The fog is still lifting off a deserted playing field on the outskirts of this southern Australian city as 10 aspiring college football punters begin their morning drills.
No one watches them practice on a chilly Melbourne day. Soon, they hope, almost all of them will be showing off their skills in front of crowds of more than 100,000 while punting at powerhouse college football programs 10,000 miles away.
These young Australians are training with the Prokick Australia in hopes of going straight to the United States for a college scholarship.
The last two Ray Guy Award winners - given to the top punter in the country - were born in Australia and trained at Prokick.
Director Nathan Chapman says it's the education, not the lure of the NFL, that is prompting the latest batch of young footballers to switch sports.
Chapman took his shot at the NFL in 2004 after 10 years with AFL clubs Brisbane and Hawthorn.
After being signed by the Green Bay Packers, he was cut the week before the start of the season.
On his return to Australia, he decided that college teams offered more opportunities for young Australians.
"When I went over, there was not much happening with Australians and the college system, and because the NFL can sign you today and cut you tomorrow, I thought the better focus was to put kids into college," Chapman said.
Australian involvement in US college football can be traced back to 1898, when Melbourne VFL player Patrick O'Dea joined the University of Wisconsin as a fullback.
Known to fans as the "Kangaroo Kicker," O'Dea went on to coach Notre Dame and was inducted into the College Football Hall Of Fame in 1962.
More recently, former AFL players like Ben Graham and Sav Rocca have forged NFL careers and shown that Australian rules can provide an ideal foundation for punting.
Now more than 30 Australians are punting for US schools at various levels. Almost all of them worked out at Prokick.
"To be honest, we don't talk about the NFL much because we want them to focus on getting the degree," Chapman said.
Prokick product Nick Porebski, 22, spent the last two years playing at Utah's tiny Snow College. This month he moves up to Oregon State on a full scholarship.
Porebski appeared on track for a professional Aussie rules career before a series of shoulder injuries.
"I got a letter from Nathan when I was about 15 or 16 asking if I'd like to try punting. I didn't really know what it was at the time, so I just continued playing Aussie rules," he said.
"Once I had those injuries, I had another look at the letter and decided I might pursue it and see what happened."
Michael Dickson, 19, who just earned a scholarship with Texas and plans to study business, also had his sights set on the AFL as a member of the Sydney Swans academy program.
"The opportunities over there are so much better with schooling, and I needed a break from AFL, so this was the perfect opportunity to keep my competitive edge up and get an education," he said.
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