After a 12-year hiatus, Mike Cole returned to the Embry-Riddle women’s soccer program as the Eagles’ goalkeeper coach in 2017. Cole began his work with ERAU goalkeepers when the program started in 1998 and during his first nine seasons with the Blue and Gold, Eagle goalkeepers enjoyed great success between the pipes, including two-time NAIA All-American Julie Greenlee.

In addition to working with ERAU Women’s Soccer, Cole also coaches the boys' soccer team at nearby Mainland High School, where he is the Health & Physical Education Dept. Chair. In 1998, he guided Mainland to the state tournament, where they finished in the top 16 for the first time in school history.

Cole also spent five summers as a staff coach for nationally recognized "Soccer Plus Goalkeeping Academy," run by former US Women's National Team coach Tony DiCicco. He has also directed the Florida Soccer Goalkeeper Training Centers at the University of Central Florida and was the Director of Goalkeeping for the Ormond Beach Soccer Club for many years.

For the last three seasons, Cole has coached the U-14, U-16 and U-17 teams at the Players Development Academy in Palm Coast. He guided his teams to the Labor Day Showcase title in Tampa Bay in 2015, as well as the Global Premier Soccer Tournament and the Brevard Cup championships in the spring of 2017.

Cole holds both National and Advanced National Diplomas from the NSCAA. He was involved in developing and implementing the NSCAA goalkeeper curriculum and has taught every level of the goalkeeper education courses. Cole has also developed an intricate video analysis system for evaluating goalkeepers and produces post-match video that he uses as a tool to aid in enhancing goalkeeper performance, as well as movement of the defenders and defensive free kick protocol.

Cole was a standout keeper for Georgia Southern University, where he helped lead the team to the Eastern Division championship in the Trans America Athletic Conference. He graduated from GSU with a degree in Health and Physical Education.

Cole and his wife, Stephanie, reside in Ormond Beach with their dog, Annie. He has hiked 14,439 feet to the peak of Mount Elbert in Colorado, which is the second highest summit in the contiguous United States, and made an eight-week, 13,500-mile round trip trek from Florida to Alaska.