“Start, Sit & Seth” is the original column of In-Between Media, bridging feel-good lifestyle advice with redraft fantasy football analysis. Consistently following Seth Woolcock’s journey as a young creator, this series is now in its sixth season. Join him in this edition as shares the story of South Harmon Institute of Technology & his Week 2 start/sit decisions.
During an unprecedented 2006 Ohio state educational accreditation hearing, Bartleby “B” Gaines made his final plead:
“And it’s too bad you judge us by the way we look and not by who we are, just because you want us to be more like them. When the truth is we’re not like them, and I am damn proud of that fact.”
In other words, individuality is encouraged in today’s society until it goes against the norm – challenging past prototypes.
However, every so often you get those shitheads that want to disrupt the flow, regardless of the pushback. Outspoken in nature, they have a knack for pushing the envelope, often just by being themselves. They’ll be criticized, encouraged to change.
But being accepted is overrated.
And perhaps nobody knows that better than the South Harmon Insitute of Technology (SHIT).
Welcome to SHIT
Not long ago, Michael Crystal, now 36, lived a seemingly ordinary life, working as a dairy farm maintenance worker in Dubuque, Iowa. There were dad duties, husband obligations and, of course, fantasy football teams to manage.
But in 2021, while in a Destination Devy Discord, Mike met Adam McFerran, a now 32-year-old old salesman from Cleveland. The two struck up a friendship, discussing how they like to approach the game. In July of 2021, after many shared text messages, Mike had the epiphany that they should take the plunge into the content creation game themselves.
“We just decided one day, screw it, we’re done talking,” Mike said in a Sept. 11 interview. “We’re done talking through text messages. We’re actually going to hop on, get some mics… And hey, let’s record our conversations instead of typing them out.”
It all started there. But the next decision for Mike and Adam would truly be pivotal.
“He [Adam] goes, ‘What are we calling it?” Mike said. “I go, ‘Well, I’ve always had kinda this appeal for this movie ‘Accepted.’’ He goes, ‘Oh, I love that movie. That movie’s so awesome.’”
And thus, South Harmony Fantasy Football was born.
The connection was simple yet brilliant. In the film, the main character Bartleby, played by Justin Long, creates the South Harmon Institute of Technology, a fake college, after he didn’t get into a real one.
Mike and Adam didn’t get into fantasy football content creation by having a “real job” for a major platform. Instead, just like Barnaby in “Accepted,” they started their own thing and just went for it.
The South Harmon Way
From the jump, South Harmon always seemed to strive for two things: being themselves and having their own spin on the game. Part of what helped Mike and Adam have early success was that they shared the same approach to dynasty fantasy football and many of the same influences.
“It just fit that this was the South Harmon way,” Mike said. “… That we have our own thought process on it, but it’s been influenced by these other dope, smart content creators in the space. So, right off the bat, we dove into the idea that we’re not going to talk specifically about players. We’ll use them as examples, and we’ll have some opinions on them. But we want to think the big picture of dynasty.”
Mike (blue shirt) and his staff plus Patrons snap a photo at The Fantasy Football Expo on Aug. 13.
In early 2022, with the help of Destination Devy’s founder Ray Garvin, who opened up his platform for it, Mike and Adam started the “4D Chess Podcast.” Between that and the eventual hosting of Destination Devy’s trade show on YouTube, people everywhere began hearing about this fantasy football brand named after a fake college. The friends quickly went from having a Patreon, mostly filled with friends and family members, to having content on an already-established and enticing platform.
“It was like throwing gasoline on a small little ember,“ Mike said. “Now, it’s a pretty sizeable fire.”
While the success came quickly, it didn’t come without consistent tweaking of everything from audio and video quality to the show’s tempo and flow. The production might’ve improved overall, but the motto was always the same: give listeners real advice that they’re also following while in the trenches.
Along the way, just like at the original South Harmon, these characters found others a lot like them. And under their leadership, they allowed them to be whoever they wanted to be – on-air talent, video editors, writers or the engineers behind new fantasy football tools.
“I think just being authentic has been the catalyst for us,” Mike said. “… There are people who can fake it until they make it. I’ve never been one of those people. I just want to be real and authentic… It’s almost a little fraternity we’re cultivating… there’s something different about South Harmon that not a lot of people have, but it’s something that I just want to keep growing.”
Authentic as SHIT
I’m 165 podcast episodes and five seasons deep into my own creating journey. And I wish I could tell you that just like the cast of South Harmon, I was always authentic on camera.
I wasn’t.
For the first few years, I struggled to be who I really was while live – a 20-some-year-old kid who was just trying to figure it all fucking out. While I knew ball, I didn’t have to spend each show making others accept that I did.
Over time, I learned that I could simply just be myself – however different or weird that is compared to your typical fantasy sports show hosts. Today, I’m gonna let it fly. There will be some cuss words and – if after hours – adult beverages. We’re going to talk fantasy football but also, hopefully, life. That’s who I am, and it’s what this company stands for.
The school located in Canton, Ohio that South Harmon rented out.
Meeting Mike and the cast of South Harmon this summer at The Fantasy Football Expo reminded me of that. Hearing about how they rented out an entire school there for their staff, friends and patrons sounded unbelievable, almost like something out of a movie.
Learning their story and seeing their passion for the game has certainly refueled me for what’s coming this season. We’re only in Week 2, and holy shit has it been crazy. J.K. Dobbins and Aaron Rodgers are lost for the season. Players are banged up left and right, while some just haven’t shown up yet.
It’s going to be one crazy ride, that’s for sure. I’m just excited to live the highs and lows, breaking it all down from my perspective in my own fully authentic way – whether it’s accepted by the masses or not.
“Being yourself is always going to be the catch-all,” Mike said. “And you can spot the fakes. You really can… But when you find those people who are real and surround yourself with people who are real and authentic, I mean, the sky is the absolute limit.”
Alright, and here we go.
The following Week 2 start/sit selections are based on stats, trends and film research, reflecting value in Points Per Reception (PPR) Redraft Leagues.
Quarterback I’d Start in Week 2:
Jared Goff (Detroit Lions): Jared Goff was hot money against the Seattle Seahawks last season, scoring a season-high 33.2 fantasy points and finishing as Week’s 4 QB1. The books are expecting another shootout between the teams, setting the game with the second-highest total for Sunday (47.5)
Last week, the Seahawks allowed Matthew Stafford to go for 334 yards, good enough for QB17 on yardage alone. No. 1 CB Tariq Woolen did not look himself, and rookie Devon Witherspoon will just be making his debut this weekend.
Goff should be able to take it to them at Ford Field on Sunday. Goff averaged 275.7 yards and 2.6 TDs per game last season at home vs. 245.8 yards and .8 TDs per game on the road.
Quarterback I’d Sit in Week 2:
Dak Prescott (Dallas): Despite losing Rodgers for the season in Week 1, we learned that the Jets are still very much “frisky.” This defense is elite and deep at all three levels. They turned Josh Allen over four times on Monday night, limiting him to just nine fantasy points and the QB20 finish on the week.
Dak Prescott finished even worse than that (QB29) in Week 1 due to the Cowboys’ 40-0 blowout of the New York Giants. The Cowboys have a great defense led by Micah Parsons and a rejuvenated running game behind Tony Pollard. This, unfortunately, could limit Prescott’s fantasy ceiling this season. With Brandin Cooks dealing with an MCL sprain and Prescott still building chemistry with new starting tight end Jake Ferguson, he’s better left on the latter side of your Week 2 start/sit decisions.
Running Back I’d Start in Week 2:
Tyler Allgeier (Atlanta): Apparently, when we were deciding between Drake London and Kyle Pitts in the middle round of fantasy football drafts, the real answer was to wait to draft Tyler Allgeier. Like it or not, Atlanta’s game plan feels similar to the last few seasons – slow things down and win with good defense and running the ball.
Atlanta ran on 54.2% (fourth most) of their 48 plays (second least) in Week 1. They now face the Packers, who have an elite cornerback duo of Jaire Alexander and Rasul Douglas. Atlanta will once again attack via ground and pound. Considering the Packers allowed the third-most PPR points to opposing running backs in Week 1 (34.50), both Bijan Robinson and Allgeier should have nice days.
Allgeier played 56% of the snaps in Week 1, leading to 15 carries and three targets. In addition, the second-year man led the Falcons in red zone touches (four). The opportunity and the matchup is there for Allgeier to have another strong performance as the secondary option in Atlanta.
Running Back I’d Sit in Week 2:
Joshua Kelley (Los Angeles Chargers): With or without Austin Ekeler, Joshua Kelley has no business even being considered in your Week 2 fantasy football start/sit selections. The former UCLA product had a career day in Week 1, rushing for 91 yards and a score on 16 carries.
But that’s all it was: a career day. During his pro tenure, Kelley has averaged 3.6 Yards Per Carry (YPC). After getting some run early in his rookie season, Kelley was put on the shelf for years by the Chargers, to the point where his Week 1 fantasy total (15.1) nearly outscored his entire 2021 season (16). Even an average running back in an ideal role will still deliver average running back numbers more times than not.
Furthermore, the Chargers are facing the Titans, who allowed just 50 yards on 19 carries and the least amount of fantasy points to the position in Week 1 against the Saints. That’s not a fluke either, as the Titans have been a top-three defense against the opposition for the last two seasons.
Wide Receiver I’d Start in Week 2:
Christian Kirk (Jacksonville): Christian Kirk‘s fantasy managers are likely disappointed with the Jaguars receiver after a 1.9-PPR point performance in Week 1. However, you gotta throw him right back out there this go around. The Jaguars host the Chiefs in what’s the highest total (51) of Week 2.
The Chiefs were a top-five plus matchup for WRs last season and allowed Amon-Ra St. Brown (PPR WR11) and Josh Reynolds (WR30) to have productive days in Week 1. Kirk saw just 60% of the snaps in Week 1, but they’ll likely need to run more 11-man personnel to keep up with Kansas City, especially if Travis Kelce is active.
Wide Receiver I’d Sit in Week 2:
Marquise “Hollywood” Brown (Arizona): I want as little to do with Giants vs. Cardinals as possible on Sunday. The game has one of the lowest totals of the weekend (40), and both offenses have their worries. The Giants could be without or have TE Darren Waller and OT Andrew Thomas not fully healthy. Meanwhile, Joshua Dobbs was good for just 132 passing yards in his Arizona debut and scored just one fantasy point himself after two fumbles.
Outside of the running backs (Saquon Barkley and James Conner) and Daniel Jones, it’s hard to trust anyone in this game, including Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. The former Oklahoma standout had just five targets in Week 1 for a concerningly low 9.6 Average Depth of Target (aDOT). Without the opportunity for deep targets or significant volume, Brown’s upside remains bleak.
If you have a feel-good story that you would like to share for an opportunity to be featured in an upcoming edition of “Start, Sit & Seth,” please reach out.
And for more fantasy football and uplifting content, especially start/sit advice, you can find me on Twitter @Between_SethFF.