Archer named VDN Assistant Football Coach of the Year

Vicksburg High School assistant head football coach Shaun Archer has been named the 2020 Vicksburg Daily News Assistant Coach of the Year.

Archer was born and raised in Port Gibson, Mississippi, where he was a star football player at Port Gibson High School. He graduated in 1987 and received a football scholarship to Alcorn State University.

Archer graduated from Alcorn in 1994 with a bachelor’s of science degree in health and physical education. He also earned a master’s degree in physical education from Alcorn in 2002.

He began coaching football at Bayou View Junior High in Gulfport, Mississippi, in 1997 and stayed there for two years while also assisting with track and field. He returned to Port Gibson  High in 1999 and was the assistant coach for football and track until 2007.

Archer was hired as the defensive lineman coach at by former Vicksburg High School head coach Alonzo Stevens in 2007. By 2011, Archer was the Gator’s defensive coordinator and has been a great part of the team’s success over the years.

Two weeks ago, Archer completed his 13th consecutive year at VHS. In that time, he served under six different head coaches at Vicksburg and helped the Gators to a playoff appearance this season.

“I just want to thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to serve the young men and women of this community in my capacity as a coach and a teacher,” Archer said. “I want to thank Coach Alonzo Stevens for being the perfect example of how to be a great coach and for giving me a chance to coach at Vicksburg High, the place I’ve always dreamed of coaching. And lastly I want to thank my wife, Frances, for having unlimited patience and understanding and always being my number one support system.”

Archer is the first Vicksburg Daily News Assistant Coach of the Year. With the football season over for the Gators this year, he is currently coaching the boys track team at VHS.