Charles "Butch" Toner earned was a letterman for three years in baseball and football before graduating from Bessemer High School in 1960. While attending Florence State College, he again lettered for three years (1961-63) in football and track.

Toner got his start in coaching at Hanceville High School in 1964 as an assistant football coach. In 1967 he became the head coach at Hatton High School. He would remain there for two seasons with a record of 11-8-1.

From 1970-1984, he coached at Lexington High School where he was the head football coach from 1970-1980. His last two teams made the playoffs and won their area titles. In 1980 his team finished the regular season with a perfect 10-0 record.

In 1984 Coach Toner jumped to Rogers High School for five seasons. His teams there qualified for the playoffs on three occasions.

Coach Toner ended his high school coaching career in Tennessee at Loretto High School from 1989-96. His seven team in Tennessee finished with a combined 60-32 record. Toners Alabama high school coaching record stands at 110-75-1. His overall record in both state is 170-107-1 over a span of 25 seasons.

In 1995, Lawrence County, Tennessee, named him Citizen of the Year. In Lauderdale County, he was named coach of the year six times and chalked up the same awards three times at Loretto. Coach Toner is a member of the Lauderdale County Hall of Fame.