After graduating high school, he attended the University of Minnesota, where he was a collegiate basketball player before refocusing on American football.
Bruggers took a seat on the plane along with Crockett's brother David and fellow wrestlers Ric Flair, Johnny Valentine, and Tim Woods.
The pilot, Mike Farkas, sustained ultimately fatal injuries and all five passengers were injured, with Bruggers suffering spinal fractures and a broken ankle.
After having steel rods inserted into his spinal column, Bruggers was able to walk out of hospital three weeks after the crash, but decided not to return to wrestling.
[11][12][3][4] Following his retirement from football and wrestling, Bruggers worked as a sales manager for a tool company before relocating to West Palm Beach, Florida, where in 1978 he opened a bar using an insurance settlement he had received after the plane crash.