Dan Cole has spent most of his 26 years playing football in the Capital District.
He grew up playing the sport in Colonie. He played it for Bishop Maginn in high school. He played it for Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy. And now, he’s playing it as the starting quarterback for the Albany Conquest of the Arena Football 2 league.
Not that Cole ever planned it that way.
I didn’t think it was going to be (my No. 1 sport) until my senior year of high school, said Cole, who also played basketball and baseball growing up.
Cole, who joined Albany’s roster last year, earned the starting role with the Conquest during the team’s final two games of the 2007 season. He completed 13 of 20 passes for 131 yards and four touchdowns in his first start, and threw for 160 yards in his second start.
Those efforts were only a sign of things to come for Cole. In Albany’s season opener March 29 at Mahoning Valley, he threw for 276 yards and four touchdowns. Better performances followed, as he threw for 281 yards and five touchdowns in the Conquest’s home opener against Peoria April 13, and then added a seven-touchdown night two weeks later.
`I think last year helped me very much as a learning experience,` said Cole. `Playing helps you on a day-to-day basis.`
Cole had some success as Bishop Maginn’s quarterback in the late 1990s, but it was at RPI where he blossomed. He set several school passing records including completions (671), yards (8,902) and touchdowns (87).
It was his senior year at RPI that truly defined Cole’s career. He threw for 3,679 yards and 40 touchdowns to lead the Red Hawks to the 2003 NCAA Division III semifinals.
`It was a great experience ` one I’ll always remember and cherish,` said Cole. `I was fortunate to have great teammates and a great coaching staff.`
Cole’s efforts earned him a tryout with the National Football League’s New England Patriots in 2004. When that didn’t work out, Cole returned to the region and joined RPI’s coaching staff as the quarterback coach.
`I get to teach a younger kid the ins and outs of the game and hopefully get them to become better players,` said Cole.
Cole said working with RPI head coach Jeff King for the last four seasons has helped him develop as a coach. `It’s definitely a great learning experience to learn from someone with a professional background,` he said.
The job also gives Cole the opportunity to continue his playing career, since the Arena Football 2 season lasts from late March through July, and the college season doesn’t begin in earnest until August.
Cole said he’s hoping to guide the Conquest back to the Arena Football 2 playoffs ` something the team hasn’t reached since Cole was playing for RPI. What gives Cole hope is that the team had a three-game winning streak earlier this year before a three-game losing skid pushed Albany’s record to 3-4 entering a Friday, May 23, home game against Manchester.
`It’s a tough road to get back to that (earlier level of play), but I think we can do it,` he said. `It’s the little things right now that we have to work on.`
Regardless of how the season turns out, Cole said he will use his time as the Albany Conquest’s starting quarterback as a learning experience.
`There’s always something I can learn, whether it’s in a game or in a practice,` he said. `I’ve already learned a lot this year.`
Area football fans have four more opportunities to watch Dan Cole and the Albany Conquest this year ` Saturday, June 7, against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton; Friday, June 20, against Daytona Beach; Friday, July 18, against Manchester; and Friday, July 25, against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
All games start at 7 p.m. at Albany’s Times Union Center on South Pearl Street. Tickets range from $10 for end zone seats to $35 for front row along the sidelines. For information, call 487-2000 or 1-800-30-EVENT (303-8368).“