Bruhn attended high school in Mound, Minnesota, where he played football and basketball. He enrolled at the University of Minnesota in 1932. Bruhn played left guard for the Gopher teams that went undefeated and won Big Ten Conference championships in 1934 and 1935. Bruhn also played catcher on the baseball team at Minnesota that won the Big Ten Conference championship in 1935. He captained the baseball team in his senior year.