If Miami University’s football season wasn’t exactly saved, it was at least given a major shot of adrenaline.

The RedHawks toppled previously unbeaten Ohio 23-20 last Saturday at Yager Stadium, evening their record at 4-4 and keeping them in the thick of the Mid-American Conference East Division race.

“If you had watched our practice (last) week, it would’ve been like any other practice,” said MU coach Don Treadwell, who insisted his squad wasn’t down in the dumps after two straight losses. “Our kids were energized and focused and locked in, and of course they carried that into the game.

“It’s still one game at a time. One thing about the MAC — from top to bottom, it is just so competitive. You just have to be ready to play the best game that you can, and good things can happen when you do that.”

Kent State tops the East Division standings with a 4-0 mark, followed by Bowling Green (4-1), Miami (3-1) and OU (3-1). The RedHawks will host KSU on Nov. 10.

For now, the focus is Buffalo. MU will go on the road to face the Bulls on Saturday afternoon, with UB sitting at 1-7 overall and 0-4 in the East.

Buffalo has been ravaged by injuries, yet got several starters back over the weekend and pushed Toledo to the limit before falling 25-20.

Among the now-healthy is running back Branden Oliver. He hadn’t played since Sept. 19 before gaining 101 yards on 24 carries against the Rockets.

The Bulls are just 2-12 against Miami, winning in 2008 and 2009. The RedHawks posted a 41-13 victory last season.

UB is under the direction of third-year coach Jeff Quinn, a longtime assistant under Brian Kelly at Cincinnati, Central Michigan and Grand Valley State.

Buffalo went 8-6 in 2008. It stands as the program’s only winning season since the Bulls were 8-3 as a Division I-AA team in 1996.