[1] A native of Olympia, Washington, he excelled as a left-handed pitcher at Pierce College before earning a scholarship to attend William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa, where he played for the nationally ranked Statesmen from 2004 to 2006.
[5] In 2006, he spent six months with the Tacoma Rainiers, the Seattle Mariners Triple-A affiliate, assisting the general manager for baseball operations while learning under pitching coach Dwight Bernard.
[5] He "decided to make a run at college ball", joining the Wildcats staff in January 2009 as an unpaid assistant under head coach Andy Lopez.
[2][5] In his first year with the team, Cole shadowed Lopez in the development of the pitching staff and assisted the director of baseball operations.
[2] In 2012, Cole was unanimously named Pitching Coach of the Year by Collegiate Baseball after helping the Wildcats win the College World Series and a share of the Pac-12 title.
[2][8] Under his tutelage, Heyer was named a second-team All-American after leading the nation with 13 wins, and combined with Konner Wade and James Farris for a 31—8 win–loss record, a 3.30 ERA and 16 complete games.
[2] In late 2013, while Lopez recovered from a surgery, Cole was put in charge of fall practices and recruiting – along with fellow assistant Matt Siegel – in lieu of an interim coach.
[1] In 2016, Cole joined the team's short season A affiliate, the Tri-City Dust Devils, as a pitching coach under manager Ben Fritz.
[1] In 2023, Cole helped T.J. Fondtain win the MWC Pitcher of the Year award as well as second-team All-American honors from multiple outlets, notably recording the eighth no-hitter in school history against Nevada.
[1] Meanwhile, Aztecs relief pitcher Kelena Sauer earned first-team all-MWC honors after leading the conference with 12 saves; both players were selected in that year's MLB draft.
[22] In his first year at the helm, San Diego State finished with a 17–37 record, the worst mark in the program's Division I history.