Willie Bueno steps down as coach after seven seasons

Willie Bueno, one of the most accomplished football coaches in Palm Beach County history, has stepped down after seven seasons with Royal Palm Beach.

Bueno, who won three state titles at Glades Central and American HeritageDelray, went 40-34 during his tenure at Royal Palm Beach. The Wildcats are coming off an 0-10 season.

Royal Palm Beach athletic director Eric Patterson said in a press release that Bueno cited “a desire to spend more quality time with his family.”

“We are fortunate to have had the caliber of coaching that Willie Bueno brings to a staff and we wish him well,” Patterson said. “With Willie at the helm, we were never out of a ball game."

Taking over a Wildcats team that finished 1-9 the previous season, Bueno led them to 7-4 record with a Class 7A regional playoff appearance, earning Lou Groza Palm Beach County Coach of the Year honors in 2011.

The high point of Bueno’s tenure came in 2014, when the team finished 11-2 and captured the District 13-7A title. The team reached the Class 7A regional finals before falling to eventual state champion St. Thomas Aquinas.

The team was unable to match that success in the ensuing seasons, though. The Wildcats struggled to an 0-10 mark this past year in what proved to be Bueno’s final season at the helm.

Prior to Royal Palm Beach, he coached at Glades Central, finishing 33-5 in three seasons, highlighted by a state championship in 2000.

Following his time in Belle Glade, he coached at American Heritage-Delray for five years, accumulating 47-16 record with state titles in 2007 and 2009.

Bueno is one of just four head football coaches to win at least three state titles at Palm Beach County schools, joining Byron Walker (Glades Day), Leroy Foster Jr. (Pahokee) and Pete Walker (Glades Day).