O-R Athlete of the Week: C.J. Cole, McGuffey
Name: C.J. Cole
School: McGuffey
Sport: Basketball
Class: Senior
Cole’s week: Cole capped a successful trip south by registering his eighth consecutive double-double to start the season in a 56-33 victory over Episcopal School of Acadiana (La.) in the KSA Classic in Orlando, Fla., Monday. Cole scored 27 points and grabbed 15 rebounds.
A day earlier, Cole scored 24 points and pulled down 11 rebounds in a 68-43 rout of St. Augustine, Texas.
In the opening game of the tournament, Cole had 19 points and 10 rebounds in a 61-52 loss to Waynesburg, which also made the trip to Orlando.
McGuffey departed Florida with its overall record at 7-1 and Cole with eight double-doubles.
“I didn’t even realize it,” Cole said of his dominance in two aspects of the game.
Cole is averaging 27 points and 14 rebounds per game so far. Two weeks ago, the 6-5 forward-shooting guard surpassed 1,000 points in his varsity career during a 55-50 victory over Elizabeth Forward in the season-opening McGuffey Tournament. Cole scored 37 points and had 17 rebounds in the game.
“Every time there is a shot, I look at it as nobody’s ball.” said Cole. “I want to go get that ball, whether it’s going in or not going in. I want that ball.”
A multi-sport athlete, Cole was the Observer-Reporter Boys Basketball Player of the Year as a junior after averaging 23.6 points and 11.5 rebounds per game.
A couple weeks ago, Cole accepted an invitation to play football at West Virginia University as a preferred walk-on. He realizes there are opportunities to play quicker at other schools but he wants to follow his dream.
“Ever since I saw those players on TV, I knew I wanted to be just like them,” he said. “I want to go there and prove to myself that I am a Division I football player. West Virginia is giving me a chance and I want to make the most of it.”
Geeze, you’re tall: Cole stands 6-5 and is a strong 190 pounds. He finds there are pluses and minuses to being the tallest kid in your class.
“There are positives, like sports,” he said. “One of the negatives? We went to Florida and it was kind of tough on the airplane. They don’t make the seats for people who are 6-5. Fitting into the back of a car, too, isn’t easy.
“I would say another positive is when you go to the grocery store. There are always people there who say, ‘Can you reach that for me?’ You are always helping people out. And that’s really nice.”
Compiled by Joe Tuscano