He starred at Xenia High School, earning league and area Defensive Player of the Year honors after posting 121 tackles and 8 sacks as a senior.
He also rushed for 1,241 yards and 10 touchdowns on his way to earning all-state honors, and played in the Ohio North-South all-star game.
Cole worked hard during training camp and his general athletic ability impressed many fans and people within the organization.
He used this to forge a promising year, taking over the starting job at right defensive end in week 10.
With 5 sacks in his first 4 games, he was thought to start at the right end position, but with the signing of Darren Howard, Cole would only play on pass downs during the 2006 season.
Cole was First-team All-Rookie team honors by NFL.com, Pro Football Weekly after the season.
He was the first defensive end since Clyde Simmons in 1986 to make the Pro Bowl as an Eagles draft pick.
[4] In 2008 Cole led the team in hurries (22), and TFLs (9), was 2nd in sacks (9.0), and 3rd with 3 FFs while making 98 tackles (59 solo).
[8] Cole's season was below par for him, as he only recorded 3 sacks and 40 combined tackles, an all-time low in each category.
Cole led the team in sacks (8.0) and forced fumbles (3), while also recording 56 combined tackles, 3 pass deflections, and his first career safety.
Cole began to increase his production towards the end of the season, gaining 3 sacks and a forced fumble in his final 5 games.
[13] On December 22, 2017, Cole announced that he would retire as an Eagle, and was made an honorary captain for the team's game against the Oakland Raiders on Christmas Day.