Oftentimes, people can be overheard talking about wanting to travel the world and see new places but they simply can't because of their job. They crawl through their daily nine-to-five, counting down the years or even months until they can retire and try to pursue the ambitions work wouldn't allow.

Matthew Wyatt has taken the road less traveled. That road has led him to Australia to compete in the World Cup of Rugby as a member of the national team for the United States.

Wyatt, a 2001 Penn State graduate, has been given many opportunities to venture into new countries thanks to rugby. A degree in kinesiology and a pair of teaching certificates has given him the flexibility to act as a substitute physical education teacher in both Pennsylvania and California.

"One day I'll decide to concentrate more on teaching," Wyatt said. "My friends that don't have the same opportunities as I do encourage me to stick with it."

Rugby is different than most collegiate sports in that there is no obvious jump to a professional career after college.

Steps must be taken in order to work up to the ultimate goal of the national team.

Wyatt began taking those steps right after graduation. A three-time All-American, Wyatt traveled to Ireland for a few weeks after graduating before returning to Pennsylvania to begin teaching.

Wales was the next stop on Wyatt's world tour. He was invited to join a division I professional team in Wales for six months.

At the end of the six months, he returned to the states and moved to San Diego to play for the Old Mission Beach Athletic Club (OMBAC) where he developed his skills further.

"[My goal] is to become a better player in every practice and every game," Wyatt said. "No matter how good you are, you can always learn and improve."

And improve he did. So much so that he was asked to become a member of the USA A team when they traveled to Scotland and Russia.

Solid play for this side opened yet another door for Wyatt as his play caught the eye of the U.S. national team and he was invited to play with The Eagles in the Pan American Games in Argentina.

The Eagles have carried him to his final stop, at least for now, as he will take part in the World Cup of Rugby in Australia.

Graduating college and continuing his rugby career hasn't really given Wyatt a chance to settle down. But he knows exactly what he wants in his life right now and is keeping his priorities straight.

"Sometimes it's difficult to try to balance a professional career and rugby," he said. "Fortunately for me, I can substitute teach in both Pennsylvania and California and still take advantage of other opportunities that are given to me in rugby."

Growing up in Bucks County, Wyatt played as many sports as possible. With very supportive parents he was confident in both his academic and athletic pursuits.

He played football through high school but decided it wasn't for him and didn't want to pursue any kind of collegiate career. His high school football coach mentioned that his son played rugby and gave Wyatt the number for the closest team, The Doylestown Rugby Football Club.

He's been playing ever since.

Playing football throughout high school, Wyatt was used to the physical aspect. But rugby was a different style of play and he needed to learn it.

"My high school coaches were very good at teaching me the basics of the game so I could enjoy the game and be safe," Wyatt said. "The biggest thing to learn is how to tackle."

Wyatt has been playing since he was 17 years old and has been given many opportunities to travel. He knows he has been given once-in-a-lifetime opportunities with rugby and he hasn't let work get in the way.

"I keep telling myself I can teach when I'm older, but the opportunities to play the highest level of rugby in the world are now."