Obic Seagulls
Appearance
Established | 1983 |
---|---|
Based in | Narashino, Japan |
Head coach | Naoki Kosho |
General manager | Ken Namikawa |
League | X-League |
Division | East |
Colours | Navy, gold, aqua green, and white [1] |
Mascot(s) | Seagull-kun |
Japan X Bowl titles | 8 (1996, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2010-13) |
Division titles | 10 (1988, 1996, 2000-2002, 2005, 2010-2013) |
Website | http://www.seagulls.jp |
The Obic Seagulls are an American football team located in the Narashino, Chiba, Japan. They are a member of the X-League. The Obic Seagulls have won over 15 championships during their team history (7 Rice Bowl championships and 8 Japan X Bowl championships) the most of any American football team in Japan.
Team History
- 1983 Team founded as the "Recruit Seagulls"
- 1989 Promoted from X2 to X1
- 1995 Won first Division Title
- 1996 Won first league and national title.
- 1998 Won second league and national title.
- 1999 Following an economic downturn, the team transitioned from a corporate team under Recruit Co., Ltd., to a club team.
- 2002 Recruit withdraws team sponsorship. Team became a self-supporting club team under the name "Seagulls".
- 2003 Obic Co., Ltd., becomes new team sponsor. Team name changed to Obic Seagulls.
- 2005 Won third League and national title.
- 2012 Went on record as being the 1st club team in Japan (Among currently registered X-League teams) to play in an international exhibition game (Germany/Dresden Monarchs).
- 2013 Played in an international exhibition game in Dusseldorf, Germany vs. the Dusseldorf Panthers. Became the first Japanese team to win 4 consecutive national championships dating back to 2010.
- 2014 Played in a sister cities international exhibition game in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, U.S.A. vs. the APDFL(Amateur to Professional Developmental Football League) Blazers. [2]
Seasons
X-League Champions (1987–present) | Division Champions | Final Stage/Semifinals Berth | Wild Card /2nd Stage Berth |
Season | Division | Regular Season | Post Season Results | Awards | Head coaches | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | |||||
1988 | East | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | Eiichi Nakata | ||
1989 | East | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 0 | Mitsuru Taisha | ||
1990 | East | 5th | 1 | 3 | 1 | Mitsuru Taisha | ||
1991 | East | 5th | 1 | 3 | 1 | Mitsuru Taisha | ||
1992 | East | 2nd | 3 | 1 | 1 | Mitsuru Taisha | ||
1993 | East | 3rd | 3 | 2 | 0 | David Stant | ||
1994 | East | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | David Stant | ||
1995 | East | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | Won Semi-Finals match (Asahi Beer) 33-27 Lost Tokyo Super Bowl XIX (Matsushita Denko) 20-54 |
David Stant | |
1996 | Central | 1st | 4 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Sanwa Bank) 27-0 Won Semi-Finals match (Matsushita Denko) 22-13 Won Tokyo Super Bowl XX (Onward) 30-10 Won 50th Rice Bowl National Championship game (Kyoto) 19-16 |
David Stant | |
1997 | Central | 3rd | 4 | 2 | 0 | David Stant | ||
1998 | Central | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Nissan Prince Tokyo) 56-21 Won Semi-Finals match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 21-16 Won Tokyo Super Bowl XXII (Asahi Beer) 45-24 Won 52nd Rice Bowl National Championship game (Ritsumeikan) 30-16 |
David Stant | |
1999 | Central | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Mycal) 37-7 Lost Semi-Finals match (Kashima) 13-20 |
David Stant | |
2000 | Central | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Lost Semi-Finals match(Asahi Soft Drinks) 15-23 | Makoto Ohashi | |
2001 | Central | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Fujits) 24-14 Lost Semi-Finals match(at Matsushita Denko) 7-10 OT |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2002 | Central | 1st | 5 | 1 | 0 | Won Semi-Finals match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 30-0 Won Tokyo Super Bowl XVI (Fujitsu) 14-7 Lost 56th Rice Bowl National Championship game (at Ritsumeikan) 13-36 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2003 | Central | 2nd | 4 | 2 | 0 | Lost Wild Card match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 9-16 | Makoto Ohashi | |
2004 | East | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Kashima) 10-3 Lost Semifinals match (Matsushita Denko) 7-10 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2005 | East | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won Semifinals match (Asahi Beer) 13-7 Won Japan X Bowl XIX (Matsushita Denko) 25-16 Won 59th Rice Bowl National Championship game (Hosei) 47-17 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2006 | East | 1st | 4 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Naigai Denki) 74-13 Lost Semifinals match (Onward) 13-17 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2007 | East | 2nd | 6 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild Card match (Kashima) 19-13 Lost Semifinals match (Matsushita Denko) 26-29 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2008 | Central | 2nd | 6 | 2 | 0 | Lost Wild Card match (Panasonic) 14-20 | Makoto Ohashi | |
2009 | East | 2nd | 7 | 2 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (IBM) 21-7 Lost 2nd Stage match (Panasonic) 20-23 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2010 | Central | 1st | 8 | 1 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Suita) 56-2 Won 2nd stage match (IBM) 55-27 Won Final stage match (Kajima) 28-21 Won Japan X Bowl XXIV (Panasonic) 20-16 Won 64th Rice Bowl National Championship game (at Ritsumeikan) 24-0 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2011 | Central | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (All Mitsubishi) 49-0 Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 20-13 Won Final stage match (Kajima 45-20 Won Japan X Bowl XXV (Fujitsu) 24-17 Won 65th Rice Bowl National Championship game (Kwansei Gakuin) 38-0 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2012 | Central | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Beer) 69-7[3] Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 29-12[4] Won Final stage match (Nojima) 24-10[5] Won Japan X Bowl XXVI (Kajima) 27-24[6] Won 66th Rice Bowl National Championship game (at Kwansei Gakuin) 21-15[7] |
Noriaki Kinoshita (MVP) | Makoto Ohashi |
2013 | Central | 1st | 6 | 1 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Beer) 21-7[8] Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 34-10[9] Won Final stage match (Kajima 21-12[10] Won Japan X Bowl XXVII (Fujitsu) 24-16[11] Won 67th Rice Bowl National Championship game (Kwansei Gakuin) 34-16[12] |
Noriaki Kinoshita (MVP) Kealakai Maiava (ROY) |
Makoto Ohashi |
2014 | Central | 2nd | 7 | 2 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Nojima) 44-21[13] Won 2nd stage match (at Elecom) 45-0[14] Lost Final stage match (at Fujitsu) 17-27[15] |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2015 | East | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (IBM) 34-26[16] Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 52-9 Lost Final stage match (at Fujitsu) 6-27 |
Makoto Ohashi | |
2016 | Central | 0 | 0 | 0 | Naoki Kosho | |||
Total | 136 | 32 | 3 | (1988–2016, includes only regular season) | ||||
44 | 13 | 0 | (1988–2016, includes only playoffs) | |||||
180 | 45 | 3 | (1988–2016, includes both regular season and playoffs) |
Head Coaches
Coach | Years | Record |
---|---|---|
Eiichi Nakata | 1988 | 5-0 (1.000) |
Mitsuru Taisha | 1989-1992 | 8-8-3 (.500) |
David Stant | 1993-1999 | 38-10 (.792) |
Makoto Ohashi | 2000-2015 | 129-27 (.827) |
Naoki Kosho | 2016-present |
Current Import Players
Jersey # | Name | Position | Years with the team | Alma Mater | Achievements |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
#11 | Kevin Jackson | DE | 2005-present | University of Hawai'i at Manoa | 10x All X-League Team member (2005-2014) |
#15 | Jerry Neuheisel[17] | QB | 2016-present | University of California, Los Angeles | |
#23 | Byron Beatty Jr. | DE/LB | 2012-present | University of Colorado Boulder | All X-League Team member (2013) |
#51 | Kealakai Maivai | OT | 2013-present | University of California, Los Angeles | X-League Rookie of the Year, All X-League Team member (2013) |
Former Import players
Name | Position | Years with the team | Alma Mater | Achievements |
---|---|---|---|---|
Frank Fernandez | C | 2012-2015 | Harvard University | 2x All X-League Team member (2008 and 2011) |
Karl Noa | DE | 2009-2012 | University of Hawai'i at Manoa | All X-League Team member (2011) |
References
- ^ "X-League profile, Obic Seagulls". X-League. April 17, 2015. Retrieved October 20, 2015.
- ^ Casagrande, Michael (August 15, 2014). "Japanese football team 'awestruck by trip to Alabama practice, Nick Saban intrigued by guests". al.com. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (November 5, 2012). "Seagulls storm to record-setting victory". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ "Seagulls shrug off Challengers to stay unbeaten". xleague.com. November 20, 2012. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (December 3, 2012). "Seagulls set down Rise, earn shot at 3-peat". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (December 18, 2012). "Obic holds on for 1st 3-peat in league history". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (January 5, 2013). "Seagulls pull of thrilling comeback for 3rd straight Rice Bowl victory". xleague.com. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
- ^ "Sugawara leads Seagulls over stubborn Silver Star". xleague.com. November 6, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ "Seagulls strike fast, hard in rout of Challengers". xleague.com. November 19, 2013. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (December 1, 2013). "Champion Seagulls soar back into Japan X Bowl". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (December 12, 2013). "Seagulls hold on to deny Frontiers, win 4th straight Japan X Bowl". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (January 4, 2014). "Obic runs wild to foil KGU again, win record 4th straight Rice Bowl". xleague.com. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
- ^ Marantz, Ken (November 10, 2014). "Slingin' Sugawara, Seagulls bounce back to rout Rise". xleague.com. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
- ^ "Seagulls pour it on to deny Finies, sail into semifinals". xleague.com. November 23, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
- ^ Ikezaka, Hiroshi (November 30, 2014). "Four time defending champion Obic Seagulls eliminated from X-League title chase". japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
- ^ Ikezaka, Hiroshi (October 31, 2015). "Obic outplays IBM in second-stage opener". japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved February 16, 2016.
- ^ Nagatsuka, Kaz (May 17, 2016). "Former UCLA Quarterback Neuheisel embracing Japanese challenge". japantimes.co.jp. Retrieved May 31, 2016.
External links
- Official website (Japanese)