Peter Haugen, a native of Minneapolis and a 1991 graduate of Bethel University, has been named the head football coach at Gustavus Adolphus College.
Haugen, who has been the head football coach at Minneapolis Washburn High School for the past 15 years, succeeds Jay Schoenebeck who announced he was stepping down after 15 years as the Gusties head coach just prior to the 2008 season to pursue other interests and spend more time with his family.
Set to begin his responsibilities in early January, Haugen is looking forward to joining the Gustavus community. He stated, “My wife Brenda and I are excited to begin serving Gustavus Adolphus College and we feel blessed to be a part of its incredibly rich academic and athletic heritage.” He added, “I was immediately impressed with the warmth and kindness of the people at Gustavus during the interview process and I am humbled to have been chosen to continue to build upon the long and successful history of the Golden Gustie football program.”
During his 15 years as the head coach at Washburn High School, Haugen compiled an overall record of 111-44, while winning 11 league championships and posting a league record of 76-8. He directed the Millers to the Class AAAA quarterfinals in 2007 finishing with a mark of 9-3. This past season, Haugen’s squad posted a mark of 8-2. While building the program at Washburn, Haugen increased player participation from 35 players in 1994 to 110 players. He also implemented academic monitoring and meal programs for student athletes as well as creating and directing the highly successful Washburn Athletic Leadership Academy. He served as the chair of the Minneapolis Football Conference this past year and he is an active clinician working at many local and regional clinics including the NIKE Coach of the Year clinic. Haugen was also a member of the Metro coaching staff for the Minnesota All-Star game in 1998. He started his coaching career at his alma mater serving as the offensive line coach during the 1992 and 1993 seasons.
A three-sport standout at Bethel, Haugen was a starting tight end on the football team, a starting goaltender on the hockey team, and a starting catcher on the baseball team in the late ’80s and early 90s. In his senior year, he earned All-Conference honors in football, and was selected Most Valuable Player of the hockey team.
Gustavus Athletics Director Al Molde states, “Peter Haugen brings an outstanding record of success on the football field. Eleven conference championships speak volumes about his ability to lead a football team. However, Peter is much more than a football coach. He is a valued administrator, a caring counselor and leader, working in a multicultural setting to develop programs for student leadership and retention, and he is a community volunteer, working to develop camps and clinics for the youth of the city through the parks and recreation programs. And finally, most importantly, Peter Haugen is a loving and caring husband and father with a deep abiding faith.”
Haugen becomes the 17th head coach in the 93-year history of Gustavus football. The Golden Gusties have a long and storied football tradition that includes 22 MIAC titles. The program ranks 30th all-time in Division III (out of 235 institutions) with a 59.3 winning percentage (454-308-21). The Gusties will soon join a very elite group of 40 NCAA Division III institutions whose football teams have won 500 games. Along with great teams, Gustavus has also been blessed with many outstanding individual players, which includes 29 players who have received All-America honors, 10 who have received CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, and four who have received NCAA Postgraduate Scholarships.
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