Around the League: Wrapup of Week 1 action

Elecom Kobe Finies 33, Sidewinders 7: Jordan Canzeri rushed for two touchdowns, including a 52-yarder, and ex-Iowa teammate Sean Draper returned a punt 74 yards for a score in their X-League debuts in the first quarter to lead Elecom over the Sidewinders at Kobe’s Oji Stadium. Masato Kinoshita, a transfer from the Nojima Sagamihara Rise, threw a touchdown pass and Hidetaka Nakano kicked a pair of field goals for the Finies. The Sidewinders, playing in X-1 for the first time since 2006, avoided a shutout when Ryuji Maeda threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Takeshi Hashimoto in the fourth quarter.

Asahi Beer Silver Star 34, Keishicho Eagles 0: Mason Mills threw two touchdown passes to Shohei Aragaki and Takuya Yanagisawa and Toshiyuki Takamatsu both scored on the ground as Asahi Beer dominated the Tokyo police department team at rainy Fujitsu Kawasaki Stadium. Mills, missing his main target Roman Wilson this season, completed 9 of 13 passes for 140 yards before yielding to Kazuma Ando, who also went 9 of 13, for 79 yards. The Silver Star were limited in the second half to a pair of Yoshinori Iijima field goals.

All Mitsubishi Lions 52, Bulls Football Club 7:  Ryosuke Ogata rushed for two touchdowns and three quarterbacks combined to throw four TD passes as All Mitsubishi, the top favorite in Battle 9 to earn a wild card berth in the playoffs, pounded the Bulls at Fujitsu Kawasaki Stadium. Ryuichi Fujiwara had two of the Lions’ four sacks as the defense limited his namesake and Bulls quarterback Keita Fujiwara to 14 of 42 passing for 140 yards and an interception. Shunsuke Kikuchi scored on a 3-yard run in the third quarter for the Bulls.

As One Black Eagles 28, Nagoya Cyclones 0: Hiroshi Yamagami rushed for 107 yards and three touchdowns, including a 71-yard romp, on 11 carries and As One overcame a slow start to rout Nagoya at Osaka’s Expo Flash Field. Kohei Takahara threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Kazuki Kawabata in the third quarter for the Black Eagles, who led just 7-0 at halftime. The As One defense forced three turnovers, blocked Atsuhisa Yamaguchi’s 39-yard field goal attempt, and stopped the Cyclones on the 1-yard line to end the game.

Obic Seagulls 14, Nojima Sagamihara Rise 13: Jerry Neusheisel threw his second touchdown pass of the game with 3:26 left in the game, and Takatoshi Hoshino kicked the all-important extra point as Obic edged Nojima in a thriller at wet Fujitsu Kawasaki Stadium. Former Michigan starter Devin Gardner, making his debut for the Rise, threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to ex-Wolverines teammate Jeremy Gallon in the second quarter, then scored on a 2-yard run to put Nojima ahead in the fourth quarter. Obic blocked the extra point attempt on the second score to provide the margin of victory.

Panasonic Impulse 22, Asahi Soft Drinks Challengers 7: Emory Polley returned a punt 55 yards for the first score and Eita Saeki kicked five field goals—including two 51-yarders—for all the rest to lift Panasonic over West Division rival Asahi Soft Drinks at Osaka’s Expo Flash Field. The Challengers, who had a Donnie King kickoff return for a touchdown nullified by a penalty, avoided a shutout on Yusuke Kano’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Kaoru Ota late in the fourth quarter, which was set up by a blocked punt.

Fujitsu Frontiers 29, IBM BigBlue 24: Colby Cameron threw three touchdown passes in the second half as Fujitsu, which trailed 7-6 at halftime, pulled away before holding off a late IBM surge to win the opening week’s marquee matchup at Fujitsu Kawasaki Stadium. IBM’s rookie QB Yuki Masamoto threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to John Stanton in the first quarter, and broke away on a 57-yard touchdown run in the fourth. Hidetetsu Nishimura kicked three field goals for Fujitsu in a rain-swept game that saw the two teams combine for eight turnovers.

Tokyo Gas Creators 24, Meiji Yasuda PentaOcean Pirates 10: Hiroki Nakamoto combined with Yu Takaoka on a 24-yard touchdown pass for the go-ahead score as Tokyo Gas exploded for three fourth-quarter touchdowns to rally past Meiji Yasuda PentaOcean at Tokyo Dome. The Creators trailed 7-3 going into the fourth quarter when Hidehito Tokushima scored on a 34-yard run, only to see the Pirates tie the game on Hiroyuki Akatsu’s 35-yard field goal. Fumitaka Obana had an 11-yard touchdown to clinch the victory for Tokyo Gas.

Lixil Deers 73, Bullseyes Tokyo 7: Shohei Kato completed all four passes he attempted, two for touchdowns, before backup Shotaro Owada came in and threw for four touchdowns on 8 of 9 passing as Lixil followed up its strong Pearl Bowl showing by routing Bulleyes at Tokyo’s Amino Vital Field. Shinichi Maekawa, Tomoya Okabe and Masaki Ono all rushed for touchdowns as the Deers, who finished runnerup to IBM in the spring Pearl Bowl, piled up 427 total yards (214 passing, 213 rushing). Lixil was not flagged for a penalty.