Sure it's possible. It sounds like the gasket on the rear cover, which gives access to the impeller & bearing, failed. It's also correct that if the water level is too low for the pump to get suction you won't see any initial heat indication on your water temp gauge. You didn't say what engine it is, but assuming a SBC here's a picture of the complete gasket set for the water pump (just to show what you've got).

SBC water pump.jpg

About all you can do at this point is change the water pump, fill it with coolant and start it up to see if you messed things up by severely overheating the engine. Watch for white smoke from the exhaust, check the oil to ensure that it's not leaking coolant into the crankcase (head gaskets), and pray. Probably a good idea to do a compression check and cylinder leakdown test if it acts OK on the initial run. Just my $0.02, and you may get other ideas to consider.