Seagulls, Deers set for epic Japan X Bowl clash

They are two of the most dominant teams in X-League history,  having won over 80 percent of their regular season games since the start of the league in 1995, and combining for nearly half of the titles over that span.

But the Obic Seagulls and Kajima Deers have never faced each other with the league championship on the line. Until now.

The two-time defending champion Seagulls take on the Deers in the Japan X Bowl on Dec. 17 at Tokyo Dome in what promises to be an epic clash between two unbeaten powerhouses.

“I think our team has improved from last year,” Obic head coach Makoto Ohashi said at a recent kickoff event for the game. “But so have the opponents. It’s very good for Japanese football.  I’m looking forward to the game.”

The Seagulls, looking to become the first team to three-peat and win a record sixth title, have the historical edge over the Deers, having beaten them three times in the past three years-all in semifinal matchups.  Last spring, Obic prevailed 47-31 in the Pearl Bowl tournament, following up on a similar 45-20 win last December to make it to the 2011 Japan X Bowl. That was a repeat of the 2010 semifinal, won by Obic 28-21.

Kajima will be aiming to break that streak as it attempts to capture its third championship and first since 2009.

“There’s no bigger stage than this,” Kajima head coach Kiyoyuki Mori said. “They are an opponent that we’ve lost to for two years in a row. We’ve been watching their backs and practicing hard to catch up. For the two weeks before every game [this season], we prepared well. Now we’re going to have our best preparation and play our best game.”

Statistically, the teams match up evenly. In winning all eight games to get to the final, Obic outscored its opponents 345-70, while Kajima had a 341-64 advantage. Comparing scores against common opponents, Obic defeated Fujitsu 25-14, while Kajima posted two wins over the Frontiers 27-15 and 24-14. Kajima chalked up a 41-16 win over the Asahi Beer Silver Star,  a team Obic would later crush 69-7 for the largest-ever margin of victory in a second-stage game.

Kajima, however, will likely have to try to dethrone Obic without starting quarterback Daisuke Kato, who suffered a serious knee injury in the semifinal victory over Fujitsu on Dec. 2 and remains doubtful for the game.

Still, former starter Takuya Yamashiro, who led Kajima to the 2009 title, showed himself more than capable of filling the hole left by Kato when he finished up the win over Fujitsu.  Mori is confident that Yamashiro can do the job.

“Even though the didn’t play much, he’s prepared to be the starter,” Mori said. “It’s not a problem to put him in.”

Ohashi, perhaps taking the diplomatic route, said the Deers’ offense won’t miss a beat with Yamashiro calling the signals.

“They are both such smart quarterbacks, they don’t make many foolish plays,” said Ohashi, who served as offensive coordinator under head coach Mori on the Japan national team for the world championship. “Both Kato and Yamashiro have good accuracy. They used both in games this season. Yamashiro has good experience, so it’s not so big a difference.”

What could be a problem, however, is that the Deers have no definite backup should Yamashiro go down. “I’m more worried about our depth,” Mori said.

Kajima added depth to its receiving corps this season in Yasuhuro Miyamoto, a sure-handed 1.82-meter rookie out of Hosei University who caught 29 passes for 347 yards and six touchdowns and provides a fine balance with veteran Naoki Maeda.

The key for Kajima, however, will be how its defense can stand up to Obic’s high-power offense.  The Deers know how difficult it would be to give up 40-plus points, as they did in their last two meetings, and come out  with a win.

Shuhei Suzuki and Yuji Kuramochi anchor the defensive line, while the Deers have a solid secondary led by Koji Kato and Takahiro Sakai.

“Physically and mentally it will be a tough game,” said Sakai, who admitted he’s a bit daunted by the challenge. “I’ll be confident when the game arrives, and I’ll be excited.”

The Obic offense is led by quarterback Shun Sugawara, who has not lost a game since joining the Seagulls from the Sagamihara Rise in 2010. Obic’s last loss was a 23-20 defeat by the Panasonic Impulse in the 2009 second stage.

This season, Sugawara has completed two-thirds of his passes, connecting on 83 of 123 attempts for 1,351 yards and 15 touchdowns, with six interceptions. The Seagulls feature several dangerous receivers, any of whom can break a game open, led by Noriaki Kinoshita and Ryoma Hagiyama. Hagiyama has 26 receptions for 542 yards and 12 touchdowns, while Kinoshita has caught 21 passes for 489 yards and six scores.

The Seagulls give up nothing on the other side of the ball, led by their American defensive ends Kevin Jackson and B.J. Beatty and linebacker Naoki Kosho.

“We’ve come this far, we don’t want to lose,” said team captain Kosho. “Watching Kajima, we know they’re strong. We’ve wanted to play them and beat them for the title. We’ll be ready to put on a great show.”

For Ohashi, the game will likely come down to turnovers. Both teams are highly capable of taking advantage of any miscue.

“Their offense doesn’t make many mistakes,” he said. “No bad things. We have to make it happen. If we can win the turnover battle, maybe we can win. Sometimes our turnover ration was minus-1 or minus-2, but we still won. But in this game, no.”

—Ken Marantz for the X-League