It’s rare for a player who didn’t go to a Power-Five school — let alone an FBS school — to make it big in the NFL. Yet occasionally, players from the FCS and lower divisions do hit in big ways. Christian Watson (North Dakota State) is the most recent example, but players like Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington), David Johnson (Northern Iowa), Tarik Cohen (North Carolina A&T), and Carson Wentz (North Dakota State) indicate he’s not a fluke. Players like Jerry Rice (Mississippi Valley State), Terrell Owens (Chattanooga), and Randy Moss (Marshall) remind us of the absolute upside for FCS players.
That doesn’t mean that every single class is going to have FCS players who are fantasy relevant. But it does mean there are small-school prospects in nearly every class who are worth paying attention to. Which FCS prospects could outperform their college pedigree in 2023?
We are always improving our tools. One big improvement for 2023 is that the Box Score Scout now has nearly complete FCS statistics for the 2022 season. Let’s use it to look at four way-under-the-radar breakout candidates.
They Won’t be the Next Kupp or Johnson, But Make Sure You Keep Track of These 4 FCS Stars
One of these players was our early flag-plant selection in Volume 1 of the RotoViz Rookie Guide.