Coach Cathey is a 2008 graduate of Franklin High School. While at Franklin, Cathey was a 4-year letterman in football, wrestling, and track and field. He was a member of the 2004 State Runner-Up football team and the 2005 State Championship wrestling dual team. He was a three-time region medalist and region champ in wrestling and was All County in football. He was also named to both the All Mid-State football and All Mid-State wrestling teams in 2008. 

Cathey continued his athletic career, playing football at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga and finished his career at Cumberland University. During his time at Cumberland, he was named Second Team All-Conference. He has coached wrestling since 2018 and has assisted on the football coaching staff since 2015. In 2022, he assisted on the girls' flag football coaching staff in their inagural season. Coach Cathey is also the school's unified sports director. During his tenure as unified sports director, Franklin has qualified for the state track meet three times and was the 2022 sectional champions. Under Cathey, Franklin's unified team is also the two-time defending state champions in bowling (2021, 2022). Along with coaching, Cathey teaches special education at Franklin and completed his master’s in special education from Lipscomb in 2022.