To many IU and Purdue fans, just the mention of the other's institution of higher learning is enough to raise their blood pressure level to a boil. Depending on the sport, the players may tell you it's another game on the schedule where the true rivalry exists.

Take football, for example, the Purdue players will say all the right things to the media about how the Indiana game is the one they want to win above others. Truth be told, once the cameras and tape recorders are shut off, the team they want to beat more than any other is Notre Dame.

The reason is simple. In football the series with Indiana is decidedly in Purdue's favor and rarely has the outcome been the determining factor in one or the other's postseason plans. For Purdue a win over Notre Dame is viewed as a high profile victory across the country. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on which in-state school you root for) Notre Dame has won twice as many games as Purdue in the series. From the IU perspective, the Hoosiers needed a win over Purdue in 1967 to keep their hopes alive for a trip to Pasadena. In 1989 the loss to the Boilermakers cost IU an appearance in the California Bowl and was a contributing factor in Anthony Thompson not winning the Heisman Trophy. Other than that for Indiana, the rivalry has been about bragging rights and hoping that the victory will entice the cream of the in-state football talent to choose their school over the other.

Now that's not to say the two rivals haven't had their share of exciting battles, because they have. While most of the time play on the field has been civil, there have been instances over the years where emotions have spilled over to hand-to-hand combat.

Everyone has his or her own favorite Old Oaken Bucket memories. I have two. The first is when Mike Harkrader ended up playing with two broken legs against the Boilermakers. The second are the not so complementary comments made by IU player Chris Dyer to an Indiana Daily Student reporter about the Purdue football program and its players. His quotes ended up being published in high profile newspapers. Dyer later apologized for his comments.

Conversely in basketball, Indiana players will talk on the record about how sweet it is to knock off the Boilermakers and it is, don't get me wrong. But, behind closed doors, the team they really want to have bragging rights over is the Kentucky Wildcats. The team they have lost to in 12 of the last 14 meetings.

Travel the southern reaches of Indiana, especially cities and towns that border the Ohio River where many townspeople work in Kentucky. If they're IU fans chances are they have or know someone who has a t-shirt that reads, "My favorite basketball (or football) team is Indiana and whoever Kentucky is playing."

The death of Jason Collier at age 28 came as a complete shock. While my reaction to the recent passing of Terry Cole at 60 was the same, reality sinks in, as you grow older that no one is immortal and you accept it as a fact of life.

To his friends he was "T-Bear". To IU football fans he will forever be remembered for his stellar performance against Purdue in a contest where a trip to the Rose Bowl was on the line for the Hoosiers. Terry Cole grew up in Mitchell, Ind., a small town not far from where I was born and raised. Until consolidation came along, his high school and mine were bitter rivals.

I was only 6 years old when Cole led the Mitchell Bluejackets to an unbeaten season in 1963. While stories can become embellished over time, I have it on good authority from several reliable sources including my older brother Tim, that when Terry Cole played, he was a man amongst the boys. Mitchell's offense was simple – give the ball to Cole as much as possible and watch him rumble with two or three defenders hanging on for dear life trying to bring him down.

Terry Cole was recruited and played for Phil Dickins in 1964. However, John Pont (who was in his first year) was his head coach when as a sophomore in 1965, he led the Hoosiers in rushing with 286 yards and two touchdowns on 91 carries. A modest showing when you consider IU has had one player, Anthony Thompson who eclipsed that season total by 91yards in one game against Wisconsin in 1989. Several others, Vaughn Dunbar, Alex Smith, Brett Law and Levron Williams have come close. Yet greater days were ahead for both Terry Cole and an Indiana University football program that finished the 1965 season with a 2-8-1 record.

As a junior Cole relinquished the title of team leading rusher to Mike Krivoshia while adding the squad's punting chores to his fullback duties. Terry averaged 37.6 yards per punt in 1966, a respectable showing when compared to previous IU punting leaders and to his counterparts around the country. Only one other time will you find Terry Cole's name mentioned among statistical leaders in IU history – the magical game he had against Purdue in his senior year when the Rose Bowl berth was on the line. He ran for 115 yards on 15 carries and scored two touchdowns, including a 63-yard dash to the end zone. He also had a 42-yards gain.

You won't find Terry Cole's name listed along with the IU players who have been recognized with All-Big Ten or All-America status. Nor will you find his name among IU players who played in a post-season all-star game like the East-West Shrine, Blue-Gray, Senior or Hula Bowl game. You will find his name listed with those IU players who were drafted by the NFL. In Cole's case, it was in the first round by the Baltimore Colts in 1968. Granted back then the scouting of college football players wasn't as sophisticated as it is today, but for someone to be taken in the first round who hadn't played in a post season all-star game (unless an injury or an agent's strong urging prevented their participation) is virtually unheard of. Obviously, the Colts saw something they liked. More than likely it was Indiana's Cinderella season capped by a Rose Bowl appearance that was enough to get Cole on the Colt's radar screen.

If you were a Colts fan (until of course when they ran into Joe "Willie White Shoes" Namath in the Super Bowl), 1968 was a fantastic year. Armed with the best defense in the NFL, Baltimore hardly missed a beat when Earl Morrell stepped in at quarterback after John Unitas went down with an early season injury. He helped to propel the Horseshoes to a 13-1 regular season record. As a rookie, the 6-1, 220-pound Cole split time at fullback with veteran Jerry Hill. He finished the season as the team's second leading rusher behind Tom Matte with 418 yards on 104 carries while scoring three touchdowns. He finished as the Colt's second leading rusher his second year in the league, but his production dropped to 204 yards. Traded to Pittsburgh, Cole saw limited action with the Steelers in 1970 gaining only eight yards on nine attempts. In 1971, Terry Cole's NFL career came to a close with Miami after gaining 11 yards on three carries. One year before the Dolphins completed a perfect 17-0 season.

Back then in Lawrence County where Mitchell is located Terry Cole was considered a larger than life figure to any kid between the ages of 10 and 16 who followed sports.

I remember one time he showed up at a high school basketball sectional game and it sure didn't take long for word to spread throughout the gymnasium of his presence. I've never been one for seeking autographs, but a friend of mine got his autograph on a Juicy Fruit gum wrapper. I wonder if he still has it tucked away with the rest of his childhood mementos.

A few years after I graduated from high school they started holding nostalgia basketball sectionals where players who had starred at small schools like Tunnelton, Needmore and Shawswick prior to consolidation would organize once again and relive their glory days over several nights. One year I recall Terry Cole suiting up for the Mitchell Blue Jackets in one of these tournaments. I don't recall his name being mentioned when people talk about great players in the history of Mitchell basketball, but I can imagine he brought many of his gridiron instincts to the hardwood. You know the type. They commit a foul on their way to reporting in at the scorer's table. Another participant in these nostalgia sectionals was Wendell Bailey, father of former IU standout Damon Bailey. Wendell had been a standout basketball player at Heltonville High School back in the 1960's.

Terry Cole's gridiron accomplishments weren't enough to warrant the citizens of Mitchell to display them on a sign along those that welcome motorists to their town. However, the football field where his high school legend grew was named in his honor a few years ago. Following his NFL career, he ran a "Camp of Champions" where present and past football players would join him in teaching kids the finer points of the game. At the time of his death, Terry Cole was a successful Indianapolis businessman.

Our prayers and condolences go out to his family.