He never did, but he will now as the 20-year-old Canberran prepares to join the University of Nebraska on a football scholarship despite never playing a game.

The whirlwind journey began when he was in the United States watching a friend play basketball last year and he asked an American woman to pick his accent.

Soon the topic of Australian rules came up - the code in which Cerni had for so long wanted to make a name for himself. The Eastlake Demon was on the GWS Giants' radar having featured for them in the NEAFL.

Cerni has played in Giants academy teams since he was 13, but one off-the-cuff question altered his path forever: why don't you try American football?

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"Next thing I know, I'm back on a flight to Australia watching documentaries, watching little snippets of it, trying to work out what it is and how it works. I fell for the game," Cerni said.

"When I got back here, I was still playing for the GWS Giants in the NEAFL. Prior to this I had hurt my knee and my back so I was a bit out of AFL in a sense, I was a bit sick of it.

"I came back and hurt my ankle as well. I was like 'what can I do with my sporting ability to get somewhere and use it?'"

Enter Prokick Australia, the Melbourne-based punting program which has produced 17 All Americans and five Ray Guy award winners for the most outstanding punter in college football.

Cerni decided to roll the dice when he was in Melbourne for a cousin's wedding and set up a trial with Prokick coaches Nathan Chapman and John Smith. Rest assured they like what they saw from an untested youngster who boasts a hang time of 5.28 seconds.

"Within a matter of three months, I thought 'stuff it, what else am I going to do in Canberra? I'll give this a crack, and worst-case scenario, I'll come back and restart uni'," Cerni said.

"I decided to bite the bullet, take a risk and move away to Melbourne last October. Within probably four months they started looking for schools for me. That's when Nebraska popped up."

He intends to fly over in July but just when he makes the trip to the United States remains to be seen in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic which has left officials in discussions about the format of the looming college season.

Cerni has been training in Canberra since Easter, using humble ovals around to capital to prepare him for the moment he takes centre stage in the 90,000-capacity Memorial Stadium.

"There are some nerves involved in it. I found with AFL, I was trying to work my body and mind so much that I felt disheartened," Cerni said.

"By the end of it I was more doing it because I was decent at it, I could play. I had no love for it left, and I don't want to do the same thing with this.

"I want to enjoy it for what it is. I am a little nervous about it, but at the same time I'm excited. Sometimes you stuff up, but that is what it is, you've got to live with it and move on.

"I'm just excited for the challenge and excited to play on that world stage."

Just how many people will hear Cerni's story and think, could I do that? The Nebraska-bound punter thinks there will be plenty.

Cerni is adamant there are plenty of players in AFL Canberra's ranks capable of securing college scholarships of their own.

"It's an opportunity not many have taken but they should take the risk and have a crack," Cerni said.

"What can come out of it is the experience of a lifetime. That's one of the things I try to do, get out of my comfort zone.

"That's what a lot of boys who are younger than me or older than me could potentially do. There are a lot of AFL players in Canberra who are fantastic kicks of the ball.

"At the end of the day, the worst that can happen is you go home. It's not the end of the world. It's a life changing opportunity, and it has been the best decision of my life."