David Cole was a 5-7 point guard recruited to West Texas State University by Head Basketball Coach Jimmy Viramontes from McCallum High School in Austin, Texas.
Cole joined the WT freshman team in the 1966-67 season and promptly averaged 16.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. As he entered his first year on the varsity the next season, the media guide described Cole as "an excellent prospect with lots of `savvy' and a tenacious defensive player. His strong suits are leadership and ball-handling ability."
In 1967-68 Dennis Walling was named the new head coach and during his junior year Cole helped lead the Buffs to an 18-8 record including a berth in the National Invitational Tournament in New York City, where they lost to Ohio University, 82-80.
Cole's three-year varsity record was 40-31. He averaged 4.4 points and 1.6 rebounds per game, but he shot 75.7 pct. from the foul line. His value was passing the ball off to prolific scorers like Simmie Hill, Mike Mitchell, and Dale Blaut, but there were no record of assist totals in those days.
He graduated from WT in May, 1970, with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance. Cole then embarked on a 34-year career with Southwestern Bell/ AT&T in St. Louis, Mo., and Dallas, Texas, retiring in 2004.
He has been on the AT&T Cotton Bowl board and was a board member of the Field & Mary Scovell Foundation, which awards scholarships annually to outstanding North Texas students. Cole was inducted into the Missouri Athletic Club Hall of Fame in 2007.
