Les Maruo

Les Maruo (丸尾 玲寿里, Maruo Resuri, born February 14, 1996) is a Japanese professional gridiron football linebacker for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL).

Les Maruo
No. 00     Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Maruo with the Blue Bombers in 2021
Born: (1996-02-14) February 14, 1996
Yokkaichi, Mie, Japan[1]
Career information
StatusActive
CFL statusGlobal
Position(s)Linebacker
Height6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight225 lb (102 kg)
CollegeTexas, San Antonio
Hutchinson Community College
High schoolGoddard (KS)
CFL Draft2021G / Round: 1 / Pick: 4
Drafted byWinnipeg Blue Bombers
Career history
As player
2019–2020Asahi Soft Drink Challengers
2021–presentWinnipeg Blue Bombers
Career highlights and awards
Career stats

High school career

Maruo attended Goddard High School in Wichita, Kansas.[2] As a senior on the football team, he recorded 79 tackles in nine games.[3]

College career

Maruo first played college football for the Hutchinson Blue Dragons from 2014 to 2015.[3] He then transferred to the University of Texas at San Antonio, though he used a redshirt season in 2016 after compartment syndrome forced him to undergo surgery on both of his calves.[2] He played for the Roadrunners from 2017 to 2018 where he started all 12 games in his senior year.[3]

Professional career

Asahi Soft Drink Challengers

After being overlooked by the National Football League and Canadian Football League, Maruo began his professional career with the Asahi Soft Drink Challengers of the X-League in 2019.[4] He played for the Challengers for two years.[4]

Winnipeg Blue Bombers

Maruo originally participated in the 2020 CFL Global Combine, but he was under contract with the Challengers, and could not play in the CFL.[5] Instead, he returned in 2021 where he was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 CFL Global Draft by the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and signed with the team on April 26, 2021.[6][7]

Following training camp, Maruo made the team's active roster and made his CFL debut in week 1 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on August 5, 2021.[8] He played in the team's first seven games where he had six special teams tackles before shifting to the practice roster for the remainder of the year.[8][9] While he didn't play in the game, Maruo became a Grey Cup champion when the Blue Bombers defeated the Tiger-Cats in the 108th Grey Cup.[10] He re-signed with the Blue Bombers on December 28, 2021.[11]

In 2022, Maruo again made the team's opening day roster and began to see more playing time on defense.[8] He recorded his first career sack on July 22, 2022, in a game against the Edmonton Elks when he tackled Taylor Cornelius.[12] He played in 17 regular season games that year where he had 14 defensive tackles, seven special teams tackles, and one sack.[8] He also played in both postseason games, including the 109th Grey Cup, where he recorded two special teams tackles in the loss to the Toronto Argonauts.[8]

Personal life

Maruo was born in Yokkaichi, Mie, Japan, and moved to Shizuoka when he was three years old.[1] He then moved to Wichita, Kansas, with his family when he was nine years old.[5] He picked up the English language in less than a year.[2] His brother, Sean, went on to play college baseball at Nebraska–Kearney.[2]

Maruo's father was Scottish but died due to a car accident when Maruo was three years old.[1]

References
  1. "Linebacker Les Maruo ready to prove himself with CFL's Blue Bombers". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. May 17, 2021.
  2. Luca, Greg (November 15, 2018). "Maruo endured injury, difficult upbringing as Japanese immigrant before thriving at UTSA". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
  3. "Les Maruo". UTSA Roadrunners. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  4. "Linebacker Les Maruo ready to prove himself with CFL's Blue Bombers". The Japan Times. 17 May 2021. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
  5. "Japan's Les Maruo excited for chance to represent family, country in CFL". Canadian Football League. April 8, 2021.
  6. "Bombers select Maruo fourth overall in CFL Global Draft". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. April 15, 2021.
  7. "Bombers sign 2020 CFL Draft selection, 2021 Global Draft selection". Canadian Football League. April 26, 2021.
  8. "Les Maruo". Canadian Football League. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  9. "Transactions – Football player trades and signings". Canadian Football League. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  10. "Winnipeg Blue Bombers vs. Hamilton Tiger-Cats" (PDF). Canadian Football League. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  11. "Blue Bombers add players to roster". Winnipeg Blue Bombers. December 28, 2021.
  12. Wyman, Ted (July 27, 2022). "BOMBSHELLS: First CFL sack a 'great moment' worthy of special celebration for Japan-born Bombers linebacker Les Maruo". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved 2023-10-09.
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