Man who loved outdoors and Ute football remembered after fatal shooting

SALT LAKE CITY — Andrew Creer says Evan Cole was an avid Utes fan.

"He was excited about the Holy War," Creer told KSL.

Saturday morning, he said Cole, 32, texted him about 9:30 a.m. saying he was about to start driving from his home in Lindon to Creer's residence in Salt Lake City to watch the big football game between the University of Utah and BYU. Creer says because Cole shared his location, he could check on his friend's progress as he drove.

Just before 10 a.m., he saw that Cole was in the Granary District. Then, based on his cell phone location, Creer noted his friend seemed to be just sitting there, which he thought was odd. He called Cole just after 10 a.m. and then sent him a text at halftime. "Are you OK?" was the last text Creer sent to Cole.

Now, when he checks the location of Cole's phone, it shows it is at the Salt Lake City Police Department.

"It is quite surreal to check the location on the phone and see it now in the evidence room of the Salt Lake City Police Department. There's only one reason it's there," Creer said of items stored in the evidence room. "Because the person is not with us anymore."

Cole was shot and killed just before 10 a.m. near 495 W. 600 South. According to police, Cole was traveling in the area when he and a second driver pulled over for an unknown reason. After getting out of his vehicle, there was a confrontation, and Cole was shot and killed. He was found outside his vehicle.

Detectives say the gunman drove off. As of Tuesday, they were still actively looking for the suspect, which included collecting surveillance video from the area, said police Sgt. Greg Wilking. A funeral for Cole was scheduled for Saturday in Lindon.

"It still doesn't make any sense to me why someone would do something so thoughtless and so cruel," Creer said.

While still mourning the loss of his friend, Creer said he knows Cole would want everyone not to dwell on the tragic nature of his passing, but rather try to find something positive to focus on as Evan would.

"He was just an absolute rock star in everything he did," Creer said. "I hope that we can all carry on his optimistic way of looking at the world and looking for solutions."

Creer said Cole moved to Utah from Oklahoma in his 20s, and quickly fell in love with outdoor recreational opportunities it had to offer.

"Any opportunity to get out and enjoy what Utah had to offer," Creer recalled of his friend's love from traveling to places like Capitol Reef National Park or the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. "He was just constantly in awe that we had this in front of us."

In addition to being an avid snowboarder, Cole also loved traveling to California to surf, Creer recalled.

"Evan approached every single day like it was a new opportunity, whether that opportunity was to serve someone through his business ... or through his abundant loving personality. He was always looking for the next thing," Creer recalled.

Cole loved red rocks and snow and helping others, his friend said, and he loved exploring the world around him. And while he will miss their adventures together, Creer says mostly he will miss his friend's laughter.

"Every time we'd spend time together, the majority of time was spent laughing," Creer said.

Finding joy in Cole's memory and remembering his laugh is what has gotten Creer through the past couple of days. He says he knows things will be never be the same. But "I hope that we can all carry on his optimist way of looking at the world and looking for solutions."

As for the football game he never got to watch with his friend, Creer said, "He would have been very happy with the result."

Related topics