WEIRTON, W.Va. — Tony Filberto, who spent the better part of the last 45 years coaching football in Hancock County, is stepping away from the sidelines.
Most recently head coach at Weir High School the last eight seasons, Filberto had two different stints coaching both Weir and nearby Oak Glen. Now, a coaching career that began at Oak Glen in 1977, is coming to an end with Filberto confirming his retirement.
“I still feel functional, but I’m 70 years old and it’s time to enjoy some personal time with my family,” Filberto said. “I’ll be very supportive of the Weir program still. The last time I came back to Weir, the program was a mess and I wanted to straighten this thing out. I always said when it got on good, solid ground, it’d be time for me to retire.”
With Weir having six consecutive playoff appearances from 2014-2019 and seven straight winning seasons following a 6-4 mark in 2020, Filberto is certainly leaving behind a winning tradition.
Filberto’s last day will officially be March 9, though he plans to stay around the program during offseason workouts.
“I was in the weight room today, I’ll go tomorrow and continue to run the weight program until they decide who the next coach is going to be,” Filberto said. “I owe that to Weir High School for as good as Weir High School has been to me.”
Before embarking on his coaching career, Filberto was a standout lineman at West Liberty from 1969-1972. He was first at Oak Glen for six years, before moving on to Weir, where he was a longtime assistant and then head coach from 2002-2004.
After leaving coaching for four years, Filberto returned to the Golden Bears for a four-year stint, before coming back to work with the Red Riders.
“This has been a very difficult decision to make,” Filberto said. “My first organized football game was in 1958 and I was the quarterback of the Wellsburg Colts midget program. It’s been a lifetime involved with football for me. I never wanted to make a decision before January 1, because emotions are so involved. I needed to take some time away and relax, and when I finally sat down the other day and gave it a lot of thought, I came to this decision.”
While Filberto admits it will be a tougha adjustment not wearing a headset on Friday nights, another aspect of coaching is what he will miss most.
“I’m different than most in that I love August and the preparation and work that goes into it,” he said. “I love camp and it’s always exciting to me. The part I really enjoyed is the progress on a day-to-day basis when you could see your team taking on its identity.”