Vicksburg’s Devonte Cage and Laurence Sullivan Jr. are now coaching football at General Trass

Last updated: October 4, 2026

VICKSBURG, Miss. (VDN) —

Vicksburg natives Devonte Cage and Laurence Sullivan Jr. once learned the game of football as players. Now, they are using those lessons to help shape the next generation.

Cage and Sullivan, both Vicksburg High School graduates, are members of the defensive coaching staff at General Trass High School in Lake Providence, Louisiana. For the two young coaches, their work with the Panthers is about more than wins, losses and what happens on Friday nights. It is an opportunity to give young athletes some of the same guidance they received growing up.

“Football has given me a lot, and I’m just happy to have the opportunity to give back,” Sullivan said. “I had coaches who took the time to teach me and push me, and now I have the opportunity to do that for these young men. It’s about helping them grow, not just as football players, but as young men.”

Cage shares that same appreciation for the opportunity to pass along what the game has taught him.

“Football is all I have known,” Cage said. “I’ve been blessed to learn from some great coaches, and now I get the opportunity to take what I’ve learned and give it to these young men. That’s what makes coaching special to me.”

Cage and Sullivan coach under General Trass head coach Toriano Wells, and the connections between the three stretch far beyond their current roles with the Panthers.

Those connections were on full display last month when General Trass defeated Madison High School 46-0 in the Cat Bowl, securing the Panthers’ 10th Cat Bowl victory.

The game brought together a network of coaches and former players whose football journeys are tied together through Vicksburg, Alcorn State University and years of mentorship.

Wells and Madison head coach Shaun Archer both played under former Vicksburg High School head coach Alonzo Stevens at Alcorn State. Stevens later became head coach at Vicksburg High, leading the Gators for 11 years from 2001 through 2011.

Years later, the lessons from that era are still being passed down.

Wells now leads General Trass, while Archer is in charge of Madison. Archer also previously served as an assistant head coach at Vicksburg High.

Cage’s connection to Stevens runs even deeper. Stevens is his grandfather, making Cage part of a football legacy that has stretched across generations.

Cage said having his grandfather in the stands watching him coach and continuing to offer advice makes the experience even more meaningful.

“It feels so great seeing him in the stands and giving pointers,” Cage said. “He’s been a big part of my football life, so having him there still teaching me means a lot.”

That relationship represents the cycle that has kept the football legacy alive. Stevens helped shape players who eventually became coaches, and those coaches are now helping mold another generation.

The Cat Bowl brought many of those connections together on the same field.

Wells, who played under Stevens at Alcorn State, stood on the General Trass sideline. Across the field was Archer, another former Stevens player. On Wells’ defensive staff were Cage and Sullivan, who once played under Archer at Vicksburg High.

Different schools and different generations were represented, but their football roots remained connected.

For Cage and Sullivan, their move into coaching shows how far the influence of a coach can travel. The lessons they received as young players in Vicksburg are now being taught to young men in Lake Providence.

Football can create relationships that last decades. Coaches become mentors. Players eventually become coaches. Lessons learned by one generation are passed to the next.

Cage and Sullivan are now doing their part to keep that cycle going.

The Cat Bowl ended with a 46-0 victory for General Trass, but the story represented on the field was bigger than the final score. It was a reminder that the impact of coaching can extend long after the final whistle — and that a football legacy built years ago can continue through the people willing to pass it on.