Yokosuka Seahawks football preseason kicks off

Photo By Gregory Mitchell | Sonar Technician Surface 2nd class Christian McGhee, running back for the Yokosuka Seahawks, heads up field during a preseason matchup against the National Defense Academy of Japan Cadets at Berkley Field during the 2013 Spring Festival, March 24. (Photo by Greg Mitchell)  

YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JAPAN

03.24.2013

Courtesy Story

Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka

YOKOSUKA, Japan (March 24, 2013) – Yokosuka Seahawks semi-pro football team took to the gridiron for their first pre-season game against the National Defense Academy of Japan Cadets during the Spring Festival festivities at Berkley Field on board Fleet Activities (FLEACT), Yokosuka.

Seahawks scored a 22-6 victory over the Cadets in a predominately defensive contest.

Yokosuka Seahawks football team is a semi-professional league which has existed as a part of the forward-deployed bases since the end of World War II. Teams consist mostly of active-duty sailors and Department of Defense civilian employees.

Seahawks football is part of the South Division, along with Yokota and Misawa Air Bases. North Division consists of teams from Marine Camps Hansen and Foster and Kadena Air Base.

“I think that is important for us to be able to mix with the other militaries,” said James Price, head coach, Yokosuka Seahawks. “This is the National Defense Academy of Japan. We have developed a relationship with them over the last three years and we’ve had some good friends with them. The coaches are good people and the players on both sides like playing each other. It’s a real challenge for them; we’re a little bigger than they are and they play us because they feel it helps them play better in their division. All in all, it’s a good time and people really enjoy it.”

While the Seahawks have helped influence Japanese interest in American football, the Japanese have played the game since 1934, when the Japan American Football Association first introduced collegiate competition between Rikkyo, Meiji and Waseda Universities.

“I would say that we are somewhere around a division-three, semi-pro level,” said Price. “We have a lot of experienced players, some of which have played on division-one football before. We have guys that come from basically high school to middle to low colleges. Some have very little experience to a lot; some players have been with the Seahawks for 6-10 years. It’s a mixed bag, but when you bring all that in, we actually have pretty good military football.”

Yokosuka’s last championship was in 2007, and Price looks to return the team to its former winning ways.

“We have a long tradition of championship football here in Yokosuka,” said Price. “We’ve struggled in the last couple of years, mainly due to shortage of personnel, but this year we are really strong, and I think we are going to take this team to new heights.

For anyone interested in attending Seahawks games, the teams 2013 schedule is as follows:

April 20: Misawa Jets
April 27: BYE week
May 4: @ Yokota Warriors
May 11: @ Misawa Jets
May 18: BYE week
May 25: Yokota Warriors
June 1: Misawa Jets
June 8: BYE week
June 15: Yokota Warriors

• Date Taken: 03.24.2013
• Date Posted: 04.12.2013 01:31
• Story ID: 105069
• Location: YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JP