No. 15 Miami vs. N.C. State

When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m.

Where: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens

TV: ESPN

Coaches: UM’s Mario Cristobal 29-18 (91-78 overall), N.C. State’s Dave Doeren 92-69 (115-73 overall)

Line: Miami is favored by 16.5 points

Weather: 81 degrees, 0 percent chance of rain.

Quick slant: The Hurricanes climbed up to No. 15 in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings. They will look to build momentum against N.C. State, which is coming off a bye.

About No. 15 Miami (7-2, 3-2 ACC): Miami has started slowly in several games recently, and it needs to avoid falling into that trap this week. Against a poor Syracuse defense last week, the Hurricanes needed about 27 minutes of game time to score.

About N.C. State (5-4, 2-3 ACC): The Wolfpack have been giant-killers this year. Although N.C. State has four losses, two of its five wins came against Georgia Tech and Virginia, two of the top teams in the ACC this season.

Three things to watch

1. N.C. State quarterback CJ Bailey is a familiar face to local sports fans. The South Florida native and Sun Sentinel Broward County co-offensive player of the year led Chaminade-Madonna to three straight state championships, helping run an offense that included Ohio State star wide receiver Jeremiah Smith and Miami wide receiver Jojo Trader. Bailey has 2,411 yards and 19 touchdowns this season, and Pro Football Focus gives him the sixth-best passing grade among ACC quarterbacks with 200 or more snaps this year. Bailey has been on a roll lately, throwing five touchdowns with no interceptions in his last two games.

2. The Hurricanes’ offense should have another opportunity to get on track. N.C. State’s defense is one of the worst in the nation, ranking 111th in the nation and third-worst in the ACC in scoring defense. The Wolfpack are also 122nd in yards allowed per game. Miami faced a similarly bad defense last week, and it took a while for the offense to get moving. If the Hurricanes get off to a good start, they could put the game away early.

3. This is the last regular-season game in Hard Rock Stadium for Miami’s seniors — and likely several draft-eligible juniors. The list of players who will be departing after this year includes several long-time Hurricanes (Anez Cooper, Akheem Mesidor and Wesley Bissainthe, among others) and recent transfers (Carson Beck, Jakobe Thomas and Markel Bell, among others). It will also likely be the last home game for junior stars Rueben Bain Jr. and Francis Mauigoa, who are projected to be early first-round picks in next year’s draft.