PromoTheRobot Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 (By the way, I am NOT making this suggestion for the Bills, so calm down) I am conviced that the skills used in Sumo Wrestling would translate to playing O-line in football. One day, somebody will take 5 sumo wrestlers, teach them the game, and will be declared a genius. from the NY Times: Las Vegas, City of Sumo Mania LAS VEGAS, Oct. 9 - Futeno spent years developing his 346-pound sumo wrestler's frame by consuming a special high-calorie diet and napping after meals. But as he explored the sights, and tastes, of the Las Vegas Strip this past week, he found that his appetite was no match for the pastrami sandwich at the Carnegie Deli here. Kasugao and 37 other sumo wrestlers were in Las Vegas this weekend for the first top-level event in the United States in 20 years. East, Meet West "Is that the size for the American people, too?" asked the wrestler, who had to split the towering stack of meat and rye with a fellow heavyweight at the Mirage. "Of course, it's too big." Futeno was one of 38 top-ranked rikishi, or gentlemen of strength, to descend on Las Vegas for the first Grand Sumo Championship in the United States in 20 years. The exhibition, held at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino over the weekend, drew nearly 25,000 spectators over three days. There, the American audience, a mix of die-hard sumo fans and curious newcomers, stomped and cheered as the hefty men, clad in thonglike belts called mawashi, smacked bare flesh in an explosive struggle. They whistled as the wrestlers beat their stomachs, lunged forward and barreled their chests together. And they gasped as Asashoryu, the yokozuna, or grand champion of sumo, was upset in the final round by separate competitors on both Friday and Saturday night. He came back to win Sunday, but some still celebrated his struggle. "It was cool to see the yokozuna go down," said Tal Ronnen, 30, a longtime fan who had traveled from Norfolk, Va., to see Japan's national sport live for the first time. "Actually being able to hear the two bodies clashing is amazing," said Mr. Ronnen, who had previously seen competitions only over the Internet. The wrestlers made an even bigger splash outside the arena. Tourists accustomed to Las Vegas's carnival-like spectacle still stopped to gawk and snap photos as the rikishi sauntered through the casino wearing kimonos, their hair slicked back and tied into topknots. "It's so surreal to walk around the hotel and see these guys sitting at the blackjack tables and in the buffet line," Mr. Ronnen said. The rikishi made the most of their week in Las Vegas, taking in shows (one was "Zumanity," Cirque du Soleil's adult-themed spectacle), flirting with cocktail waitresses and dropping thousands for Louis Vuitton handbags at the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace. They smoked and drank and played poker and slots - a drastic departure from their strict training regimen in Japan, where rikishi live in communal quarters and rise at 5 a.m. to practice for five hours before a hearty midday meal of chanko-nabe, a protein-rich stew. "I didn't do any training here," said Iwakiyama, a 395-pound wrestler who won $100 playing roulette and shopped at the Coca-Cola store. "I got Coca-Cola underwear - the largest one." A crowd of autograph seekers swarmed Iwakiyama as he made his way through the halls of Mandalay Bay after the tournament. "He's so handsome, it makes my heart go boom-boom," said Sally Yong, 57, who attended the sumo event with her two adult daughters. "These girls used to tease me, 'Mom, you like to watch guys in diapers.' Now they're hooked." In Japan, sumo wrestlers are considered sexy superstars on par with Michael Jordan, said Kurt Bakken of Napa, Calif., who used to teach English in Japan. "They're worshiped," he said. But Futeno, who traveled with an entourage of sumo groupies, said the Americans treated him more like a curiosity than a celebrity. As much as they stood out on the street, the sumo wrestlers fit right in with the bigger-is-better milieu of the Las Vegas buffet. Plenty of American tourists appeared more rotund - and piled plates higher - than the rikishi did. Although chefs at Mandalay Bay made sure to stock the buffet with Japanese rice, miso soup and pickled radishes, the American fare ended up being far more popular with the wrestlers. "I thought they would really hit the Asian food," said Sean DiCicco, executive chef at Mandalay Bay. "But these guys were really heavy on the carving stations, prime rib and turkey breast." Meanwhile, Futeno fared much better at three-card poker than he did in the ring. "I won $3,000," he said. "Beginner's luck." I should point out that not all sumo are 700lb blobs of fat. The sport has weight classes like regular wrestling, and there are sumo wrestlers that are built like normal people, mostly in Europe, not in Japan. (they seem to like fat sumos) Sumo is all about maintaining your balance while knocking your opponant on his diapered ass. What's so different from playing O-line? PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Surfmeister Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 It isn't far fetched. I've said this for years. Sumo wrestlers could open holes and pass block, but they lack quickness and speed. Instead they could teach present day O-Linemen their skills and benefit from the best of both worlds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frez Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 We also need............. One guy that is 6'11. Put the tall guy in on field goal attempts and let him block them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfanone Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Would they have to wear those diapers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 10, 2005 Author Share Posted October 10, 2005 It isn't far fetched. I've said this for years. Sumo wrestlers could open holes and pass block, but they lack quickness and speed. Instead they could teach present day O-Linemen their skills and benefit from the best of both worlds. 471958[/snapback] The best guess are pretty quick on their feet. They need to move pretty fast laterally to fend off attack in the ring. Not very different from blocking Aaron Schobel when he goes around the outside. But no, they wouldn't run a 4.2 40. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFanInTexas Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I happened to be at the Mandalay last week for a conference. The sumo wrestlers walked around wearing their robes and flipflops. It was kind of surreal seeing a bunch of 400lb men playing the slots. Some of them could make great OL or DL, but with the training it would take, and the cultural transition, you're looking at 3-5 years apiece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of BiB Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I have too, he stole it from me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 10, 2005 Author Share Posted October 10, 2005 I happened to be at the Mandalay last week for a conference. The sumo wrestlers walked around wearing their robes and flipflops. It was kind of surreal seeing a bunch of 400lb men playing the slots. Some of them could make great OL or DL, but with the training it would take, and the cultural transition, you're looking at 3-5 years apiece. 471967[/snapback] They would have to play 4 years in college, maybe at a level below I-A. Then a couple years in NFL Europe. But can you imagine having 5 road graders in front of you? PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PromoTheRobot Posted October 10, 2005 Author Share Posted October 10, 2005 I happened to be at the Mandalay last week for a conference. The sumo wrestlers walked around wearing their robes and flipflops. It was kind of surreal seeing a bunch of 400lb men playing the slots. Some of them could make great OL or DL, but with the training it would take, and the cultural transition, you're looking at 3-5 years apiece. 471967[/snapback] I would love to see Sumo live. ESPN used to carry the European matches but stopped. PTR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven in MD Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Look around college today. Many of the big time programs have hugh 350lb DL and OL from Hawaii. Many of the Sumo guys came from Hawaii... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of BiB Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Christ. had this figured out three years ago. Now you're all jumping on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobblehead Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Look around college today. Many of the big time programs have hugh 350lb DL and OL from Hawaii. Many of the Sumo guys came from Hawaii... 471973[/snapback] Konishiki was "discovered" in Hawaii playing HS football. hooray for Wikipedia! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spun Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 It is an interesting idea but I remain skeptical. The skills required to be a top notch lineman are immense. The toughest part could be working in tandem with your fellow linemen and avoiding penalties. By no means is it easy. The skills could come in handy as do the skills of agility and balance required in ballet. Andre the Giant tried out for the Redskins (I believe) in the '70s but it didn't work out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fan in San Diego Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 The best guess are pretty quick on their feet. They need to move pretty fast laterally to fend off attack in the ring. Not very different from blocking Aaron Schobel when he goes around the outside. But no, they wouldn't run a 4.2 40. PTR 471966[/snapback] There very good with hand fighting as well ! Just like an OL ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 Christ. had this figured out three years ago. Now you're all jumping on? 471977[/snapback] 4.5 years ago for me. I remember it like it was yesterday, I was in a meeting and had to cut one loose, and all of the sudden it came to me from out of the blue. Sumo wrestlers manning the O-line. I never mentioned it because I couldn't get past the diapers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Gross Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 4.5 years ago for me. I remember it like it was yesterday, I was in a meeting and had to cut one loose, and all of the sudden it came to me from out of the blue. Sumo wrestlers manning the O-line. I never mentioned it because I couldn't get past the diapers. 471992[/snapback] Do you regret wearing the diaper after what happened when you did cut it loose? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lothar Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I remember an interview with a scout on NFL Network earlier this year where just this question was posed to him. His argument was that Sumo wrestlers are trained to fight for about 3 minutes - absolutely zero endurance - else you know they would be paid a gonzo amount of money to man the NFL trenches. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dante Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 It's never crossed my mind to use Sumo's but it's a good idea. Makes all the sense in the world to me now that you mention it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
/dev/null Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 While we're at it, lets bring in Shayne Falco Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I remember an interview with a scout on NFL Network earlier this year where just this question was posed to him. His argument was that Sumo wrestlers are trained to fight for about 3 minutes - absolutely zero endurance - else you know they would be paid a gonzo amount of money to man the NFL trenches. 472023[/snapback] Right on the money Lothar; that is exactly the reason those fat loads would never make it through a single practice, much less make an NFL roster and contribute. They have absolutely zero endurance and after they'd run one or maybe two series you'd have to start pulling their fat asses off the field with a crane. Personally I'd much rather see somebody like Walter Jones in a sumo ring. I think he'd be tossing Nips all over the place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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