January 8, 2024
Former Lake Minneola Quarterback Devon Cole Is A Two-Time FCS National Football Champion
By Kyle Coppola
Former Lake Minneola Quarterback Devon Cole Is A Two-Time FCS National Football Champion
Devon Cole is a graduate of the Lake Minneola class of 2020. Cole just became a two-time FCS National Champion with the NCAA South Dakota Jackrabbits who won 23-3 against Montana and completed a perfect season of 15-0.
Cole led the Lake Minneola Hawks to a 9-4 season in 2019. That year saw the Hawks Crowned as the Class 6A District 5 champions. They made the FHSAA Playoffs and made a bit of a run before being ousted by Gaither but overall, it was a successful season for the Hawks.
(Devon Cole returning a kick.)
Cole threw for 1,044 yards while rushing for 627 yards. He had 21 total touchdowns that season. Cole got the opportunity to play for South Dakota State after his high school playing days and currently is listed as a wide receiver on the team.
(Devon Cole celebrates the 2022 national championship which would be the first of two he would win in his career with the Jackrabbits.)
In a video that went viral, Cole was seen celebrating the team’s semi-final win with the South Dakota State band in the stands. As much fun as Cole loves to have, we want to make sure no one ever forgets how good of an athlete he really is.
Cole received all-area recognition as a quarterback for Lake Minneola in 2019. He redshirted his freshman year in 2020 with the Jackrabbits and is a junior currently. We want to congratulate him on a job well done. South Dakota State has now won 29 games in a row dating back to early 2022 when they lost to Iowa 7-3. Since then, the Jackrabbits have never faltered.
(This moment went viral on the internet as Devon Cole was found cheering with the South Dakota State band after punching their ticket to the FCS Championship game a few weeks ago.)
We are super happy for Cole and hopefully next year he can go out and make it three in a row!
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
