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The following is a list of characters from the manga and anime series Eyeshield 21.

Deimon Devil Bats

Main article: Deimon Devil Bats

(泥門デビルバッツ) The Deimon Devil Bats are the protagonist team of the series, featuring main cast characters such as Sena Kobayakawa, Yoichi Hiruma, Monta, and Ryoukan Kurita. The Devil Bats hail from Deimon Private Senior High School私立泥門高等学校 (Shiritsu Deimon Kōtōgakkō) and are the high school incarnation of the middle-school club, the Maoh Devil Bats, which featured only three members: Hiruma, Kurita, and their friend Musashi. At the beginning of the series, Hiruma forces Sena to join the team and operate under the series-eponymous codename "Eyeshield 21", and Sena becomes the team's ace running back. Over time, the team gathers more members and gradually becomes a complete team.

Kaoru Hatsujō

Voiced by: Masami Iwasaki (Japanese); Sam Riegel (English)

Hatsujō Kaoru (初條薫) Hatsujo is the captain of the Koigahama Cupids, a weak team that loses in both of the games they are depicted playing in. Hatsujo is a flat character that makes few appearances, and is primarily a comic relief character, known for teasing opponents for not having any girls to cheer for them, only for the opponent to reveal their cheerleading squad consisting of attractive young women. Hatsujo plays quarterback and safety for the Cupids and is also noted for his ability as a kicker: he scores his team's only points in the game against the Devil Bats, although Sena immediately afterward returns the following kickoff for the winning touchdown. Later, in the Autumn Tokyo Tournament, the Cupids forfeit in the third quarter to the Seibu Wild Gunmen while trailing 125-10. Hatsujo, like all members of his team, has a girlfriend who appears with him in several cameo appearances at some of the Devil Bats' games.

Ojo White Knights

Main article: Ojo White Knights

Ōjō Howaito Naitsu (王城ホワイトナイツ) The White Knights are the Devil Bats' main rivals throughout the series, defeating them in the second game in the series. During this game, Sena develops a rivalry with Seijuro Shin, and the two vow to meet each other in the finals of the Autumn Tokyo Tournament. Contrasting with the Devil Bats, the White Knights are a primarily defensive team, and their defense is considered the best in the Tokyo area.

Zokugaku (Zokuto Gakuen) Chameleons

Rui Habashira

Voiced by: Kouji Yusa

Habashira Rui (葉柱 ルイ) Habashira is the captain of the Zokugaku Chameleons, a team consisting of various gang members, of which Habashira is the gang leader. Though originally portrayed as a stereotypical delinquent prone to act violently when angered, Habashira is later portrayed sympathetically when he is revealed to care deeply about the game of American football and to not be a simple brute. He is the only player on his team who is truly motivated to win, and in his first year on the team he had to force his team to practice hard through threats and violence, because he could not gain their respect otherwise. Rather than holding a grudge against the Devil Bats after losing to them early in the series, he only wishes to face them in a game in the future, and even gives Sena a ride on his motorcycle during the Fall Tournament so he can help the Devil Bats win. In the anime, when Kanagushi has several students disguise themselves as Eyeshield 21 and sabotage the Chameleons, Habashira prevents his teammates from taking revenge on Eyeshield 21 and then on Kanagushi when he is exposed, so that the team will not be suspended from the tournament.

Habashira plays linebacker for the Chameleons and is considered talented for the position. He claims to be a greater linebacker than Shin, but Sena's ability to easily defeat him when the Devil Bats play the Chameleons indicates this is not the case. He is one of the three linebackers named best of position after the Autumn Tokyo Tournament. As captain, Habashira directs his players to adapt to each team they play, targeting the weaknesses of each team. He is depicted playing in two games throughout the series, once against the Devil Bats when he is defeated by Sena, and once against the Kyoshin Poseidon in the Autumn Tokyo Tournament. Against the Poseidon he is the only player on his team to play his hardest throughout the game whereas his teammates resign themselves to defeat midway through. Although Habashira is a second-year player, Zokuto's school policy, like Deimon's, prevents students from participating in clubs after their second year, so Habashira's dreams of playing in the Christmas Bowl end with this defeat.

Megu Tsuyumine

Voiced by: Maze Kyoko

Zokugaku's manager and trainer, Megu Tsuyumine (露峰 メグ, Tsuyumine Megu) is a rough, no-nonsense woman who carries a wooden practice sword and is not above torturing the team members in order to get them to train harder. Some of her known tactics are towing players behind her motorcycle, hitting them between the legs with her wooden sword, and making them carry their motorcycles on their backs, with herself sitting on Habashira's motorcycle. She rules the team with an iron fist and even Habashira is afraid of her. However, she and Habashira are good companions who share a great deal of trust and understanding. She refers to him as "Rui", his given name, instead of Habashira-kun, which is Japanese custom even for close friends, and especially for women, demonstrating their closeness. Like Habashira, she is a second-year student.

Seibu Wild Gunmen

Main article: Seibu Wild Gunmen

Seibu Wairudo Ganmanzu (西部ワイルドガンマンズ) Seibu is a strong team in the Tokyo area, with a reputation for having the strongest offense in the area. Their team is themed around the American Wild West and features a number of offensive players considered among the best of their position at the high school level in Japan, including quarterback Kid, wide receiver Jo Tetsuma, and running back Riku Kaitani, who is a childhood friend of Sena's.

Taiyō Sphinx

Taiyō Sufinkusu (太陽スフィンクス) One of the best teams in the Kanagawa prefecture, the Sphinx are renowned for their "Pyramid Line," composed of strong and heavy linemen. The Sphinx are originally chosen to play in the Monthly American Football Cup, because the promoters from the magazine believe the line's heavy players will be able to endure hits from their large American opponents. However, Hiruma hacks into the sponsor's computers to change the Aliens' scheduled opponent to the Devil Bats. Hiruma challenges Taiyō to a match for the right to face NASA. Their game ends in a tie (20-20), but Banba surrenders representation of Japan to Deimon due to their overcoming Taiyō's superior experience and home-field advantage. Later, they are one of two teams representing Kanagawa in the Kantō Tournament. Despite the strength of their line, which has apparently become even greater, they are crushed by Gaō of the Hakushu Dinosaurs in the first round. Four players on the team are named: Mamoru Banba, Kiminari Harao, Niinobu Kasamatsu, and Ken Kamaguruma. Kasamatsu (Kasamatsu Niinobu (笠松新信), Voiced by: Eiji Takemoto) is the second-largest player on the Pyramid Line, and is a slow, rotund player who is easily tricked. Kamaguruma (Kamaguruma Ken (鎌車ケン), Voiced by: Saito Yasuo) is a tall first-year cornerback who, while slow, is capable of slowing down receivers and preventing them from catching passes with his bump technique, the "Chariot Bump".

Mamoru Banba

Voiced by: Kusunoki Taiten

Banba Mamoru (番場衛) Banba is a third-year high school student, and the Taiyō Sphinx's ace player and captain. He holds the high school record for squats, and is distinguished by his massive physique, complete baldness, and, during the Kanto Tournament, multiple scars. Banba commands a great deal of respect from his teammates and other linemen. He is strong-willed, matter-of-fact, demanding, and not afraid to point out the errors of his teammates. Additionally, he is usually very calm despite his intimidating appearance. He appears to take on a great deal of the team's burden, as he undergoes harsh training which leaves his body heavily scarred after a harsh defeat at the hands of Seibu. Additionally, when the tremendous lineman Gaō is revealed before Taiyō plays Hakushu, he assures Harao that he will protect him from injury at any cost. Despite this Gaō crushes the new Taiyō line formation, called Tutankhamun's Mask, and eventually Banba is injured to the extent that he must be carried off the field on a stretcher. Banba later appears on good terms with the Devil Bats. He spectates at several of the other games in the Kantō Tournament, offering insight especially in matters relating to the line. He trains Kurita before the Kanto finals by boxing against him, which prepares Kurita to stand up against Gaō longer in the Hakushu-Deimon game. After the tournament, Banba becomes Togano's personal coach in preparation for the Christmas Bowl.

Kiminari Harao

Voiced by: Kosuke Takeuchi

Harao Kiminari (原尾 王城) Taiyo's quarterback, Harao often whines when his team does not perform well and at first tends to point out his teammates' shortcomings without acknowledging his own. He is very popular with the ladies and has his own harem, but he is considered sub-par as a quarterback and is overly dependent on the protection his offensive line gives him. Before Taiyo's match against Hakushu, Harao reveals himself to be aware of and sensitive to the criticisms he receives because of his lack of skill. In addition, despite Taiyo's ability to advance to the Kanto Tournament year after year, Harao is intimidated by the might of teams that also compete in this higher tournament. After the match against Deimon in which Harao was more of a liability than a help, Harao worked extremely hard to improve himself. With the entire roster of linemen including Banba sustaining injuries, Harao forfeits the match against Hakushu before its completion. Due to Banba's efforts to protect him, he is not injured by Gaō - the first quarterback to accomplish such a feat against the lineman, though this brings him no comfort.

Shinryūji Naga

Main article: Shinryūji Naga

(神龍寺ナーガ) A team with a reputation of greatness, the Naga have won every Kanto championship since the team was created nine years before the beginning of the story, and they are known as the "Gods of Kanto". Each year, Shinryūji grants athletic scholarships to two students, who are accepted into the school whilst forgoing the entrance exam. Kurita applied for this scholarship so that he, Hiruma, and Musashi could go to the Christmas Bowl together as part of the Shinryūji team, but Agon Kongo applied for the scholarship as well despite not needing it, because he did not want the powerful but slow Kurita on his team. Agon was chosen over Kurita, and Ikkyu Hosakawa had already been chosen to receive the other scholarship, so Kurita was not permitted entrance into the school. This drove Hiruma and Musashi to enter Deimon along with Kurita and create the Deimon Devil Bats there.

Nasa Aliens/Nasa Shuttles

Main article: NASA Shuttles

...Eirienzu/Shatoruzu (NASAエイリアンズ / NASAシャトルズ) A team from Houston, Texas, the Aliens represent the United States in the Monthly American Football Cup in Japan where they face the Deimon Devil Bats. The best player on the team is the talented running back Panther, an African American who is not allowed to participate in games because the coach, Leonard Apollo, is a racist (in the anime, he is jealous of Panther's innate talent).

Amino Cyborgs

(網乃サイボーグス) Amino High is a school renowned for winning the championship in a different sport each year. The team's players use medical technology to improve their physical condition, and they have a firm belief that victory can only be achieved through medical science. In their first American football tournament, the Cyborgs play the Devil Bats in the first round. They take an early lead because of Eyeshield 21's tardiness and the new members of the line being tense, but their luck changes when the linemen become composed and Eyeshield 21 arrives. Amino loses in a rout 8-38, and by the end of the game their players are exhausted despite rotating players for offense and defense.

The Cyborgs are captained by linebacker Atsushi Munakata (Munakata Atsushi (胸肩厚), Voiced by: Kenji Hamada), who also captained the school's championship-winning basketball and soccer teams in the two years prior to the story. Munakata studies Sena's running style and determines that Sena is vulnerable to a tackle when he stops just before making a cut, but because this weakness disappears when Sena develops the Devil Bat Ghost, Munakata is easily defeated. His face is chiseled, and his ever-present confident smile gives him an artificial appearance. Munakata's teammates include the muscular, bespectacled lineman Suguru Aoyanagi (Aoyanagi Suguru (青柳卓), Voiced by: Eiji Ito) and cornerback Naosumi Kadoguchi (Kadoguchi Naosumi (角口直角), Voiced by: Hiroshi Shimogiki), who has used motion capture technology to optimize his running ability.

Yūhi Guts

(夕陽ガッツ) Yūhi High is famous for having strong teams in all sports except American Football. As a result, the Yūhi Guts team is made up of a very few mediocre players with low morale, and they have few club funds and poor equipment. They train very hard, and their training sessions, conducted by manager/cheerleader Katsuko Konjo (Konjō Katsuko (紺上勝子), Voiced by: Keiko Nakamura) include marathons on the beach, squat-jumping up and down steps, and towing tractor tires. However, in the Autumn Tokyo Tournament, their coach, pressured by the school to win, borrows the aces from Yūhi's other sports clubs to form a mishmash team of physically talented players because he believes their chances of winning will be greater. The Guts' captain, quarterback/safety Daisuke Atsumi (Atsumi Daisuke (熱海大介), Voiced by: Makoto Shiraga), reluctantly agrees. The Guts go against Deimon and fall behind by a wide margin. When it is apparent that the aces cannot win against the Devil Bats, the players from the other sports clubs feign injury (in the anime they simply give up) so that Atsumi, lineman Shinobu Haibara (Haibara Shinobu (南風原忍), Voiced by: Kyohito Kawano), and the other regulars can play against the Devil Bats. The club members manage to score a touchdown, but still lose 6-56. In the anime, the aces score the Guts' only touchdown, but the regulars still perform better when they are subbed in.

Onihei Yamamoto

Voiced by: Kusunoki Taiten

Yamamoto Onihei (山本鬼兵) Onihei is a cunning veteran with a small body, but who is greatly admired and respected by other linemen. Additionally, he was Kurita's inspiration for playing American football. While not very large, he is powerful, and has mastered football blocking techniques; he is captain of the Hashiratani Deers, a favorite in the Autumn Tokyo Tournament. He leads the team to a 14-0 lead over the Kyoshin Poseidon in the first half of their first game of the tournament, but the Poseidon then send in two of their ace players, Mizumachi and Kakei. Mizumachi defeats Onihei repetitively, and the Poseidon win 31-14 to upset Hashiratani. While originally he is presented in a sad light as his final chance to win the Fall Tokyo Tournament vanishes, he later appears as a comic relief character. He often appears with Sakuraba's fan Torakichi, who quite accurately believes, after observing some of Onihei's predictions, that anything that Onihei predicts is wrong. Onihei is among the five offensive linemen named as the best of the position at the end of the Fall Tournament.

Sasuke Kanagushi

Voiced by: Masahito Yabei

Kanagushi Sasuke (金串 佐助) The Dokubari Scorpions' team captain and safety, Kanagushi is also the team's strategist. The Scorpions' style is to predict the actions of their opponent and react accordingly. With this strategy, Dokubari won ten games and lost only one in the Spring before the Autumn Kanto Tournament. He wears his long hair in a braid that resembles a scorpion's tail, and the braid stands up when he is agitated. Kanagushi's main strength is his ability to recognize opposing players' body language and use this to predict what actions they will take. Under Hiruma's direction, the Devil Bats employ a series of tricks to turn Kanagushi's predictions against the Scorpions, and Dokubari is crushed 0-42 (14-42 in the anime). In the anime Kanagushi also plots to have Deimon and Zokugaku disqualified from the tournament by having teenagers impersonate Eyeshield 21 and sabotage the Chamelons' club, and he also attempts to have Hiruma captured and kept out of the game against Deimon. He becomes Hiruma's slave when he accidentally reveals this plan, allowing Hiruma to use it as blackmail.

Kyoshin Poseidon

(巨深ポセイドン) The team Kyoshin Poseidon is highly focused on using its members' height to their advantage, both in stopping passes and dominating the line of scrimmage. In the Autumn Tokyo Tournament, Kyoshin upsets the strong Hashiratani Deer in their first match by scoring thirty-one unanswered points after sending in Mizumachi and Kakei, who had previously been kept as secret weapons. In the second round they defeat the Zokugaku Chameleons easily before losing in the quarterfinals to the Deimon Devil Bats by one point, 17-18.

Kengo Mizumachi

Voiced by: Ono Daisuke

Mizumachi Kengo (水町 健吾) Mizumachi is a blonde-haired lineman, the third-tallest (203 cm) player on the Poseidon and a natural athlete. He is a first-year player who, in middle school, was on the swimming team, but he quit because his teammates were unwilling to match his dedication to winning the championship. Along with being incredibly energetic and naturally athletic, Mizumachi possesses a childlike innocence and is almost always optimistic. However, Mizumachi is also immature, and he has a bad habit of saying or doing disrespectful things. He thinks very highly of his abilities, and at first he believes that tall, slender players like himself are the future generation of American football players. Initially, this causes him to think little of opposing linemen of short stature, such as Onihei and Komusubi, and in fact he believes that Komusubi should leave the Devil Bats so as not to be a burden to them. When he is challenged and defeated by Komusubi in the game with the Devil Bats, Mizumachi changes his opinion of shorter opponents. On the other hand, he holds deep respect for the seniors on the Poseidon team, all of which are quite short compared to himself. He even criticizes the Devil Bats, claiming the Poseidon deserve to win because they have a great deal of third-year players on their roster while the Devil Bats have none. When the Poseidon are defeated, he cries because the seniors will never be able to play in the Christmas Bowl. He later appears at many of the Devil Bats' matches as a spectator, and also helps the team prepare for the Christmas Bowl by serving as Kuroki's personal coach.

While a powerful opponent, Mizumachi's lighthearted personality is generally used to comedic effect, along with his tendency to strip down to his boxers for no apparent reason. Still, Mizumachi is an incredibly athletic player, able to use his great height to his advantage in games. He is also very agile for a player of his size, and outside of American football he is a very fast swimmer and capable of pulling consecutive somersaults. Though Mizumachi is not exceptionally powerful, his great height and long limbs allow him to gain leverage on shorter linemen, while his slim build makes him faster than most player of his height. Though a rookie to American football, Mizumachi's experience in swimming grants him practice in the use of his two signature techniques. His explosive "swimmer's start", in which he assumes a competitive swimmer's stance on the starting block, lets him burst forward quickly at the start of the play, while the swim move, which is similar to his chosen swimming style, the front crawl, helps him to push opposing linemen aside. He can also serve as a fourth linebacker along with Kakei, Ohira, and Onishi when the Poseidon use their "Poseidon" formation. His prowess earns him the distinction of being named one of the best five offensive linemen at the end of the Autumn Tokyo Tournament.

Shun Kakei

Voiced by: Kosuke Takeuchi

Kakei Shun (筧駿) The Poseidon's fourth-tallest player (201 cm) and de facto captain, Kakei is the first character to allude to the existence of a "real" Eyeshield 21 in the series. Shun attended middle school in the United States, where he witnessed the play of this true Eyeshield 21, a running back for Notre Dame University's affiliated middle school (later revealed to be Yamato Takeru). Amazed by the prowess of a Japanese player, Kakei became reinvigorated with American football after having been frustrated by his inferiority to the American players around him. When Kakei's team at Phoenix University's affiliated middle school played against Notre Dame, Kakei and Eyeshield 21 played against each other on a single play, and while Kakei lost, Eyeshield 21 promised to play him again. Kakei trained hard, practicing how to use his great height to his advantage, and became the team's ace player. However, by the time Phoenix played Notre Dame the following year, Yamato had departed for Japan, and the Notre Dame players had been instructed not to speak of his existence. Kakei returned to Japan as well, determined to find Eyeshield 21 again, and joined the American football team at Kyoshin. Under Kakei's direction, the Poseidon adapted their belief that height was essential to winning American football, and the team recruited several more tall players. When he learned of the "fake" Eyeshield 21, Sena, playing for the Devil Bats, Kakei declared him an impostor, knowing the Eyeshield 21 he had encountered in America to be taller and stronger. Kakei despises Sena and believes him unworthy of his title before and then throughout the Kyoshin-Deimon match, and is determined to expose his inferiority. After being defeated at the end of the game by Sena's newest technique, the Devil Bat Hurricane, Kakei deems Sena worthy of the title Eyeshield 21, but warns Sena that the Eyeshield 21 he met in America will one day stand against him. Kakei becomes a friendly acquaintance of the Devil Bats, appearing at several of their games as a spectator. When he learns that Sena will play against Yamato, whom he believes and later confirms to be the true Eyeshield 21, Kakei vows to teach Juumonji all of his hand techniques in the hope that Juumonji will be able to help Sena defeat Yamato.

Kakei is physically distinguished by his great height, long powerful arms, and fierce blue eyes. While physically powerful, he has a slender build, and draws his strength from using his great height to gain leverage on his opponents. He is capable of holding back or even shoving to the ground most players shorter than himself with a single hand. His long arms also provide him with an extended reach, which allows him to counter against a runner's feints more effectively. Kakei is also a strong strategist, personally being able to discern how to defeat the Wishbone. He is named one of the best three linebackers at the end of the Fall Tournament.

Osamu Kobanzame

Voiced by: Shimogiki Hiroshi

Kobanzame Osamu (小判鮫オサム) Kobanzame is the short, nervous captain of the Poseidon. He and the other third-year players are of below-average height, compared to the extremely tall underclassmen. Kobanzame has a tendency to stutter and mess up quotations in his attempts to raise the morale of the team. According to the author, Kobanzame the second-shyest character in the series only to Sena. He is often unsure of what to do and will usually wait for Kakei to decide on something before claiming to have thought of the exact same thing, in a half-hearted attempt to appear to have some capacity for leadership. Kobanzame additionally has a tendency to complain a lot, but he is extremely dedicated to helping his team to win in any way possible - he actually completed the same amount of training as the diligent Mizumachi prior to the tournament. He also resorts to spying on opposing teams to help his teammates to win as a way of making up for his lack of athleticism. After Kyoshin is eliminated from the tournament, he tearfully states that although his dreams of winning the championship are over, and his final year with the Poseidon was his hardest, it was also the most enjoyable.

Kobanzame is very short, especially for a quarterback, and is also slow and physically weak. His lack of self-confidence also makes him generally unsuited for his position as captain. While he lacks natural skill and a commanding personality, Kobanzame is well-respected for his hard work and mistake-free play as a quarterback. He never throws an interception throughout the tournament, and reacts quickly to rushing defenders by immediately but safely getting rid of the ball, preventing both turnovers and sacks (although in the anime he throws a single interception against the Devil Bats when Hiruma frightens him into making a mistake). Additionally, in the anime only, his ability to escape being tackled is a key aspect of the "Tempest Formation", an offensive strategy of throwing quick, short passes to his receivers.

Hiroshi Ohira and Hiroshi Onishi

Voiced by: Ogawa Teroaki, Washimi Ryo

(大平洋 Ohira Hiroshi, 大西洋 Onishi Hiroshi) Ohira and Onishi are the two tallest high school American football players in Japan at 205 cm and 204 cm, respectively, and like Kakei they are first-year students and linebackers for Kyoshin. The two are fiercely competitive rivals, and both claim to be "Kakei-sensei's first disciple", though their rivalry dates to long before they joined the team. Ohira tends to act quite passionately and cries a lot, while Onishi dislikes sharing a name with his rival, and sometimes excludes his rival from the team's group accomplishments. Ohira has short and spiky black hair, and very large eyebrows that seem to extend down to the tops of his eyes. Onishi wears square-framed glasses and has short orange-red hair. The kanji used in Ohira's name are the same as those for the Pacific Ocean, while the kanji used in Onishi's are the same as those of the Atlantic Ocean.

Bando Spiders

Bando Supaidāzu (盤戸スパイダーズ)Bando is a team that placed second at last year's Autumn Tokyo Tournament, and their ace player, Hayato Akaba, was also named tournament MVP. Many of the good players from Bando were recruited by Teikoku, including Akaba, leaving only the team's special teams players. However, after a confrontation with the team's kicker Sasaki Kotaro, Akaba changed his mind, and rejoined Bando, helping the team to rebuild using a unique kicking-based strategy. After the Spiders lose in the semi-finals of the Tokyo Tournament to Ojo, Bando plays against the Deimon Devil Bats and loses 23-24 in the third-place consolation match.

Hayato Akaba

Voiced by: Daisuke Hirakawa

Akaba Hayato (赤羽 隼人) Akaba is the fullback for the Spiders and the team's captain. He is obsessed with music and often plays his electric guitar and uses musical metaphors to state his opinions. While playing, Akaba wears a blue eyeshield, and he introduces himself to Sena as "the real Eyeshield 21". He was offered a place on the Teikoku team, and accepted because of the team's strength and his father transferring to Kansai. After a confrontation with teammate Kotaro, Akaba changed his mind and decided to return to Bando. Because of the school's policy, Akaba was forced to sit out for six months from the beginning of the school year, and he cannot play with the team until the match against the Devil Bats. Instead, Akaba serves as an adviser and instructor to his teammates, teaching them the blocking techniques he created through painstaking research. While Akaba has the upper hand on Sena through much of the game, he eventually loses in a direct confrontation with the younger player, and Sena scores the winning touchdown for the Devil Bats. Afterward, Akaba presents Sena with his blue eyeshield (in the anime he returns Sena's original green eyeshield to him), which Sena uses for the remainder of the manga, and states that Sena deserves to be called Eyeshield 21.

Akaba is a strong and swift player known for his ability as a lead blocker. His main technique, "Spider Poison", involves shoving against an opposing player at the moment that their center of gravity shifts, allowing Akaba to knock them over. On defense, Akaba uses a technique called "Run Force", in which he forces opposing blockers into certain positions to allow himself to be in position for a tackle. Akaba also teaches his teammates to use Spider Poison, making the entire team stronger.

Kotaro Sasaki

Voiced by: Eiji Moriyama

Sasaki Kōtarō (佐々木　コータロー) Kotaro is the skilled kicker for the Bando Spiders and leader of the kicking team. Like Akaba, he is rather eccentric, having tremendous pride in his kicks and believing kicks to be of incredible importance. However, despite their being similarly eccentric, Kotaro and Akaba do not tend to get along well, for unknown reasons. He has a one-sided rivalry with Deimon's Musashi, having heard the urban legend of Musashi's sixty-yard field goal. Nonetheless, he is an extremely good kicker, and he was scouted by Teikoku, though he rejected their offer. His kicks are extremely accurate, making each of his field goal attempts practically a guaranteed success and also allowing Bando to design plays on kickoffs based on where his kicks will land. This is especially useful when the team executes onside kicks to gain consecutive offenses in their "Spider Web" technique. In the match against Deimon, Kotaro eventually competes with Musashi in the manner he desired, and is defeated when he fails to make a 50-yard field goal while Musashi successfully makes a kick of the same distance - a difference that allows Deimon to win by a single point.

Juri Sawai

Voiced by: Higuchi Chieko

Sawai Juri (沢井 ジュリ) Usually called "Julie", Juri is the Spiders' manager, and Kotaro's childhood friend. She often has to deal with the disagreements between Kotaro and Akaba, and she has demonstrated awareness of the fact that the two are similar in their bizarre behavior and dedication to winning football games.

Hakushū Dinosaurs

Hakushū Dainosōzu (白秋ダイナソーズ)Hakushū is the champion of the SIC District, and represents this area in the Kanto Tournament. Because of the merciless destructive power of their rookie lineman, Rikiya Gaō, the starting quarterback of each team Hakushū played prior to the Kanto Tournament was injured. This onslaught continues for the Dinosaurs, as all of the members of the offensive line of the Taiyo Sphinx and most of the main players of the Seibu Wild Gunmen leave their respective games with injuries dealt by Gaō. In the Kanto Tournament finals against Deimon, Hakushū's captain Marco deliberately plans for Hiruma to be injured and taken out of the game, and Gaō breaks the Devil Bat quarterback's arm. Sena replaces Hiruma at quarterback, while Kurita's inner strength awakens, and he becomes the first lineman capable of matching Gaō's power. Hiruma, though still injured, returns to the game, and after a back-and-forth match, the Dinosaurs finally fall 42-43. Throughout the game, the Dinosaurs reveal that besides Gao they have a number of skilled players, including Saburo Mitsui Mitsui Saburō (三ツ井 三郎), who believes himself the third-best kicker in Kanto. However, an overly emotional senior on the team, Hanataka Tengu Tengu Hanataka (天狗 花隆), appears unskilled, and does not play against the Devil Bats because of an injury.

Reiji Maruko ("Marco")

Voiced by: Tomokazu Sugita

Maruko Reiji (円子令司) The Dinosaurs' quarterback and captain, Marco is a suave-appearing man who ambitiously dreams of winning the Christmas Bowl, yet when encountered by a strong opponent he acts panicked and frightened. He calls himself "Marco" because he feels his real name sounds like a girl's name, and also wears an Italian suit to match his Italian nickname. In his first year in middle school, he joined the American football team, and also courted Maruko Himuro, who is two years older than him. To impress her, he vowed to win the Christmas Bowl, to show her the "morning sunshine after a victory." He led Hakushu to the SIC District Championship later that year, and then began studying the great teams at the high school level. His teammates encouraged him to give up on his dream of winning the Christmas Bowl because of the strength of the undefeated Teikoku Alexanders, and after witnessing the team play, Marco despaired, realizing that the chances of defeating Teikoku were slim. He became determined to defeat Teikoku using strength, and recruited Gao to accomplish this. He even used Gao's tremendous power to injure opposing players, a strategy that Himuro came to dislike him for.

Marco's skill as a throwing quarterback is never established, as Hakushu's offense is based entirely on him taking the snap and following Gao's block as the large lineman plows through the defense using the "North-South Game". On defense, Marco's skill comes from his ability to follow ball movements and react to them. He can see through a runner's feints, and given the smallest opportunity can steal an unsecured ball using his signature "Screw Bite" technique. He is also able to act as a "Quarterback Spy", precisely following the opposing quarterback's movements and reacting to them. While his strategies are simple and brutal, Marco is effective at determining how to direct his team's defense to stop their opponents, whether by deliberately injuring the quarterback or by sending a defender to mark a player.

Rikiya Gaō

Gaou Rikiya (峨王 力哉) Although a rookie to American football, Gaō is one of the two most powerful linemen in Japanese high school, purely because of his tremendous strength. He is two meters tall and has a monstrous, caveman-like appearance, with long wild black hair, red marks on his cheeks, and a large scar on his forehead. He holds the Japanese bench press record with over two hundred kilograms and is capable of destroying furniture, tearing metal guardrails, and breaking normal people's bones with his bare hands; he wears a titanium alloy mouthpiece because his powerful jaw tears apart ordinary ones. Gaō claims to have searched for someone who can match his power for his entire life, and joined the football team because Marco promised him that the most powerful teams in the country possess such individuals. He has little respect for those not willing to face him directly and tremendous respect for those who do even if they are crushed, including Banba, the aces of Seibu, and Hiruma. He also honors the rules of American football and will not tackle a player who does not have the ball. Gaō becomes interested in Kurita just prior to the Kantō Tournament finals, believing like many that Kurita is capable of matching or even surpassing his strength. However, once the match begins, even though Kurita succeeds in holding back Gaō temporarily, Gaō states that Kurita lacks "killing intent," and is thus unable to match his strength. Gaō crushes Hiruma, breaking Hiruma's right throwing arm and temporarily knocking him out of the game. Although Gaō first believes this will unleash Kurita's inner strength, it at first traumatizes him, severely weakening him. Kurita eventually unleashes his inner strength, not out of anger as Gaō predicts but for the sake of protecting his friends, and for the remainder of the game the two compete fiercely. On the final play of the game, Kurita defeats Gaō and knocks him onto his back, allowing the Devil Bats to score the winning two-point conversion.

Hiromi Kisaragi

Kisaragi Hiromi (如月 ヒロミ) Kisaragi is a frail and effeminate player known as the "left arm of Hakushu". He is just as obsessed with strength if not more than the rest of his team, and he frequently states that "strength is beautiful". Kisaragi has been picked on all of his life because of his weak, feminine appearance, and he is envious of those with physical strength. Despite his below-average strength and merely average speed and jumping ability, he is a skilled cornerback because of his "Ptera Claw" technique, in which he disrupts a receiver's catch attempt by wrapping his slender arm around the receiver's and tearing the ball away. Kisaragi met Gaō because the two share a locker, and his obsession with Gaō's strength led him to join the football team because he wanted to help Gaō win the championship. He is extremely dedicated to helping Hakushu win in any way he can, to the extent that he deliberately lets himself be crushed by Gaō while distracting Kurita from blocking Hiruma so that the quarterback will be injured.

Maruko Himuro

Himuro Maruko (氷室 丸子) Hakushū's manager, Himuro, is a serious-looking third-year student with short black hair. Himuro is Marco's inspiration for playing American football, for he became smitten with her in middle school and, in an apparent attempt to woo her, he vowed to show her "the morning sunshine after a victory" by winning the Christmas Bowl. She came to admire his optimism and ambition, and at some time afterward, the two were in a close relationship, though it is unclear how intimate they were. He now calls her by the nickname "Maria", which she dislikes. Because Himuro is two years Marco's senior, the player realized that his first year in high school would be his only chance to make good on his promise. After witnessing many players injured by Gao's strength, Himuro came to despise Marco's determination to win at any cost, and they grew apart, though she remains with the team. She approaches Sena and Riku before the Seibu-Hakushū match, and tells them that they should give up midway, because she does not want to see anymore players injured by Gao. While she hates the Dinosaurs' strategy, she points out after Hakushū loses in the Kanto Tournament finals that she stayed with the team because she still admires some of Marco's traits, and has feelings for him in spite of the things he has done.

Taiga Kamiya

Voiced by: Hidekazu Ichinose

Kamiya Taiga (狼谷 大牙) Kamiya is the captain and ace running back of the Misaki Wolves, the team that represents Hokkaido in the Kanto Tournament. Kamiya has a high opinion of himself, and he often boasts of his long legs, which help him to run faster. He has short, light-colored hair, a horizontal scar across his nose, and fangs that poke out of his mouth. Despite his boasts, he is made short work of by the Gunmen, and is easily bested by Kaitani Riku's speed when his team loses to the Seibu Wild Gunmen 14-82. However, in the anime, Kamiya is portrayed as a player with outstanding skill, presenting a great challenge to Riku and the Gunmen and leading his team to a 21-0 lead before the Gunmen make a comeback and the Wolves lose 21-46.

Ganjō Iwashima

Iwashima Ganjō (岩重 ガンジョー) Iwashima is the ace running back of the Sado Strong Golems, representatives of the Shizuoka area in the Kanto Tournament (his position is unclear in the anime). His body is well-trained, and stated by himself and others to be "rock-hard". His ability to ram into his opponent with his body is impressive, but it proves to be no match against Otowara's bulk and Shin's Trident Tackle. He is rather perverted, with a love of women with big breasts, and his coach instructs him to knock opponents away by diving into their chests, because "young men love breasts". In the anime, his tackling style is similar to groping a female. While in the manga he falls victim to Shin and Otawara's improved techniques, this role is filled in the anime by a new character, Kyotai Susumu, who addresses Iwashima as "aniki". The two enter the game carrying a large rock that their coach sits upon to demonstrate their strength.

Teikoku Alexanders

Main article: Teikoku Alexanders

Teikoku Arekisandāzu (帝黒アレキサンダーズ) A team from Osaka in the Kansai regions, the Teikoku Alexanders have a reputation as being completely invincible. Since the first Christmas Bowl in 1980, Teikoku has represented the Kansai region in every Christmas Bowl, and additionally won each time. The team appears as Deimon's final opponent in the Christmas Bowl, presenting two final opponents for Sena and Monta: running back Yamato Takeru, the original Eyeshield 21, and Taka Honjou, son of Monta's hero Masaru Honjou.

Savanna Survivors (anime only)

The Survivors are an African team themed around the zebra, their team's logo and the basis for their cream, green-striped uniforms. All of their players are over two meters tall and look strikingly similar, with dark skin and reddish brown hair. The only named player on the team, Jono, is said to be fast like a cheetah. In the first round of the Cream Puff Cup, the Survivors lose to the Devil Bats 0-28.

Northern Light Blizzards (anime only)

The Blizzards are a team from Russia, representing Europe in the anime filler Cream Puff Cup. The team's coach, retired NFL star Morgan, is responsible for NASA coach Apollo losing his job in the NFL. Morgan also appears in the manga, but it is not stated if he is a coach, and his personality is never extrapolated on. Before the game against the NASA Shuttles, he accepts a wager from Apollo that the losing team must dissolve. The team has no apparent theme, but all its players have scars over their left eyes. The quarterback, Nikolai Nikolavich, has a high-velocity pass called the "Soyuz Pass" which can be thrown between the linemen's legs and still be caught successfully. A large-built wide receiver for the team wears number 80 and has a face similar to Monta's, and he is referred to as a "big monkey" while Monta is called the "little monkey." In the game against NASA, the Blizzards' linebacker, a tremendous player named Ivan Ivanov, sacks Homer early on and breaks his shoulder with his "Mammoth Attack" technique, and the Blizzards go on to win. Against the Devil Bats, Morgan sends in Ovan Ivanov, Ivan's shorter, smaller twin brother, to injure Sena. Ovan uses the "Storm Tackle", jumping off of his brother's back and spinning his body rapidly while tackling Sena, temporarily knocking him out of the game. However, Sena returns and scores the winning touchdown, and the Devil Bats win 24-21.

Other Characters

"Machine Gun" Sanada

A color commentator at each of the American football matches beginning with the Deimon-NASA game, Sanada is known for his fast, rapid fire delivery of commentary. Overall he is a comedic and completely non-serious character, rumored to have spoken as soon as he was born and always acting incredibly excited at the games he attends. His hairstyle resembles a circular saw, which for comedic effect spins and can cut through objects when he is excited.

"Bomberhead" Kumabukuro

A retired American football player, Kumabukuro is reporter for the magazine American Football Monthly. He has a massive afro, which according to rumor he grew after retiring, because he could not wear a helmet over his afro. He appears at most of the Devil Bats' games, including as an analyst in the commentator's box beside Sanada.

Riko Kumabukuro

Kumabukuro's daughter, Riko shares her father's interest in American football. Although still in high school, she hopes to become a reporter like her father, an interest she discovered after helping him with interviews. Riko conducts personal interviews with eight aces representing the eight teams taking part in the Kanto Tournament, and later replaces her father as Sanada's commentating partner. Despite sharing many interests and mannerisms, Kumabukuro and Riko look almost nothing alike, as she has a cute face and short, light brown hair. As a running gag in the anime series, whenever she becomes enveloped in her work, her face and hairstyle resemble her father's.

Head Commissioner

The head commissioner of Kanto's Highschool Football Association has no given name within the series. He is extremely passionate about football, and it is rumored that because of his burning spirit, his office doesn't need a heater. He believes football is a battle, in which effort and spirit are not rewarded, only victory.

Masaru Honjō

A retired star outfielder for the baseball team Shuei Bears, known for his extraordinary catches, Honjō is now a Chairman of Kansai's Highschool Football Association. He is Monta's idol and inspiration, in part because Monta received a glove from him ten years before the beginning of the story. He appears as a spectator in the Deimon-Ojo match, and catches Monta when he is about to collapse from exhaustion at one point. Honjō's son, Taka, is the ace wide receiver of the Teikoku Alexanders, which forces Monta to temporarily despair at the idea of his idol becoming his enemy, but later he becomes determined to surpass the talent of the Honjō family.

Torakichi Nanpa

Torakichi is a grade-school fan of Sakuraba, who has idolized Sakuraba since seeing him catch a very high pass in the White Knight's 99-0 victory over the Devil Bats one year before the story. Even after learning that Sakuraba is really a sub-par player, Torakichi remains a loyal fan. Torakichi became a starter for his school's touch football team, but broke his leg shortly before his first appearance. He shares a hospital room with Sakuraba after the wide receiver is injured against the Devil Bats, and the two become fast friends. Torakichi then learns that he will be unable even to walk for as much as two years, which causes the boy to fall into despair and give up on his dream of becoming a wide receiver. Sakuraba, however, inspires him to work hard to recover by vowing to become a true ace player. Torakichi from then on appears as a spectator during many of the White Knights' appearances, in a wheel-chair. Despite his condition the boy remains energetic and optimistic, determined to become a player for the White Knights once he reaches high school. His childish imagination and behavior is a source of comedy in each of his appearances.

Nurse Oka

Oka is the head nurse at the hospital where Torakichi, Sakuraba and Musashi's father are admitted. She has a ghastly appearance and is obsessed with the occult, and at times frightens her patients with tales of people who have died within the hospital. Her son plays for the Noroi Occults in the Fall Tokyo Tournament. While frail in appearance, when angered she is capable of massive feats of strength. While obsessive about black magic and frightening in appearance, she appears to care deeply about her patients and their loved ones. She helps to convince Musashi to rejoin the Devil Bats by arranging for the other carpenters of his father's business to arrive during the argument between Musashi and his father.

Miracle Ito

Sakuraba's idol manager, Ito is a flamboyant glasses-wearing man who wears various cheap but expensive-looking clothes to make himself appear more successful. At first he uses Sakuraba's shonen good looks to turn the player into a teen idol, and sets Sakuraba up with various sponsors. Because his interests conflict with the Ojo team's, Ito indirectly causes Sakuraba's injury, as the player walks onto the field to retrieve a sponsor-provided sticker in the game against the Devil Bats, and Sena accidentally runs into him at full speed and hospitalizes him. When Sakuraba cuts his long hair as well as briefly growing a beard and mustache, Ito at first panics because his client has abandoned his good looks, but then adapts to this change, acquiring a number of athletic sponsors for Sakuraba instead. When his loyalty to Sakuraba is revived, Ito states that, because Sakuraba's continuing success will earn them more sponsorships, he wants Sakuraba to win the Christmas Bowl, and states that now they "want the same thing."

Category:Eyeshield 21 Eyeshield 21 Category:Fictional football players