous three games, he averaged about three yards per carry.

Against Elon, he ran 19 times for 179 yards and four touchdowns, including an 81-yard score, and caught five passes for 52 yards. That's 52.1 fantasy points, and his four rushing touchdowns tied a Stanford single-game record.

Now the caveat: it was Elon, an FCS team, and Stanford was coming off lopsided losses to Notre Dame and Wake Forest.

The part I like is the receiving work. Five catches was a season high, and Stanford used him in the passing game more than it has all year. In full PPR, that matters even when the touchdowns dry up.

NC State is a tougher test. I'm not ready to call Ford a weekly starter, but at $6.0M he's earned another look.

Trelain Maddox | Georgia Tech | $5.8M

Week 8: vs. Boston College | Projected: 13.0 points | 0.0% owned

The injury report matters more than anything else here.

With Justice Haynes and Malachi Hosley both sidelined, the backfield has belonged to Maddox. He scored three times against Duke in Week 6, including a 60-yard run and the game-winner with under a minute left. Then he ran for a career-high 96 yards and a touchdown at Virginia Tech.

The catch is what happens when Haynes is healthy. Filling in for an injured starter isn't the same as owning a weekly workload, and Maddox's role shrinks considerably with Haynes back.

If Haynes sits again against Boston College, Maddox is a strong one-week play at $5.8M, and at 0.0% ownership, nobody's on him. Check the availability report before you move.

Wide Receivers

Jordan Allen | Georgia Tech | $5.3M

Week 8: vs. Boston College | Projected: 17.1 points

Twenty catches in two games will get my attention.

Allen caught 10 passes for 99 yards and a touchdown against Duke, then 10 more for a career-high 120 yards at Virginia Tech. He's the first player in Georgia Tech history with double-digit receptions in back-to-back games.

This isn't one long touchdown padding a stat line. It's steady volume, which is exactly what you want in full PPR. Alberto Mendoza threw for a career-high 335 yards against the Hokies, and Allen is clearly his first read.

At $5.3M, he's one of my favorite adds of the week.

Trent Mosley | USC | $5.6M

Week 8: at Wisconsin | Projected: 17.0 points

This one might have slipped through the cracks.

Mosley missed three games with a knee injury, then came back at Penn State in Week 6 and caught nine of 13 targets for 111 yards and a touchdown, earning Big Ten Freshman of the Week. He's topped 100 receiving yards in three of his four games this season.

He scored zero points in Week 7 because USC was on a bye. According to Yahoo, he's still available in 73% of leagues. Your league mates may have forgotten about him, but we didn't!

USC returns at Wisconsin, and our model projects Mosley for 17.0 points. At $5.6M, check whether he's still out there before someone else does.

Chas Nimrod | Auburn | $5.4M

Week 8: vs. LSU | Projected: 12.8 points

Nimrod's one-handed touchdown against Georgia, an underthrown fade he pinned to his body in the corner of the end zone, made SportsCenter's Top 10. It also tied the game at 14 in Auburn's eventual 27-24 upset. If you haven't seen it, go find it.

He finished with six catches for 60 yards and led Auburn in receiving.

The problem is volume. Byrum Brown threw for just 150 yards while running for 115, and Auburn wins games on the ground. That makes any Auburn receiver hard to trust week to week.

Still, Nimrod has been productive with his chances (31 catches, 333 yards and three touchdowns on the season), and he's cheaper than teammate Keshaun Singleton, who gets more attention from fantasy managers. I don't expect him to become a 20-point receiver, but at $5.4M he's a reasonable budget option who could match his pricier teammate.

Tight Ends

Jacob Harris | Wisconsin | $4.9M

Week 8: vs. USC | Projected: 9.4 points

If I'm stretching for a new name at tight end, Harris is where I'll go.

He caught just one pass for 13 yards at UCLA in Week 7. But he's shown a ceiling: five catches for 105 yards and a touchdown at Penn State, then two touchdowns against Michigan State.

The problem is that most of his value comes from finding the end zone. He entered Week 7 with only 13 catches on the season, and relying on touchdowns from a low-volume tight end is a dangerous game.

At $4.9M, Harris is a fine streamer against USC. Just keep expectations in check. If he scores, great. If he doesn't, hope the rest of your lineup carries you.

Preston Douglas | NC State | $4.7M

Week 8: at Stanford | Projected: 10.2 points | 0.7% owned

Yes, Douglas is back on the list. I recommended him last week while NC State was on its bye, and I'm sticking with it.

Before the bye, he caught exactly five passes in three straight games, including five for 74 yards against Louisville and five for 45 against Wake Forest. That kind of consistency is rare from a budget tight end.

He won't put up monster numbers, but in full PPR, a tight end who reliably catches five passes is valuable. NC State returns at Stanford, and our model projects him for 10.2 points.

At $4.7M and 0.7% ownership, he's still being overlooked. If you're tired of hoping your tight end finds the end zone every week, Douglas might be exactly what you're looking for.

Group of 6 Waiver Wire Pickups

Quarterbacks

Jackson Gutierrez | Navy | $6.5M

Week 8: vs. North Texas | Projected: 25.7 points

Michael Hawkins Jr. is getting all the fantasy attention at quarterback right now, and he earned it with 540 total yards and five touchdowns against Cincinnati. But Gutierrez is keeping pace, and he's nearly $3M cheaper.

Two weeks ago, he ran 41 times for a career-high 232 yards and three touchdowns against Tulsa, and threw for another. Then he did it again at UTSA: 139 rushing yards and two scores on 21 carries, plus two touchdown passes on just three completions. That's eight total touchdowns in two games, even with Navy coming up short 38-34 on Saturday.

The job looks like his. Navy went to Gutierrez over Braxton Woodson after he filled in during Woodson's ankle injury, though it's worth watching whether Woodson works back into the rotation.

In this offense, the quarterback is the run game. At $6.5M with North Texas coming to Annapolis, Gutierrez is one of the best values on the board at any position.

Jacurri Brown | Rice | $7.3M

Week 8: at Florida Atlantic | Projected: 18.9 points | 0.0% owned

Brown has quietly been one of the better G6 quarterbacks, and almost all of it comes with his legs.

Against Tulsa, he ran for 154 yards and two touchdowns, breaking off scoring runs of 50 and 78 yards. It was his third 100-yard rushing game of the season, making him the first Rice quarterback to do that since 2003.

The rushing floor is usually strong, but there are two warnings. The passing is minimal, and the floor did give way against East Carolina in Week 6, when he ran 19 times for 19 yards and was pulled in the fourth quarter. He also got banged up against Tulsa and left the field during a third-quarter series, so check his status before Saturday.

At 0.0% ownership, he's a true differential if he's healthy.

Running Backs

Torrance Burgess Jr. | Texas State | $8.0M

Week 8: vs. Utah State | Projected: 18.9 points

Burgess posted the best running back line of the week, and it came on Thursday night, so don't let it slip past you.

He ran 24 times for a career-high 224 yards and four touchdowns against Colorado State, adding three catches for 52 yards. That's 54.6 fantasy points. He's the first FBS player this season with 200 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in a game, and Texas State set a school record with 503 rushing yards in the 66-27 win.

This wasn't out of nowhere. Burgess already had 208 yards against North Texas and 151 against UTSA, and he's now at 838 rushing yards on 7.8 yards per carry.

One note: quarterback Brad Jackson also ran for 181 yards and three scores, so Burgess isn't the only one eating in that backfield. At $8.0M he's the priciest name on this list, but for a back producing at this level, the price still looks fair.

TJ Engleman Jr. | East Carolina | $6.3M

Week 8: at Memphis | Projected: 17.2 points

Engleman has taken over the East Carolina backfield.

After five carries in the first two games, he ran for 129 yards and two touchdowns (plus a receiving score) against North Carolina Central, then 136 yards and a touchdown against Rice, including a 43-yard score. He followed that with another 100-yard game against UAB on Thursday.

Even with Ashton Gray back from injury, Engleman has kept the lead role. Memphis on the road is a tougher spot, but at $6.3M, he's a volume play worth making.

Wide Receivers

DeAree Rogers | Northern Illinois | $7.6M

Week 8: vs. Hawai'i | Projected: 18.0 points

Northern Illinois is 0-6, but Rogers is the reason to care about this offense.

He caught 11 passes for 89 yards in the loss at Wyoming, tying his season high in receptions, a week after seven catches for 81 yards against Air Force. Nobody in the Mountain West has more catches, and he entered Week 7 eighth in the FBS at 7.75 receptions per game.

That target share is the appeal in full PPR. Touchdowns have been scarce (two on the season), which caps his ceiling. But the volume is about as safe as it gets for a G6 receiver, and Hawai'i comes to DeKalb.

Rodshaun Dorsey | Georgia State | $5.2M

Week 8: at Arkansas State | Projected: 14.7 points | 0.0% owned

I'm willing to bet this is the only waiver article calling out Rodshaun Dorsey this week.

The 6-foot-5 Erskine transfer has seven touchdowns in six games. He caught three passes for 57 yards and a 32-yard score in Georgia State's loss at undefeated James Madison, and he leads the Panthers in receiving with 21 catches for 333 yards.

He won't catch a ton of passes, but he keeps finding the end zone as Cameran Brown's favorite red-zone target. At $5.2M and 0.0% ownership, that's about as cheap as touchdown production gets.

Tight Ends

Joshua Long | Eastern Michigan | $6.8M

Week 8: at Ohio | Projected: 14.2 points

Back-to-back 20-point games from a tight end will get my attention.

Long caught nine passes for a career-high 114 yards at Akron, the first 100-yard game by an Eastern Michigan tight end since 2014. He followed it with seven catches for 84 yards and a touchdown against Toledo, including a 30-yard score that was the longest catch of his career.

That's real volume at a position where almost nobody has it, and it isn't a fluke: Long was second-team All-MAC last year and made the preseason Mackey Award watch list.

At $6.8M, he isn't cheap for a tight end. But if your league-mates are streaming touchdown-dependent options, Long is a great differential.