Alan Faneca gets to celebrate his playing days this summer when he'll be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Oh. But he'll also get to see the start of a new football career in coaching.
That's because he's taken on the head coaching job at Frank W. Cox High School in Virginia Beach, Va.:
JUST IN: Soon-to-be Hall of Famer @afan66, the former @steelers icon, has been named the new head football coach at @FrankWCoxHS @WTKR3 https://t.co/bhtsl15OeL #NFLTwitter #HereWeGo #Steelers pic.twitter.com/2YH77dC0N3
— Adam Winkler (@AdamWink) May 10, 2021
Faneca, 44, gets to start his new career coaching a high school program that went 5-1 last season. After being retired from football since 2010, Faneca can bring the experience of a superstar NFL offensive lineman to coach.
After being selected by the Steelers in the first round of the 1998 NFL Draft with the 26th overall pick. He quickly became a consistent starter for the team as a rookie, starting 12 of 16 games. In his first three seasons the Steelers would miss the playoffs under Bill Cowher, with losing seasons in 1998 and 1999.
But that all changed in 2001, when he earned the first of his nine consecutive Pro Bowl appearances. That's also when the Steelers' offense reignited and helped the team get back to the playoffs in 4 of their next 5 seasons. Faneca's run blocking played a huge role with Kordell Stewart, Jerome Bettis and Hines Ward turning the team around in the early 2000s, including having the NFL's top ranked rushing offense in 2001.
Faneca played a crucial role in the Steelers' fifth Super Bowl victory at Super Bowl XL over the Seahawks in 2006, where Faneca made a key block that sprung Willie Parker for a 75-yard touchdown that's still the longest touchdown run from scrimmage in Super Bowl history.
