Game Day Preview: Wolfpack Ready for No. 15 Miami

After spending last week recovering with an open date on the schedule, NC State is back in action Saturday with another ranked matchup, this time against Miami, which came in at No. 15 on the latest iteration of the College Football Playoff rankings.

In the Dave Doeren era, NC State is just 1-3 against the Hurricanes, with the lone win coming in Raleigh in 2023.

On this episode of the NC State Insider Podcast, get the full Game Day preview of the Wolfpack's 10th matchup of the season and find out if lead beat writer Tucker Sennett thinks Doeren and the Pack can pull off another shocking upset.

Watch the Episode

Score Prediction

Nov 1, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; NC State Wolfpack head coach Dave Doeren during the first quarter at Carter-Finley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

While NC State is coming into the game with some serious confidence and a recently proven track record against top-25 competition, Miami still poses serious threats, particularly on the defensive line. Standout pass rushers Akheem Mesidor and Rueben Bain Jr. could be major problems for NC State's offensive line in the game, causing Bailey to be off-schedule often.

If Bailey plays to the ceiling he set in the Georgia Tech game, it might not matter. Even so, the injury-riddled Wolfpack defense will have to get enough stops in key situations to hang on for a win. It might not be easy. The Hurricanes pull this one out, beating NC State 31-28.

Dave Doeren's Thoughts on the Hurricanes and the Upcoming Matchup

Overall thoughts on Miami (From Monday Press Conference)

"Just look at them statistically, averaging 33 points a game, holding teams to 15. Stopping the run, 88 yards a game they're giving up. A bunch of weapons, can't say enough about their freshman receiver, No. 10 (Malachi) Toney, what a good football player he is. Quarterback's got a lot of weapons around him."

"Offensive line is big and does a really good job in pass protection, clean pockets. Defensively, probably the best defensive line that we'll see all year. When you look at all four starters, four NFL guys..."

On facing Miami's potent rush defense

"It's a test. I mean, they're giving up 88 yards a game, so one of the top rushing defenses in college football because of their front, those D-linemen are really good players. Their defensive coordinator adds one to the box quite a bit with five-man pressures, and they're going to try to plus-one you."

"You can see he understands how to target run blitzes, and he's done a good job schematically with his guys. Their free safety and nickel tackle really well in the box. So to answer your question, it's going to be critical to not be one-dimensional. Some of it's going to be ugly, you've just got to keep the plays from being negative-yardage plays."

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