Bret Engemann never saw it coming. Neither did Oakland Raider offensive assistant Jim Harbaugh, who was getting ready to give the former Cougar quarterback an official scouting workout on Wednesday.
On the practice field Wednesday, Engemann heard somebody call his name. He turned around just in time to receive a punch in the face from former teammate defensive end C.J. Ah You.
"He just jacked Bret," said one witness.
Stunned and shaken, Engemann temporarily blacked out and fell to the turf. Ah You was immediately taken by BYU head coach Gary Crowton to the football office and disciplined.
Engemann went on to throw more than 100 passes for Harbaugh as half a dozen other NFL scouts at the scene worked out other Cougar seniors including Reno Mahe, Gabe Reid and Spencer Nead.
But, folks, few moments are as strange as this one.
It remains to be seen what Crowton has in store for Ah You.
The reason for the assault? A woman. Unaware of a connection, Engemann dated a girl who was seeing Ah You, a defensive end rehabbing a knee following ACL surgery last fall. On a second date, the girl mentioned ties to Ah You.
"We are aware of the matter and have dealt with it accordingly," Crowton said.
Regardless of the outcome, the damage was embarrassing for everyone concerned and brought outrage to Engemann's senior teammates, who'd looked forward to this pro scout day.
"I was stunned and couldn't believe it," Mahe said. "To hit someone like that right in front of everyone, when Harbaugh was right there, well, it was bad. Polynesians get the reputation for stuff, and unfortunately this just set us back."
Reid, who'd run a pair of scintillating 4.58 times in the 40 for scouts, was equally disappointed. "That should never have happened. It will end up costing C.J."
Engemann, who lost his starting quarterback position last fall, came very close to politicking an invitation to the NFL's Combine in Indianapolis last month. When that didn't materialize, this scout day was a huge moment for him and his quest to overcome huge odds and either get drafted or impress NFL people with a personal workout on his home field for a free agent contract.
Instead, he was assaulted in broad daylight while reaching into a gym bag just hours after Harbaugh had met with BYU coaches and staff to learn more about Engemann.
"Coach Bronco Mendenhall and I addressed the situation with C.J.," Crowton said. "It was a personal matter that was not handled appropriately. C.J will be punished. We will deal with this matter internally."
Rumors floated out within minutes that Crowton had suspended Ah You from the team. "Not true," BYU football spokesman Jeff Reynolds said. "He has not been kicked off the team, but he will be punished."
Ah You, considered one of the team's top pass rushers, should hope that remains the case because it could be taken out of Crowton's internal hands.
Engemann could press criminal assault charges. BYU officials could haul Ah You in for a review by the Honor Code committee and take action based on the attack that conflicts with portions of the credo that prohibit "disorderly" conduct or "disruption of the peace."
Aside from all that, in nine days, LDS bishops of BYU student athletes have a deadline to give an "ecclesiastical endorsement" to sustain continued enrollment at the university. Ah You's bishop, on his own, could withdraw his endorsement regardless of what BYU's honor code office, university officials or even Crowton says or does.
In any event, Engemann, no matter what people think of him as a quarterback, may have finally earned support of fans.
E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com