Ryokan Kurita

Kurita Ryokan is one of the main characters from Eyeshield 21 anime and manga.

Kurita is a Center Lineman for the Deimon Devil Bats as well as one of its founding members, along Yōichi Hiruma and Musashi.

In the AWA fics, Kurita is a student at the AWA Academy.

Appearance
Kurita is large young man with a round body and head, stubby arms and legs. He has a brown skin tone, black dot eyes and a big smile, he also has brown buzzcut hair with a pointy top.

He usually wears his Deimon High School Uniform and his Deimon Devil Bats Football attire.

Personality
Kurita is a kind-hearted individual, and the only thing bigger than his body is his heart and is gentle, kind soul, unlike his friend Hiruma. His love for football stems all the way back to when he was a child and devote himself to training for his dream to go to the Christmas Bowl.

Kurita is one of the three founding members of the Deimon Devil Bats along with Hiruma and Musashi, He is the first friend Sena meets after entering Deimon High School. He is somewhat dim-witted, nearly giving away Sena's identity as Eyeshield 21, but is immediately silenced by Hiruma. When playing, Kurita shouts his kiai "Funnuraba!"(Here I come!) when exerting extra effort. His biggest dream is to compete in the Christmas Bowl.

Yusuke Murata, artist of the series, said that Kurita is his favorite character; Murata likes how Kurita's "zeal" for American football matches Murata's passion for manga.

Abilities

 * Kuri-Hammer - When he dives for a fumble, he crushes other players under him, which sometimes include teammates.
 * Blitz Zone - Taking advantage of Kid's quick but predictable pass, when one lineman tries to sack him, he will silently move to the place of the designated receiver, effectively interfering with the pass thanks to his build.
 * Kurita-Push/ Blast - After snapping the ball, Kurita serves as a blocking wall for Sena by charging five yards ahead and pushing any opposing blocker out of Sena's path.
 * Belly-Bounce (anime only) - During the game against the Blizzards before the Kantō Tournament, Kurita and Komusubi utilized their mass and fat to create a variation of the Hip-explosion, breaking down the Blizzard's line by thrusting their bellies forward, sending the Blizzard linemen flying.
 * The Lonely Center - A trick play which has only Kurita defending in front of Hiruma while the other members of the Devil Bats are positioned to the left. This tricks the Dinosaurs into using just Gaō to break through the line, instead of the normal 4 to 5 linemen. With Gaō preoccupied, Hiruma is given the time needed to throw any pass he wants. Furthermore, if the opposing linemen do try to rush Hiruma from the empty side, that leaves the rest of the field open for a lateral to Sena. However, this is also a risky tactic since the only one standing between the quarterback and the sacker is just one man, therefore, if the center failed, the quarterback will be totally defenseless.
 * Lineman Switch/ Stunt - By switching positions with Komusubi during the start of the opponents' drive, Kurita is able to guard Hiruma when Marco tries to break through him.
 * Four-Point Stance - By standing on all fours, including his arms, Kurita can focus all his strength to tackle his enemy, in this case, Gaō. However, he cannot be the one to hike the ball because of this stance.
 * Boxing Guard - Learned when training with Banba. Also known as a cover up in boxing terms, Kurita holds up his arms in front of his chest like a boxer. This allows him to take on the full-strength push from Gaō while getting inside his reach. Once inside, Kurita is able to use his weight and lower-body strength to push upward and force Gaō down.

Trivia

 * He is one of the three founders of both Mao Devil Bats and Deimon Devil Bats, along Yōichi Hiruma and Gen Takekura.
 * He is the only one of the three founders who doesn't have the number 1 in his jersey number. Hiruma has 1 and Musashi has 11.
 * Ryokan Kurita appears in Dr. Stone as an easter egg when Senku mentioned that he want to make a human-powered power plant.