Born in 1954, Cano grew up in South Bay, Los Angeles. As the son of a boxing trainer, he participated in a multitude of sports in his youth. He played in the inaugural AYSO season when he was 10-years old alongside his friend Sigi Schmid. Cano attended Bishop Montgomery High School in Torrance where he played basketball and was the team captain as ajunior and senior. The school did not have a soccer program at the time. In 1976, Cano signed his first professional contract with the Los Angeles Skyhawks of the American Soccer League at the age of 21. There, he was the backup to Brian Parkinson and helped the Skyhawks to the ASL championship title. In the spring of 1978, he briefly played for Welsh side Rhyl FC. He was selected to be a member of the U.S. Men's National Team for its Caribbean Tour that summer. Later in the fall, he signed with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers of the North American Soccer League. In 1979, Cano returned to the ASL with the California Sunshine. He stayed in the ASL the following year to play for the Cleveland Cobras. That fall, he signed with the Cleveland Force of the Major Indoor Soccer League. In 1985, after a four-year hiatus, he joined the independent Los Angeles United. In 1986, he signed with the Los Angeles Heat of the Western Soccer Alliance. The next season he took on the role of player-manager, coaching the team and serving as backup to national team member David Vanole, and solely coached the team in 1988. He returned to the Heat as a player in 1990, now part of the American Professional Soccer League. He permanently retired from playing after the conclusion of that season.
Coach
Even before retiring from playing in 1990, Cano had an extensive coaching career. His first coaching experience came when he was still in high school, as he managed one of the first AYSO girl's youth teams. He founded and became the co-head coach of the boys's soccer program at his alma mater, Bishop Montgomery High School, alongside his childhood friend Sigi Schmid just two years after graduating. In 1980, he was hired as an assistant coach by Schmid at UCLA. In 1984, Cano founded and became the head coach of the CSU Dominguez Hillswomen's soccer team. A year later, he took over as the men's soccer head coach in addition to leading the women's side. He led the women's team to the NCAA Division II national championship in 1991. In 1994, he was hired at UC Irvine to become the Director of Soccer, supervising both men's and women's programs, and the women's head coach by Dan Guerrero. He resigned after the 2005 season, having compiled a record of 111-94-27 in his twelve seasons as coach. In 2006, he was hired by Soka University to start an intercollegiate soccer program. The men's team had their inaugural season in 2008 and the women's in 2009. In 2018 he accepted to become the women's soccer head coach at CSU Dominguez Hills for the second time. Outside of collegiate soccer, Cano served as the head coach for the Los Angeles Heat in the Western Soccer Alliance in 1987 and 1988. He has also been a goalkeeping advisor for the Los Angeles Galaxy during Sigi Schmid's stints. He is the director of "Mr. Soccer" youth soccer camps that attract more than 1,000 people.
