Hawaii has dipped into its past to try and bolster the future.
Nick Rolovich is leaving his post as Nevada’s offensive coordinator to take over the Rainbow Warriors football program, the school announced Friday.
Rolovich was a record-setting quarterback for Hawaii from 2000-01 and served as offensive coordinator at UH under Greg McMackin from 2008-11.
The 36-year-old will be introduced at a news conference Monday.
“Being raised a Warrior, there is a great sense of excitement and responsibility about bringing back a winning tradition to Hawaii football,” Rolovich said in statement. “I can’t wait to get started. I’m honored to be selected to run this program which has made me into the man I am today.”
Contract details were not released.
Rolovich will coach his final game with the Wolf Pack on Saturday at San Diego State, and he’ll have more than two months to lock down a recruiting class before national signing day Feb. 3.
Rolovich was responsible for recruiting Hawaii for Nevada.
“I’m pleased to welcome back Nick Rolovich to the UH ‘ohana,” athletic director David Matlin said. “Nick is a Warrior at heart and someone I know our fans will support. He understands what it means to be a Warrior having played and coached here and what affect a winning program has with this community. I have no doubt we picked the right man for this job. The future is bright for Hawaii football.”
Rolovich was the team’s primary play-caller in his final three seasons as a Hawaii assistant. The program last reached a bowl game in 2010, when the Warriors went 10-4 under McMackin. He joined the Nevada staff in 2012 and has been offensive coordinator for four seasons under Brian Polian.
Nevada (6-5) ranks in the middle of the pack in total offense and scoring this season.
“Both Nick and UH have been transparent throughout the whole process and I appreciated that very much,” Polian said.
Hawaii fired Norm Chow this month after he went 10-36 in four seasons. Interim coach Chris Naeole has overseen the last three defeats of nine-game losing streak.
The Rainbow Warriors (2-10) will try to give 23 seniors – as well as the coaching staff – a fitting send-off at 6 p.m. Saturday when it hosts Louisiana-Monroe (1-10).
“It went by so fast, I feel like yesterday I was just a freshman,” said Benny Fonua, a former top state prospect at Kahuku High on Oahu. “What I’ll take out of it most is the journey, and just the will and the heart of all the players on this team. We’ve continued to fight. That amazes me.”
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, other finalists who were interviewed included June Jones and Rich Miano.
The Rolovich hire likely will give the program a much-needed jolt of enthusiasm after apathy had begun to sink in. Only 11,625 fans attended Hawaii’s loss against San Jose State last Saturday, the lowest crowd recorded for a game since Aloha Stadium opened in 1976.
No matter the size of the crowd for his final game, senior offensive lineman Ben Clarke doesn’t sound like he regrets his decision to become a Rainbow Warrior.
“The island itself still amazes me. I can still go to beaches and places I’ve never been to. I feel like you don’t get that in too many places,” Clarke said. “Playing in such a beautiful place, it’s truly unbelievable.”
Men look to remain unbeaten
Off to its best start since 2010-11, Hawaii’s men’s basketball team plays it first road game of the season at 11 a.m. HST Saturday at Texas Tech in a game that will be televised on Fox Sports Prime Ticket.
Led by three scorers averaging in double digits, Aaron Valdes (17.0), Stefan Jankovic (13.8) and Roderick Bobbitt (13.5), the Rainbow Warriors (4-0) are scoring 84 points per game and shooting better than 50 percent from the field. Bobbitt and Valdes have reached double figures in each of Hawaii’s games.
The Red Raiders (3-1) are coming off a three-game stint at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. They lost to Utah and then beat Mississippi State and Minnesota. Texas Tech is coached by Tubby Smith, who won a national championship at Kentucky in 1998.
“Hawaii is undefeated and playing well,” Smith said in a release. “They have talented players, a lot of offensive weapons and are scoring a lot of points. I like the way they play, they can really execute. We’ll have to get back in transition defense because they can push it up on the court. They can go inside and outside. We will have our work cut out for us even though we’re playing with a ton of confidence.”
Senior guard Devaugntah Williams leads Texas Tech, scoring 18.8 per game.
Wahine await next foe
The Rainbow Wahine will learn their NCAA tournament destination and opponent when the selections are made at 4 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU.
Riding a 21-game winning streak, Big West champion Hawaii (26-1) is ranked eighth but is only 26th in the RPI.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
