There were only twenty players, out of almost 270 total, that played in every single AFL season. They are known as the “Twenty for Ten”.
George Blanda, Billy Cannon, Gino Cappelletti, Tom Flores, Larry Grantham, Wayne Hawkins, Harry Jacobs, Jack Kemp, Jacky Lee, Paul Lowe, Paul Maguire, Don Maynard, Bill Mathis, Ron Mix, Jim Otto, Babe Parilli, Johnny Robinson, Paul Rochester, Ernie Wright…
… and Jim “Earthquake” Hunt.
I was sadly oblivious to his existence. A star at Prairie View A&M, he was rejected by the Cardinals in 1960 but found a home with the brand new Boston Patriots. He ended up playing eleven years with the Patriots–all ten of the AFL years, and one post-merger season–before retiring, with the Patriots retiring his #79. He was a four-time All-AFL selection at defensive tackle…
But he died young. At the age of thirty-seven, he became an assistant coach for Boston University but died of a heart attack before a game. He was the first of the “Twenty for Ten” to pass away. The AFL had died only five years before he did. The Patriots give an award for their outstanding lineman each season, and it is named in his honor.
While other AFL stars were being rediscovered, Earthquake Hunt’s legacy has faded. In eleven years, he only had two cards. He was one of an amazing collection of players who “survived and thrived” as the AFL flourished–but he missed out on the AFL’s renaissance–and the due credit he so richly deserved.
Check out this Patriots HoF Induction Ceremony video for Jim Lee Hunt: Click Here
