SMU's Rhett Lashlee and UCF's Gus Malzahn Know Each Other Well
The UCF Knights are facing an opponent that will know a lot about the inner workings of their own program. It’s unavoidable. SMU head coach Rhett Lashlee is a person that has a history of working with UCF head coach Gus Malzahn.
Here are the years and schools that Rhett Lashlee and Gus Malzahn have worked together.
- 2004-2005, Springdale (Ark.) High School: Malzahn was the head coach and Lashlee the quarterback coach.
- 2006, University of Arkansas: Malzahn was the quarterback coach and offensive coordinator, while Lashlee was a graduate assistant.
- 2010, Auburn University: Malzahn was the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, with Lashlee serving his second season as a graduate assistant. That's the same season Auburn won the National Title and quarterback Cam Newton won the Heisman Trophy.
- 2012, Arkansas State University: Malzahn was the head coach and Lashlee served as the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator.
- 2013-2016, Auburn University: Malzahn had become head coach and Lashlee was once again the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator. The Tigers went on to be the national runners up to Florida State.
With nine different seasons of getting to know each other’s concepts and tendencies, there’s probably not much that either Lashlee or Malzahn can do to spring a trick play or any other form of going against the grain to provide an advantage. That stated, both have found ways to be productive offensive coaches in their own way.
While Malzahn prefers a mobile quarterback, Lashlee has recently gone in a different direction with more traditional pocket passers that have the ability to move, but certainly not the athletes like Newton or current UCF quarterback John Rhys Plumlee.
Since Lashlee last coached with Malzahn in 2016, he’s overseen pro-style quarterbacks like Shane Buechele at SMU and Tyler Van Dyke at Miami.
In 2019, Buechele went 307 of 490, 62.7%, 3,929, 34 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Buechele had previously been a relatively unsuccessful quarterback at the University of Texas before moving on to SMU.
He had thrown for just 1,678 yards, nine touchdowns and five interceptions the prior two seasons in Austin. Lashlee helped to turn Buechele’s career around.
This past season at the University of Miami, Lashlee saw his starting quarterback, D’Eriq King, go down with a season-ending injury. In stepped a redshirt freshman that had not played a meaningful snap of college football in Van Dyke.
The last six games of 2021 saw Van Dyke throw for at least 316 yards in each game. He also passed for three touchdowns four times during those contests, and twice threw four touchdowns during that span.
It’s unusual for such an inexperienced signal caller to make such a jump. Lashlee did a really good job with Buechele and Van Dyke.
When SMU steps onto the field at FBC Mortgage Stadium on Sunday, Lashlee will be helping to oversee the Mustang’s returning quarterback from last season, Tanner Mordecai. He’s already established as a proven quarterback after throwing for 3,628 yards, 39 touchdowns and 12 interceptions last season.
He’s off to a hot start in 2022 as well by averaging 346.3 yards passing per game, as well as 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. The SMU offense averages 38.5 points per game, while the UCF defense allows only 13.5.
It will be two contrasting styles of quarterbacks on the field, but two coaches that still know each other all too well. Should be a great game.
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