The Panasonic Impulse is an American football team based in Kadoma, Osaka, Japan. The Impulse compete in the X-League, and are a member of the top tier X1 Super division along with Fujitsu Frontiers, Obic Seagulls, IBM Big Blue, Nojima Sagamihara Rise, Elecom Kobe Finies, Tokyo Gas Creators, and All Mitsubishi Lions. The team currently holds 8 Japan X Bowl championship titles along with 4 Rice Bowl Championships.
Team history
- 1974 Team founded. Team known as the Matsushita Electric Works Impulse
- 1995 Won first Tokyo Super Bowl title. Also won first Rice Bowl National Championship.
- 2004 Team celebrates 30th anniversary of founding. Won 2nd Rice Bowl National Championship.
- 2008 Team name changed to Panasonic Electric Works Impulse. Won 3rd Rice Bowl National Championship.
- 2011 Team name changed to Panasonic Impulse.
- 2015 Won 7th Japan X Bowl title and 4th Rice Bowl National Championship.
- 2024 Won 8th Japan X Bowl title.
Seasons
| X-League champions (1987–present) | Division champions | Final stage/semifinals berth | Wild card/second stage berth |
| Season | Division | Regular season | Postseason results | Awards | Head coaches | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | |||||
| 1997 | West | 1st | 5 | 0 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Asahi Beer) 26-6Lost Tokyo Super Bowl XI (Kashima) 12-48 | Kawaguchi | |
| 1998 | West | 2nd | 4 | 1 | 0 | Lost Wild card match (Asahi Beer) 10-26 | Kawaguchi | |
| 1999 | West | 3rd | 3 | 2 | 0 | Murakami | ||
| 2000 | West | 1st | 7 | 1 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Fujitsu)Lost Tokyo Super Bowl XIV (Asahi Soft Drinks) 18-20 | Murakami | |
| 2001 | West | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Recruit) 10-7 OTLost Tokyo Super Bowl XV (at Asahi Soft Drinks) 7-14 | Murakami | |
| 2002 | West | 1st | 7 | 1 | 0 | Lost semi-finals match (Fujitsu) 0-7 | Murakami | |
| 2003 | West | 1st | 8 | 1 | 0 | Lost semi-finals match (Asahi Beer) 14-21 | Murakami | |
| 2004 | West | 1st | 10 | 0 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Obic) 10-7Won Japan X Bowl XVIII (Asahi Beer) 15-6Won 58th Rice Bowl National Championship game (at Ritsumeikan) 26-7 | Murakami | |
| 2005 | West | 1st | 8 | 2 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Kashima) 3-0Lost Japan X Bowl XIX (at Obic) 16-25 | Murakami | |
| 2006 | West | 1st | 7 | 1 | 0 | Lost semi-finals match (Kashima) 6-13 | ||
| 2007 | West | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won semi-finals match (Obic) 29-26 OTWon Japan X Bowl XXI (Fujitsu) 33-13Won 61st Rice Bowl National Championship game (Kwansei Gakuin) 52-38 | ||
| 2008 | West | 2nd | 8 | 1 | 0 | Won Wild card match (Obic) 49-7Won semi-finals match (Onward) 44-17Won Japan X Bowl XXII (Kashima) 28-14Lost 62nd Rice Bowl National Championship game (Ritsumeikan) 13-17 | ||
| 2009 | West | 1st | 8 | 0 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (IBM) 49-7Won 2nd stage match (Obic) 23-20Lost final stage match (Kashima) 26-34 | ||
| 2010 | West | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Beer) 24-19Won 2nd stage match (Fujitsu) 23-6Won final stage match (IBM) 31-28Lost Japan X Bowl XXIV (Obic) 16-20 | ||
| 2011 | West | 1st | 8 | 2 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (Asahi Beer) 28-10Lost 2nd stage match (Fujitsu) 10-24 | ||
| 2012 | West | 1st | 7 | 3 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (at IBM) 34-171Lost 2nd stage match (Nojima Sagamihara) 27-28 | Ryohei Imanishi (MVP) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2013 | West | 1st | 9 | 1 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (at IBM) 55-242Lost 2nd stage match (Kashima) 45-47Lost final stage match (at Fujitsu) 13-28 | Tetsuo Takata (MVP)David Motu (ROY) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2014 | West | 2nd | 7 | 1 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (at Asahi Beer) 65-33Lost 2nd stage match (Fujitsu) 24-48 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2015 | West | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | Won 2nd stage match (at Asahi Beer) 38-144Won 2nd stage match (Nojima Sagamihara) 36-0Won final stage match (Nojima Sagamihara) 45-175Won Japan X Bowl XXIX (at Fujitsu) 24-21Won 69th Rice Bowl National Championship game (Ritsumeikan) 22-196 | Tetsuo Takata (MVP) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2016 | West | 1st | 8 | 1 | 0 | Won quarterfinals match (Asahi Beer) 21-147Lost semi-finals match (at Obic) 6-9 OT8 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2017 | West | 1st | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won quarterfinals match (All Mitsubishi) 20-3Lost semifinals match (IBM) 24-31 | Benjamin Anderson (MVP) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2018 | West | 1st | 8 | 1 | 0 | Won quarterfinals match (Tokyo Gas) 45-0Lost semifinals match (IBM) 17-24 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2019 | X1 Super | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | Won semifinals match (Obic) 24-14Lost Japan X Bowl XXXIII (at Fujitsu) 26-28 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2020 | X1 Super | N/A | 1 | 1 | 0 | Lost semifinals tournament match (Obic) 35-34 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2021 | X1 Super | 1st | 6 | 0 | 0 | Won semifinals match (IBM) 38-31Lost 75th Rice Bowl Championship (Fujitsu) 18-24 | Jaboree Williams (MVP) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2022 | X1 Super Div. A | 1st | 7 | 0 | 0 | Won quarterfinals match (Asahi Soft Drinks) 38-28Won semifinals match (Obic) 30-10Lost 76th Rice Bowl Championship (Fujitsu) 21-29 | Jaylon Henderson (ROY) | Nobuyoshi Araki |
| 2023 | X1 Super Div. A | 1st | 7 | 0 | 1 | Won quarterfinals match (Asahi Beer) 27-0Won semifinals match (IBM) 47-23Lost 77th Rice Bowl Championship (Fujitsu) 10-16 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| 2024 | X1 Super | 2nd | 9 | 0 | 0 | Won quarterfinals match (Elecom Kobe) 24-3Won semifinals match (Obic) 24-5Won 78th Rice Bowl Championship (at Fujitsu) 34-27 | Nobuyoshi Araki | |
| Total | 200 | 22 | 1 | (1997–2024, includes only regular season) | ||||
| 37 | 22 | 0 | (1997–2024, includes only playoffs) | |||||
| 237 | 44 | 1 | (1997–2024, includes both regular season and playoffs) | |||||
Import players
Current import players
| Jersey # | Name | Position | Years with team | Alma mater | Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #85 | Caleb Phillips | TE | 2024–present | University of Hawai'i | |
| #23 | Joshua Cox | DB | 2019–present | Central Michigan University | 3x All X-League Team member (2020, 2023–24) |
| #4 | Jaboree Williams | LB | 2020–present | Wake Forest University | 3X All X-League Team member (2021-22 & 2024)X1 Super MVP (2021) |
Japanese-American players
| Jersey # | Name | Position | Years with team | Alma mater | Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #12 | Tsubasa Brennan | WR | 2021–present | Nihon University | |
| #10 | Les Maruo | LB | 2023–present | University of Texas at San Antonio | |
| #5 | Victor Jamal Mitchell | RB | 2019–present | University of Virginia's College at Wise | Japan National Team Selection (2020)3x All X-League Team member (2020–22) |
| #40 | Moses Kaito Wiseman | LB | 2019–present | Nihon University | Japan National Team Selection (2020) 2x All X-1 Super Team member (2023–24) |
Former import players
| Name | Position | Years with the team | Alma mater | Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dax Raymond | TE | 2023 | Utah State University | |
| Shay Fields | WR | 2020-21, 2023 | University of Colorado Boulder | |
| Jaylon Henderson | QB | 2022 | Boise State University | X-1 Super ROY award (2022) |
| Alfonso Onunwor | WR | 2022 | Idaho | 4x All X-League Super team member (2019–22) |
| Anthony Lawrence | QB | 2019–2021 | University of San Diego | All X-League Team member (2021) |
| Gabe Ahner | OL | 2019 | University of Louisville | |
| Aaron Ahner | DL | 2017–2019 | University of Louisville | |
| Daniel Wise | WR | 2019 | Colorado State Pueblo | |
| Carlton Jones | DE | 2015–2019 | Alabama State | All X-League Team member (2017) |
| Edmond Davis | C | 2015–2018 | Alabama State | 4x All X-League Team member (2015–18) |
| Benjamin Anderson | QB | 2017–2018 | UAPB | MVP award (2017) |
| Edward Burns | CB | 2018 | Elon | |
| Emory Polley | CB | 2015–2017 | Brown | 2x All X-League Team member (2016–17) |
| Ben Dupree | RB | 2015–2016 | The Citadel | All X-League Team member (2015) |
| Matthew Oh | LB | 2014 | Dartmouth |
Notable coaches
| Name | Role | Years with the team | Alma mater | Achievements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tim Goins | Offensive coordinator & director of international football operations91011 | 2014-2015 | UNLV | The first American coach in Panasonic Impulse historyRecruited the Impulse’s first full roster of import playersJapan National Champion (2015) |
External links
- Official website (Japanese)
References
Marantz, Ken (November 4, 2012). "Panasonic pounds out 2nd-stage win over IBM". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/news_league/panasonic-pounds-out-2nd-stage-win-over-ibm/ ↩
Marantz, Ken (November 3, 2013). "Panasonic repeats win over IBM, but in more dominant fashion". xleague.com. Retrieved March 7, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/news_league/panasonic-repeats-win-over-ibm-but-in-more-dominant-fashion/ ↩
"Impulse force 9 turnovers, score on 4 of them, in rout of Silver Star". xleague.com. November 9, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/game_report/impulse-force-9-turnovers-score-on-4-of-them-in-rout-of-silver-star/ ↩
Marantz, Ken (November 2, 2015). "Panasonic pummels 1st Kanto foe as Dupree, defensive line shine". xleague.com. Retrieved March 4, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/game_report/panasonic-pummels-1st-kanto-foe-as-dupree-defensive-line-shine/ ↩
Marantz, Ken (December 1, 2015). "Impulse repeat rout of Rise, earn 1st trip to X bowl in 5 years". xleague.com. Retrieved March 4, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/game_report/final-stage-impulse-repeat-rout-of-rise-earn-1st-trip-to-x-bowl-in-5-years/ ↩
Marantz, Ken (January 5, 2016). "Impulse hang on in Rice Bowl thriller for 1st national title since 2008". xleague.com. Retrieved February 28, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/game_report/impulse-hang-on-in-rice-bowl-thriller-for-1st-national-title-since-2008/ ↩
"Impulse hold off Silver Star to book berth in semifinals". xleague.com. November 16, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/news_league/impulse-hold-off-silver-star-to-book-berth-in-semifinals/ ↩
"Obic emerges from deluge with OT win, ticket to Japan X Bowl". xleague.com. November 29, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2016. http://www.xleague.com/news/news_league/obic-emerges-from-deluge-with-ot-win-ticket-to-japan-x-bowl/ ↩
"On the gridiron, a world away, American players get one more shot at glory". https://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/on-the-gridiron-a-world-away-american-players-get-one-more-shot-at-glory/2270752/?outputType=amp ↩
"Rise quarterback Kurt Palandech eager to impress in shortened season". 20 November 2020. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2020/11/20/football/rise-quarterback-kurt-palandech/ ↩
"2015 Season Team Preview | NEWS & NOTES | ENGLISH | パナソニック インパルス | Panasonic". https://panasonic.co.jp/ew/go-go-impulse/en/news/2015/09/ ↩