One of the greatest return specialist in Gustavus football history, Andy Traetow exuded confidence as a complete player for the Gusties in the early 2000s. Traetow earned All-America honors his sophomore season after leading NCAA Division III with 34.4 yards per kick return. The Jackson, Minnesota native exemplified what it meant to be a student-athlete, receiving CoSIDA Academic All-America laurels his senior year.
Traetow finished his career wearing the black and gold as a three-time All-Conference performer. His great instincts and knowledge of the game resulted in the Traetow name being plastered throughout the program’s record book. Traetow still holds the school record for most rushing touchdowns in a game with five, and at the time of graduation his 252-rushing-yard performance against Hamline in 2002 broke the single-game rushing record held by his head coach, Jay Schoenebeck ’80.
Traetow was twice named the Division III National Player of the Week and finished his career with 4,901 all-purpose yards. He ranks in the program’s top-six in six rushing categories, including yards in a season (1,233), yards in a game (252), career yards (2,791), career touchdowns (28), career yards per carry (5.6), and career carries (501).
After graduating cum laude in 2003 with a degree in elementary education, Traetow spent 10 years as an elementary and middle school teacher at Jackson County Central Schools and Fairmont Area Schools. In the past six years, Traetow has served as dean of students, assistant principal, and now a principal at Fairmont Junior/Senior High School. Andy lives in Fairmont with his wife, Michelle (Welshons) ’03, and their children, Norah, Landon, Emmett, and Simon.
