BYU Quarterback Jake Retzlaff Accused Of Raping And Strangling A Utah Woman In 2023

BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff had a standout year during the 2024 season, but he is now facing extremely serious allegations.

According to a new civil lawsuit, Jake Retzlaff is being accused of sexually assaulting a Utah woman in 2023, who claims the football star "raped, strangled, and bit" her.

In a new complaint, initially reported by KSL, Retzlaff, BYU's first Jewish quarterback in the school's history, is being accused of assaulting a woman he met in October 2023.

According to the filing, Retzlaff met the woman, who filed under "Jane Doe A.G.," on social media that same year. They communicated online for a while before officially meeting at Retzlaff's home.

Jane Doe alleges that Retzlaff began kissing her and attempted to take things further, an advance Doe resisted. The lawsuit claims, however, that “Retzlaff began escalating the situation.”

The filing states Doe “tried to de-escalate the situation and attempted to slow things down, trying to pull away, and saying ‘wait.’” However, Doe's requests were allegedly ignored.

Per KSL, Doe alleges that after she requested Retzlaff stop the unwanted touching, he became more aggressive, "pinching her hard."

"(The woman) wanted to leave, but was scared and felt like she could not get away," the lawsuit alleges.

The complaint further alleges, according to PEOPLE, that Retzlaff began forcing himself on her and forced her to perform oral sex acts on him.

It also states that Doe tried to call for help, but that only angered Retzlaff, who allegedly began "yelling" at her.

“He was so much stronger, heavier, and taller than Jane Doe A.G. that she felt trapped and scared and was having trouble breathing," the filing says.

The horrific claims don't end there, though. According to the filing, Retzlaff allegedly raped Doe while placing "his hands around her neck."

“It hurt so bad and caused so much pain that Jane Doe A.G. passed out,” the complaint reads.

Later, Doe alleges that after Retzlaff fell asleep, she "grabbed her clothes and her phone and ran."

Doe eventually went to a local hospital, where a rape kit was performed and pictures of the "cut on her lip and the bruises around her neck and on her inner thighs" were taken.

"As a direct and proximate result of Retzlaff's unlawful conduct, (the woman) suffered emotional distress, humiliation, embarrassment, mental distress, anxiety, and other damages in an amount to be proven at trial, but which are greater than $300,000 each," the lawsuit states, per KSL.

According to the lawsuit, Jane Doe says she contacted the Provo Police Department about the alleged assault; however, she was apprehensive about giving the officer Retzlaff's name out of fear for her safety.

Later, Doe says Provo police reached out to her because there was another complaint against a football player. However, after revealing Retzlaff's name, she claims she was discouraged from speaking out.

"At that point Jane Doe A.G. shared Retzlaff's name, and the Provo police then encouraged her not to do anything because, as they claimed, 'sexual assault victims never get justice,'" per ESPN.

The Provo Police Department issued a statement in response to Doe’s allegations, stating her claims were “not true” and that she was “given several opportunities to identify her abuser” but chose not to, causing law enforcement to close the case.

"We have a team of dedicated investigators and victim advocates whose sole mission is to provide justice to victims of sexual abuse. They do not send people away, warning them there is no justice for victims," the department said.

Retzlaff's attorney, Mark Baute, issued a statement on Wednesday in response to the lawsuit and said that he was looking forward to proving his client's innocence in court.

"I have met him, and he is a nice young man. He is also factually innocent, and we look forward to proving that innocence. Jake's focus this year will be on football. We don't try cases in the media. We will respect the process and establish Jake's innocence through the judicial system," Baute said.

The university also released a statement, explaining that they take "any allegation very seriously."

"Due to federal and university privacy laws and practices for students, the university will not be able to provide additional comment," BYU officials added.