Augustus Cole

Overview

Nicknamed "The Cole Train", Cole is a former professional "Thrashball" defensive lineman that wore number 83 and played for the Cougars, by Dom's recollection. During Act 1 of Gears of War Cole joins Delta Squad after the members of his original squad, Alpha Squad, are killed by the Locust. He is known for his aggressive and sometimes outlandish behaviour shown through various taunts and cutscenes. This is backed up by his high moral and toughness to get the job done by any means. Cole writes letters to his mother even though she has passed away. He says, "Just 'cos she's gone, don't mean I can't say 'em. And they're better out than in."

The character was heavily influenced by Cole's real life counterpart, Lester Speight, who portrayed Terry Tate in a short series of advertisements for Reebok. The Cole Train's character was much like the character of Terry Tate, to the point of his arms being triple the size of any other character in the game, not using arm protection and Terry's iconic "Woo!" commonly throughout the campaign and online multiplayer. It should also be noted that Cole is a 'Thrashball' player, a very similar title and presumably role to Lester Speight's role as 'Office linebacker.' Cole makes his return in Gears of War 2. Cole single-handedly saves Marcus, Dom and Benjamin Carmine from a Locust ambush, and from that point onward he stays with them.  
 
Cole returns as a playable character in Gears of War 3. This marks the first time the series has used anyone but Marcus Fenix in the single player campaign.

Endorsement

Augustus Cole was endorsed by the "Thrashies" cereal. His standee holding the cereal can be seen throughout the campaign of Gears of War 3. This same standee is used as a decoy in the Horde mode of Gears 3.