Kyle Grantham / For The Post / kg116806@ohiou.edu

Ohio quarterback Austen Everson (9) tries to get rid of the ball before getting hit by Kent State linebacker Jameson Konz (26) In the Bobcats’ 17-7 win over the Golden Flashes. Everson was 7 of 12 passing for 49 yards with 79 rushing yards Saturday in the win against Eastern Michigan.

The Mid-American Conference announced yesterday that Ohio wide receiver Scott Mayle has been awarded its East Division Special Teams Player of the Week honor, the first weekly MAC honor for Mayle in his career with the Bobcats.

It is the fifth straight week that a Bobcat has earned the special teams award from the MAC, with kicker Matt Lasher and punt return specialist Chris Garrett taking the honor in previous weeks for Ohio.

The Bobcats have now earned 12 weekly MAC awards in the previous 10 weeks of play.

Mayle’s first kickoff return in three weeks went for 43 yards for Ohio during Saturday’s eventual 16-10 victory over Eastern Michigan. The return set up an early field goal from Lasher, which knotted the score, 3-3.

The senior also recorded a 41-yard run for a score in the contest, his first rushing touchdown since 2003 and a 19-yard reception against the Eagles.[B}Bowl-dacious[/B]

More and more people are starting to take notice of the Ohio football team’s success this season as the Bobcats moved into the top 40 of the CBS SportsLine 119 Poll this week.

CBS SportsLine is currently predicting that the Bobcats (7-3, 5-1 MAC) will square off against the Big East’s Cincinnati Bearcats in the Motor City Bowl slated for Dec. 26 in Detroit.

After being ranked No. 43 last week, Ohio jumped to No. 35 after its 16-10 victory over Eastern Michigan Saturday, and now sits as the highest ranked MAC team in the nation. Missouri — who downed the Bobcats earlier this season, 31- 6 — currently sits in the No. 34 spot in front of Ohio.

The only other MAC team to crack the top 50 is Western Michigan (7-2, 5-1 MAC). The Broncos, who Ohio defeated 27-20 on Oct. 7, sit right behind the Bobcats at No. 36.

Both MAC teams sit above notable programs in the nation such as Florida State, No. 37; Navy, No. 38; Miami (Fla.), No. 41; Purdue, No. 43; Georgia, No. 48; Iowa, No. 49; and Pittsburgh, No. 50.

If Ohio were to win-out to finish its season, there is the possibility that the Bobcats could find themselves near, if not in, the nation’s top 25. Ohio is idle this weekend, with Akron (4-5, 2-3 MAC) and Miami (1-9, 1-5 MAC) remaining on its regular season schedule.Road warriors

The Bobcats’ four wins on the road this season are equal to the number of road wins the team had amassed from 2002-05, when Ohio won just 4-of-25 games away from the friendly confines of Peden Stadium.

“I don’t believe that road games are presenting any type of particular problem for us,” Ohio coach Frank Solich said during the MAC’s weekly teleconference yesterday. “We seem to have adjusted well, we’re traveling well now and we’re getting ready to play games.”