The midweek lights tilt toward Newark as Middle Tennessee walks into Delaware Stadium for a nationally-televised game that sharpens every snap. Delaware already announced its FBS arrival with a 44–41 overtime win over UConn, sealed by Nick Minicucci’s 13-yard walk-off rush, with Kyre Duplessis ripping 9 for 161 and a long strike in the fireworks. When Western Kentucky demanded tempo, Minicucci answered with 314 passing yards on 28-of-47 and three rushing touchdowns, proof this offense can toggle from bruising to airborne without losing cadence. Delaware’s ground game can still maul—Jo Silver gashed UConn for 179 and two TDs, including a 70-yard burst that bent the night—so safeties can’t sit on routes. The question for the Blue Raiders is whether their road defense can absorb that duality and still contest the deep middle once the crowd starts to vibrate. Below are my top college football player props to consider at DraftKings Sportsbook for the Week 9 matchup between the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens and the Middle Tennessee State Blue Raiders.
Delaware vs. Middle Tennessee State best prop bets
Nick Minicucci anytime touchdown (−120)
We’ll back quarterback Nick Minicucci to pierce paydirt because Delaware scripts him as the red-zone battering ram and then doubles down in the tightest moments. He authored the program’s signature moment this fall with a 13-yard walk-off rush in overtime against UConn, the kind of cold-blooded keeper that tells you exactly how this staff closes drives when the oxygen thins. He didn’t just sneak one across that afternoon; the Huskies felt his cadence all game while Delaware kept the ball in his hands to decide leverage downs. Western Kentucky confirmed the blueprint two weeks later: Delaware leaned on Minicucci three separate times at the goal line, and he answered with three short rushing touchdowns while also stacking 314 passing yards on 28-of-47 volume. That blend of designed keepers and quarterback draw gravity broadcasts intent; when the Blue Hens live in plus territory, the ball gravitates to No. 2. Even when Delaware plays from behind, the script still funnels late possessions to Minicucci’s legs—WKU saw it, UConn suffered it, and opponents keep bracing for it after long drives. If Delaware inches inside the five, I expect the sideline to quick-count with the same bruising QB power that ended UConn, or borrow the misdirection they flashed before his third score versus WKU. The market can shade running backs in this band, but the usage is quarterback-centric in the shadow of the goal line. Trust the tells. Trust the design. I plant the flag on Minicucci to finish another drive with the ball cradled in his chest and the stadium roaring.
Kyre Duplessis 70+ receiving yards (−105)
I ride wideout Kyre Duplessis to clear 70 yards because his profile marries volume with vertical crackle, and Delaware’s passing rhythm feeds him when the game heats up. He detonated UConn for nine catches and 161 yards, including a 68-yard strike that flipped the field in a blink; those aren’t empty calories, they’re proof that his route tree stretches both the seams and the sideline. Through the arc of the season he has carved out a sturdy baseline—28 receptions for 430 yards at 15.4 yards per catch—and that average alone nudges this 70-plus ladder into range on five or six grabs. Delaware’s staff trusts the air attack when possessions tighten; the WKU game turned into a thrower’s duel, and the Blue Hens answered with 47 attempts and 314 yards, a usage spike that amplifies Duplessis’s target share when pace swells. He doesn’t need a meteor shower to cash this; he needs one chunk and steady chain work. The 68-yard flash against UConn illustrates his explosive threshold, but the quieter detail—nine receptions in that same game—shows how reliably he collects intermediate oxygen when defensive shells soften. If Delaware again leans on quick rhythm to set up deep posts, Duplessis becomes the metronome and the match. I expect him to puncture a coverage bust once, stack curls and digs in traffic, and crest the 70-yard rung with time to spare as drives lengthen and the sideline keeps signaling his number.
Nick Minicucci 300+ passing yards (+115)
We’re gonna swing for 300+ because Delaware has already shown the willingness—and the arm—to sail past that landmark when a game asks for air. Western Kentucky forced speed and Minicucci responded with 314 yards on 47 throws, a robust efficiency-through-volume line that proves he can keep rhythm while pushing the ball at every layer of the field. UConn brought a different tempo yet still yielded 265 yards and a constellation of explosives, including that 68-yard touchdown to Kyre Duplessis that lit the grandstand on fire and signaled the vertical ceiling of this pairing. Delaware has leaned into Minicucci’s command at the line, letting him hunt advantageous leverage and turn quick-game timing into downfield daggers when safeties creep. When the Blue Hens trade possessions with an opponent that can answer, their identity tilts to the passing script we saw against WKU—no huddle blur, boundary comebacks, and layered crossers that multiply throws and invite chunk yards. The receiving room cooperates: Duplessis owns 430 yards with a downfield bite, and Jo Silver’s rushing gravity manipulates safeties just enough to free the intermediate windows Minicucci loves. The bet cashes not on a single bomb but on accumulation—eight or nine series with two or three completions apiece, then one explosive that sends the number surging. Delaware has already produced a 1,000-plus-yard combined shootout and a 300-plus passing night this fall; the architecture is built. Minicucci plays point guard with a flare gun and turns the scoreboard into a metronome. I take the plus-money swing.
