Report: Former Tennessee football star passes away at age 58

The Tennessee Volunteers football community is mourning together, with the announcement of the sudden passing of former Vols’ standout offensive linemen John Bruhin, a Knoxville native, who died at the age of 58 last Thursday, according to a report from Knox News.

Bruhin was one of the state’s top offensive linemen in the state of Tennessee before becoming a staple on the Vols’ offensive line in the mid-1980s, including the memorable 1985 Sugar Bowl team.

The versatile offensive linemen with a deep desire to play for his beloved Tennesse Volunteers shined at Powell High School with a breakout campaign in 1982 and opted to play in Knoxville over scholarship offers from Georgia, Kentucky and Memphis.

“They all knew I was from Knoxville, and I really wanted to play for Coach (Johnny) Majors,” Bruhin told Knox News in a 2014 interview. “I went to all the camps at UT. I always dreamed about playing there, and it happened. I don’t know if many people get to live their dream, but I was able to do it.”

Bruhin, a 6-foot-3, 280-pounder, made a rare move due to his passion for Tennesse Volunteers football and joined the program as an early enrollee in 1983, during a time where that was almost unheard of.

“Everybody said, ‘Are you nuts?’ Bruhin told The Tennessean in 2014.

“I was with the big boys (that spring practice). I was highly recruited and it went to my head. I thought I was good, and I got thrown to the wolves. My age group guys hadn’t shown up yet.”

He redshirted that season, but the head-start eventually paid off.

Bruhin was a backup in 1984. He moved into the starting lineup on an injury-plagued unit under offensive line coach Phillip Fulmer in 1985, and he stayed there most of his career.

John Bruhin shines for Tennessee Volunteers

That 1985 team went 9-1-2, won the SEC title and beat Miami 35-7 in the Sugar Bowl. Bruhin started at right guard, opposite Tennessee great Harry Galbreath, for most of the season, but he played as a backup in the Sugar Bowl.

But the next two season, the versatile offensive linemen cemented his place as a starter and played a pivotal role in the team’s success as an anchor on the offensive line.

Bruhin helped lead the Vols beat Memphis in the 1986 Liberty Bowl and beat Indiana in the 1987 Peach Bowl.

After a successful stint with the Tennessee Volunteers, Bruhin was a fourth-round pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1988 NFL Draft. In four seasons, he played 49 games with 21 starts.

He was inducted into the Greater Knoxville Sports Hall of Fame in 2014.

The cause of his death remains unknown and funeral arrangements have not yet been released.