College football aspirant and former Richmond forward Jacob Bauer has given insight into the appeal of the American game for fledgling Australian rules athletes.
Ahead of the NFL coming to the MCG on Friday, Bauer spoke to Zero Hanger about his college aspirations at a time when it is becoming an option Australians are increasingly open-minded to.
Former AFL-listed players Mitch McCarthy, Billy Gowers and Ben Griffiths headline the names to have played college football, while former St Kilda player Arryn Siposs and Sydney Swans Academy graduate Michael Dickson have both featured in the NFL.
“The awareness has risen with the success of Aussies in college football and NFL,” Bauer told Zero Hanger.
“The rise of Australians performing over in the States has helped it massively, and I think there's a genuine opportunity for kids coming through high school to realise this is something I could do."
Social media has helped grow the awareness of college football among Australian fans, and Bauer, along with former Collingwood and Western Bulldogs winger Caleb Poulter, spent three weeks in America in May touring colleges and getting an insight into the lifestyle and professionalism.
Delisted at the end of 2025 after 12 games in four seasons at the Tigers, Bauer joined the Australian Kicking Academy, having been aware that it was a viable alternative career pathway if an Aussie rules career stalled.
“I feel Australians were naïve to what playing college football meant,” Bauer said.
“Seeing the level of competition and the atmosphere and what it can create, I just think with the rapid rise in the standard of the AFL, people are starting to be quite open to the fact that being drafted is difficult.
“To be able to live abroad, study abroad and the worst that can happen is you play four years, meet unbelievable people, have unbelievable experiences, and you come away with a college degree, it's something you should think about because you'll make so many memories and it will help set you up for the rest of your life.
“Although it might not be your lifelong dream of playing AFL, which you had as a kid, it's almost a professional sport at this rate, and the degree can look after the rest of your life.”
Interest in American football has swelled in recent years, which has led to America striking a deal to play four games at the MCG across the next five years, with the American juggernaut identifying Australia as a potential talent hotspot.
The tribal nature and rich identity of college sport draw crowds comparable to those attracted by the NFL and AFL, with the University of Michigan's Michigan Stadium having a capacity north of 107,000.
College football's top tier is on track to achieve an attendance record of 39 million people this season.
“It's a pretty eye-opening experience. Obviously I've spent time at top-flight professional sport in Australia, but to see how college football is and how much it means to so many people is a completely different world, so it definitely gives you motivation to work hard over there,” Bauer said.
“It was pretty cool to see the scale of facilities, coaching and professionalism which goes into coaching. If I was a younger kid on that trip, I might have had my direction swayed because it was pretty gnarly.”
Siposs told Zero Hanger earlier in the week that there has been a clear rise in interest among Australians in American football in recent times.
"I think there's certainly a knack for it, which is great. We've still got guys that are down there that are wanting to transition after a couple of years of being in the system and not getting an opportunity,” Siposs said.
"Now that the American game is certainly more on the map from a punting point of view, and Australia's doing so well over there, it's naturally led to the want to be able to do it, which is exciting. So I'm hoping that trend continues, and I can be an advocate for it."
