CALIFORNIA, Pa. — During his years at Seneca Valley, Ryan McCauley was an offensive force on the football field.

He produced a school-record tying eight touchdown receptions his senior season, catching 27 passes for 399 yards as a tight end. McCauley helped the Raiders reach the WPIAL Class AAAA semifinals that year.

Four years later, McCauley is still an offensive force on the football field — but in a different way.

“I'm in my fourth year as a starter here, but I don't get my hands on the ball very much,” McCauley said, smiling. “That's not my role in this offense.”

His role is to make the lives of the guys who do handle the football a whole lot easier.

And McCauley has been superb in doing so.

“He's a great football player and a super kid,” Vulcans coach Gary Dunn said of McCauley. “We couldn't do the things we do in this offense without him.

“Ryan blocks off the edge as a tight end. We line him up as an H-back or fullback to block on running plays through the middle. He excels on special teams. The guy does a lot for us.”

At California, McCauley's offensive numbers are pedestrian. He's compiled a total of 18 catches for 167 yards and two touchdowns in his four seasons. He had 50 percent more catches, more than double the yardage and four times the touchdowns during his senior year in high school alone.

But in his collegiate role, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound McCauley is helping the Vulcan offense produce some eye-popping numbers through four games this season.

California leads all of NCAA Division II by averaging 62 points per game. The Vulcans have scored more than 50 points in a school-record four consecutive games. They had not scored 50 in back-to-back games since 2008.

“It's a lot of fun being part of this offense,” McCauley said. “Our receivers and quarterback are outstanding.

“This team is capable of going a long way. But we have to take it game-by-game.”

California has not been to the playoffs during McCauley's tenure there. The Vulcans cracked the Division II Top 25 last week and moved up to No. 15 this week after knocking off ninth-ranked Slippery Rock, 52-26, Saturday.

This Saturday, the team faces another critical game in hosting another undefeated and top-10 ranked team in No. 6 Indiana (Pa.).

“We're playing physical football and I love that,” McCauley said. “We're not intimidated by anybody. Our defense is playing great along with our offense.”

Offensively, the Vulcans are averaging 460 yards per game — 197 rushing and 263 passing.

McCauley has five catches for 72 yards and a touchdown this year, including two catches for 39 yards against SRU.

“He's one of those unsung guys,” Dunn said. “You never hear him complain about anything. He just wants to win.”

A criminal justice major, McCauley said he came to California for its winning tradition. The Vulcans have won 27 of 36 games since he joined the team.

“Four losses is considered a bad year here,” he said. “This a football family. Everyone is committed to each other.

“We had some bad things happen off the field a couple of years ago, but that stuff has been cleaned up since. Our team as a whole is more involved in the community now. I'm proud to be a member of this team.”

McCauley is still excited about catching the football, too — even if it only happens on rare occasions.

“The ball still finds me every once in a long while,” he said, laughing. “It makes me appreciate it a whole lot more.”