Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Trent Cole spent a lot of time watching the Cincinnati Bengals when he was growing up in Xenia, but Thursday night marked just his second chance to face his favorite boyhood team.

Cole had five tackles and two sacks the last time the Eagles faced the Bengals, a game that ended in a 13-13 tie at Paul Brown Stadium in 2008.

And while that was his only trip back to Southwest Ohio in uniform, he still makes his offseason home in the area, living on a farm where he pursues the other passions in his life, hunting and fishing.

“I have it all there,” Cole said. “I can relax, farm and fish. I can’t think of any other place I’d rather be in my free time.”

A two-time Pro Bowl selection and eight-year veteran, Cole said he has fallen in love with Philadelphia as well after being selected by the Eagles in the fifth round of the 2005 draft. He signed a four-year contract extension in March that runs through 2017.

“I think Trent Cole is one of the better defensive ends in the National Football League,” Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis said this week. “He comes to play every week, plays extremely hard, and you have to always be conscious and always be accountable for him.”

And while retirement may seem like a long way off, Cole is already crafting a plan for his post-football life. He owns a video production company that has an outdoors program called “Blitz TV” on DirecTV and Dish Network.

“It’s an outdoor hunting show,” Cole said. “It’s a group of me and some friends and we got together and did a show. We hunt all around the world and state of Ohio and East Coast. Pretty much what we do is educate people on the outdoors trying to help them be successful in the outdoors as well as giving them examples and being leaders, showing them the way and giving them tips.”

Cole said two of his favorite moments from the show were bow hunting in Hawaii and bear hunting in Canada.

“I had an encounter where I came within 10 yards of a bear,” Cole said. “It came walking up on me on a trail. I really kind of thought I was done. I thought, ‘Oh, this is bad.’ “

The experiences this football season have offered Cole haven’t been that great, with the Eagles struggling at 4-9 heading into Thursday’s game against the Bengals.

They had lost eight in a row prior to a 23-21 win at Tampa Bay on Sunday.

“It’s been a tough road,” he said. “Here we’re used to winning games. This is a winning organization. Having a year like we’ve had this year, it’s just been really tough. (Sunday) was great for the team because guys have been fighting pretty hard to win a game.”

One of three University of Cincinnati products on the Eagles, along with tight end Brent Celek and center Jason Kelce (Injured Reserve), Cole ranks tied for second on the team with five tackles for loss. He also has two sacks and 45 total tackles.

“He’s had a really a good season,” Eagles head coach Andy Reid said. “As you saw last week, people know who he is, obviously. They chip him and bang him and everything else and he just keeps coming at you. Every kid I’ve had from Cincinnati has been a tough nut. They put out some tough, tough kids. Trent is one of those guys.”