Aahana Swrup
Blake Hunt— alongside his friends Richard Jacobs and Prentice Cox— become the center of the narrative in HBO’s ‘Quad Gods.’ In the documentary, filmmaker Jess Jacklin delves into the world of adaptive gaming by following the stories of members of the eponymous eSport team, where every participant has quadriplegia. Through modified controllers, most players retain the ability to operate these video games, thus becoming the first all-quadriplegic eSports team in the world. Hunt’s tale within the film remains an inspirational one, compelling viewers to grow intrigued about his current life.
Blake Hunt Played Football in High School and Underwent an Accident
Blake Hunt, a New York native like his fellow team members, was a football player in his high school days. However, in 2007, during his junior year, a tackle tactic went wrong, leading to a collision with another player’s knee. As a result of the awful accident, Hunt lost his ability to walk, sustaining a severe spinal cord injury upon snapping his neck. Consequently, he found himself entering an entirely different stage of his life. Nevertheless, he never let his newfound condition prevent him from giving up his independence.
After becoming a patient at Mount Sanai for his rehabilitation and therapy, Hunt joined the institute’s eSport team, Quad Gods, under Dr. David Putrino and Psychologist Angela Riccobono’s guidance and encouragement. As such, he has been involved with the team since its inception in 2019. Parallel to his gaming career, Hunt also worked as an Uber delivery man, picking up good orders for people and delivering them to their doorsteps. Although he often faced some difficulties in this line of work— due to inaccessible architecture— he never let the same stop him and remained steadfast in his path.
Blake Hunt, A.K.A., RepnProof, has a Career in Professional eSports
As a member of the Quad Gods, Blake Hunt has been participating in competitive gaming alongside his team members since 2019. They’ve qualified for some notable tournaments, including the January 2023 Adaptive Rocket League Tournament. Regardless of their wins and losses, the Quad Gods continue to inspire numerous people— whether they share their disabilities or not— through their participation in such significant competitions alone.
Gaming has been a tremendous help for Blake Hunt, who uses it as an escape and sees it as an opportunity to expand his capabilities. For his particular set of motor skills, he finds a deconstructed system of oversized, hand-compressible buttons to be the best in terms of controller. As for his preference, while his team is partial to the game ‘Rocket League’ in professional settings, the player enjoys RPG games like ‘Call of Duty,’ ‘NBA 2K,’ ‘Destiny,’ and ‘DCUO.’ Currently, he continues to remain a part of the New York-based team.
Blake Hunt Actively Advocates for Accessibility in the Gaming Industry
Despite the tragedy of his football injury, Blake Hunt has learned to accept and cherish his life for everything it is. In fact, he prefers to think of his journey as a transformation into unlocking his true self. As such, rather than a hurdle to overcome, he perceives his quadriplegia as a part of his identity. For the same reason, he routinely attends a convention in New Jersey centered around quadriplegic and disabled experiences. Furthermore, the player is always willing and open to help his friends and fellow members of the disabled community in whatever way possible. Outside of gaming, he also sports a passion for tap dancing and remains a part of Mary Six Rupert’s Tap: On Tap. In May 2024, Hunt graced the Abilities Expo alongside his team members, who seem to share a great bond with each other.
For Hunt, one aspect of representing his community also comes from engaging in conversations with the media about his team and the waves they’ve made as the first eSports team made up of disabled players. In 2022, he was on SitGrit to speak about the same. He also became a speaker for the Esports Summit in 2023. Likewise, in 2024, Hunt recently headed a panel with his teammates, Richard Jacobs and Sergio Acevedo, at a Games of Change event. At the panel, he and his friends discussed the relationship between the Gaming Industry and accessibility. Furthermore, they also talked about the HBO documentary, ‘Quad Gods.’
Similarly, while Hunt seems to prefer a private life otherwise, he was spotted promoting the documentary on various social media accounts. The player accompanied his Quad God teammates and the people involved in the eponymous documentary’s making at the Tribeca Festival for the premiere. However, outside of his connection to his team, Hunt keeps his personal life out of the public eye. The same remains evident through his private Instagram account.
Read More: Prentice Cox: The Quad Gods Esports Team Member is Still an Athlete Today
