Japan: Rice Bowl semifinals feature last 3 champions plus a dark horse

The X-League’s Rice Bowl Tournament (RBT) semifinals take place this weekend, Saturday, December 14 and Sunday, December 15, with the winners advancing to the Japanese American Football Championship Game set for January 3 in the Tokyo Dome.

The defending champion Fujitsu Frontiers, who have won the last three title games. will face the upstart Sekisui Challengers who are aiming for their first Japanese championship in 24 years this Sunday, December 15. In the other semifinal on Saturday, December 14, the Obic Seagulls, the last team to win the crown before Fujitsu, will take on the Panasonic Impulse who were crowned XLeague champions in 2015-16.

Panasonic Impulse (6-0) vs Obic Seagulls (5-1), Saturday, December 14

Panasonic QB Yuya Araki Photo: ©xleague

Panasonic, who last won the Japanese title in 2015, will take on the former powerhouse of Japanese football, the Obic Seagulls. The last time these two met in the semifinals was two years ago. Panasonic won that game 30-10 to reach the Rice Bowl.

Panasonic has not lost a single regular-season game since the 2021 season and that record remained unblemished this season. The Impulse won all six regular season games and then blanked the Elecom Kobe Fines in the quarterfinals 24-0.

Our analyst, Aaron Ellis, quarterback for the Dentsu Caterpillars and former quarterback for the Telfs Patriots (Austria) and Stuttgart Surge (ELF) among other teams:

For Obic vs Panasonic, the biggest match up will be the Obic offense vs the Panasonic defense.

Obic are going to have to outscore Panasonic. A large responsibility will fall on Seagulls quarterback Tyler Kulka to protect the ball and extend drives keeping the Impulse rushing attack on the sideline. The Panasonic defense is very good so Obic needs to play mistake-free football.

The Panasonic ground game is led by running back Hiroaki Tatsukawa while quarterback Yuya Araki has also impressed. He has not thrown a single interception so far this season. Araki can pick a defense apart with his short, accurate passing game.

The defense is anchored by linebackers Shota Aone and Jaboree Williams, who lead a strong pass rush, along with defensive back Yoh Yamamoto who led the league in interceptions this season.

Obic RB Lee Zhuo Photo: ©xleague

Obic suffered a surprising loss against IBM Big Blue earlier in the season but then won the rest of their games with ease. The offense, defense, and special teams are all at a high caliber and there are few weaknesses.

Wide receiver Jamal Watanabe is the focus of the offense along with quarterback Tyler Kulka. Watanabe caught a league-best eight touchdown passes during the regular season and added two more in the 20-14 quarterfinal win over the Nojima Sagamihara Rise. The Seagulls ground game relies on team captain Taku Lee as well as Nanato Nishimura.

Obic’s traditionally speedy and powerful defense will be a key factor. The defensive line featuring linemen Hiroaki Nakazato and Takuya Seike is tough to beat, and the pass rush of rangy end Suzusei Yamada and rookie Sean Rei Trotter is particularly impressive.

Fujitsu Frontiers (6-0) vs. Sekisui Challengers (4-2), Sunday, December 15

Fujitsu RB Trashawn Nixon has been selected as the league MVP for the past two years. Photo: ©xleague

Fujitsu, which is aiming for a fourth consecutive Rice Bowl title, will be challenged by a SEKISUI Challengers team that has made remarkable progress this season. Still, in the only meeting between the two this year, Fujitsu came out on op, 35-7.

Aaron Ellis:

For the Challengers vs Frontiers, the key match up will be the run defense of the Challengers vs the Fujitsu run game. If they can contain it, they have a chance to be in the game. Complement that with some big plays by the Sekisuit quarterback and receiver duo of Garrett Saffron and Boogie Knight and we may see a competitive matchup.

Fujitsu relies on quarterback Tsubasa Takagi, running back Trashaun Nixon and wide receiver Samajie Grant all performing at a high level. The Frontiers also have an excellent receiver room featuring Yusei Jin, Kazuki Kimura, and Antony Mawunedi Sakamoto, and boasts one of the best passing offenses in the league. Nixon, who is the key to the ground game, carried the ball just four times in the 49-14 quarterfinal win over the IBM Big Blue, but showed his dominance by converting three of them into touchdowns.

The defense, which includes defensive lineman Yuhi Fujitani, linebacker Hiroki Tokumo, defensive backs Yuya Watanabe, and Bronson Beatty, allowed the fewest points per game in the league this year conceding just 8.2 points a game. The Frontiers are also scoring an average of 47.2 points a contest. This includes scoring on defense and on special teams.

SEKISUI WR Boogie Knight Photo; ©xleague

SEKISUI is a team that has undergone rapid improvement this season. Last year, they won only two games and missed out on the playoffs, but this season with a new sponsor, they have vastly improved on both offense and defense.

Quarterback Garrett Saffron has three of the league’s top receivers to target including Boogie Knight, Takuro Abe and Susumu Kameyama. In addition, running back Shu Endo who joined the team this season, has had a breakthrough year.

On defense, keep an eye on aggressive defensive back Tre’Vaughn Craig. Despite being in the secondary, he has the speed and skills to penetrate the offensive line and create havoc in the backfield.

Source: Xleague.