At one point not so long ago, as many as six former Cal (Pa.) football players were listed on NFL rosters in the same season. Other various Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference schools also have seen some of their players dot NFL depth charts from time to time.

Two Seton Hill products are traveling halfway around the world to pursue their football dreams.

Quarterback Christian Strong and running back Jarvis McClam are in Australia preparing for their first season with the Brisbane Rhinos of the Queensland Gridiron League.

This isn’t Australian rules football we’re talking about, rather American-style. There are nine men’s teams and six women’s team in the league, whose schedule begins in August.

“What the hope for those guys is they get more tape, get more film out there as the competition gets amped up a little bit,” Seton Hill coach Isaac Collins said. “So if you can have some success, it keeps the door open.”

In 2016, the Strong-led Griffins led Division II in passing offense at 373.2 yards per game.

They ranked sixth in total offense as the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Strong set single-season school records in attempts, completions, passing yards and touchdown passes.

Strong threw for 8,656 yards and 56 touchdowns in three seasons.

He was hoping to get a shot in the NFL as an undrafted free agent, but that never happened. He then turned his sights to the CFL — he’s a native of Brampton, Ontario — but after attending a combine in Winnipeg, Manitoba, he failed to get a call then, too, and came away with a feeling he described as “disheartening.”

Then came interest from leagues overseas, something Strong believed happened because of his deep faith in God.

“It was shocking to see that football is played in some places such as Sweden, Germany, Serbia, Turkey, Brazil, Spain and, hence, Australia,” Strong said. “Australia reached out to me and was providing me an offer that I could not pass up. Not only were they providing so much for me, but it wasn’t a rush like the other leagues felt, and it truly just felt like the right decision.

“God was telling me to take this path and definitely showed me signs throughout, one of which was getting my visa, as it normally takes an average person three weeks. For me, it took literally one minute to get granted.”

McClam’s college career was hampered by injuries, but he’s been healthy now. Like Strong, he was expecting to get a shot at a free-agent contract in North America.

But his was a similar scenario to Strong’s, both realizing the competition for roster spots is fierce.

“I’d been rooting for them to land something,” Collins said.

Mission accomplished, and keep the cameras on.

“After I got the offer and the ball rolling with all that I needed to come out here (to Brisbane),” Strong said, “I thought to myself, ‘Why not see if I can give my blessings to someone else who was in the same boat as I was, struggling to find his next move?’ So I reached out to our head coach and asked if Jarvis could be of use on our team and if they could offer him the same package. God is good, because they did the same for him and now both of us are on board.”

The 6-1, 190-pound McClam, from Laurel, Md., played just three games as a junior during Seton Hill’s pass-happy 5-6 season in 2016 but returned a year later, when the Griffins finished 0-11 and rushed for more than 900 yards, including a season-high 291 on 11 carries against Slippery Rock.

He also caught four passes for 52 yards in that game.

McClam finished the 2017 season with 34 receptions and also was among four Seton Hill kick returners with more than 300 yards each.

Dave Mackall is a freelance writer.

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