They have faced off twice as coordinators:
In 2019, when Fuller was at Memphis and Lashlee was at SMU. It was actually a very hyped game, College GameDay was in town. Both teams were ranked, and Memphis won, but Lashlee absolutely obliterated Fuller's defense. 48 points, 553 yards of offense, 7.00 Yards per Play, 0 turnovers.
Last year, Lashlee completely prison raped him again to the tune of 42 first-half points, 517 yards, 6.08 YPP and a complete victory lap the entire 2nd half.
2 games worth (really a game and a half when you consider how much we let off the gas last year) and 100 total points, almost 1100 yards.
I know the offense hasn't lived up to our expectations so far this year, but we are trending in the right direction. 4 straight games of 31+ points, and 3 successive season-highs in yards per play. 5.92 YPP vs NC State, 6.90 vs Pitt, and ballooning to 7.41 last week vs GT.
I think we can all agree that we probably shouldn't have much confidence in the defense. Yes, last week was the best performance of the season. And yes, FSU is not as good offensively as the teams we've played. Also, Manny has never given up more than 20 points to FSU in his previous 5 years here. But I wouldn't be running out to bet on that continuing this year. So, if we're going to win, I think this game is on the shoulders of Lashlee and the offense. IMO, if we can get to 31+ again like we have in the past 4 games, we should win the game. FSU has only scored 31+ four times in 9 games. 38 vs ND on opening night, 33 vs Syracuse, 59 vs the worst team in the country (UMass) and 35 vs UNC. 31+ gets the job done, and Lashlee's success against Fuller's defense gives me a lot of confidence that we get there.