Football and sumo

[Richard Webb <rlwebb@puc.edu>]

At 10:00 AM 4/27/2001 Friday, you wrote:

>I heard a story about a rikishi in the 80's who went to L.A. to try out for
>the NFL there.  I only recall two things: 1) he didn't make it because of
>skills that he lacked but he had more strength and speed off of the "line".
>2) the other thing I heard was that he was introduced to the linemen while
>they were doing strength training--deadlifts.  So they started to show off,
>one-upping each other in their max one lift.  This rikishi apparently went
>over and lifted the weights with *one hand*.
>
>Frankly, I don't know what a rikishi lacks that would make him unable to
>play in the NFL ^_^
>
>eric


I have never played anything but flag football, but as an avid Raider fan, 
I think I have a fair amount of knowledge about football.  There are only 
two things I can imagine that a sumo wrestler would lack for qualifying as 
an offensive lineman--stamina (which can be developed) and a knowledge of 
how players work together to block in the offensive line.  Offensive 
linemen tend to be the most intelligent players in football.  Most people 
believe this is because of the complexity of their blocking schemes.  They 
must work as a unit, passing off defenders as they engage another without 
letting anyone slip by.

Other skills for offensive linemen are virtually the same as for sumo 
wrestlers (quick hands, quick feet with reflexive footwork, great pushing 
strength).  I would imagine that a great sumo wrestler would also be a 
great offensive tackle (sumo wrestlers are used to "working in space" which 
is what an offensive tackle must do).  Clearly a sumo wrestler could play 
in the interior line as well, but it would not take advantage of a sumo 
wrestler's ability one-on-one.

I haven't discussed the defensive line because foot speed is much more 
important on the defensive side of the line--sumo wrestlers may or may not 
have good foot speed.  A good pulling guard (offensive line) needs to have 
some speed but it's not as important since they aren't generally expected 
to pull for more than 5-10 yards at best.

BTW, based on a picture I have of Musashimaru in his heya room with a 
Raiders poster on the wall, I assume that he is also an avid Raiders fan 
(just like Jack and me ;-).

Richard Webb
rlwebb@raiderfans.com         http://www.puc.edu/Faculty/Richard_Webb/
______________________________________________________________________
Department of Physics                                           (Home)
Pacific Union College                                   7 Mobile Manor
Angwin, CA  94508                                    Angwin, CA  94508
(707) 965-6684                                          (707) 965-2010
______________________________________________________________________