SPRINGFIELD, Mass. >>

It has been a wonderful football life in Hawaii for quarterback Dru Brown, recruiting director Jason Cvercko, strength/conditioning coordinator Bubba Reynolds and graduate assistant Mikahael Waters.

But all of that would not be possible if head coach Nick Rolovich did not resign as Massachusetts’ offensive coordinator after a couple of weeks of unpaid employment in 2012.

“People talk about those decisions that change your life and many others’,” Rolovich said. “Maybe that was one of them.”

The what-if scenarios have accentuated as Rolovich returned to New England this week to lead the Rainbow Warriors in advance of Saturday’s season opener against UMass.

“It’s pretty cool how it’s all come full circle,” Brown said.

Rolovich departed UMass to accept the offensive coordinator’s job at Nevada. In Reno, Rolovich met Brown at a Wolf Pack football camp. Rolovich also worked with Cvercko, Reynolds and Waters at Nevada. When Rolovich was named the Warriors’ head coach in November 2015, he hired Cvercko and Reynolds. Waters was added as a graduate assistant for the offense. Brown, who attended College of San Mateo for a season after not receiving any FBS offers, signed with the Warriors in June 2016. Three months later, Brown was the Warriors’ starting quarterback.

“I’m happy (Rolovich) is here,” Brown said. “And I’m happy I didn’t end up at Nevada, because he would have left (the Wolf Pack) and I would have been upset. It all worked out.”

Rolovich said he was appreciative of UMass’ offer after he was not retained as UH offensive coordinator after Greg McMackin resigned as UH head coach in December 2011.

At UMass, Rolovich was expected to install the run-and-shoot offense that was effective with the Warriors. With the help of Cvercko, who worked in player development at UMass, Rolovich was assigned New Jersey and Connecticut as recruiting areas. Rolovich, who was raised in Northern California, had not previously worked on the East Coast.

While UMass was undergoing facility upgrades and construction, the offensive coaches worked in doctors’ offices. “That was also my bedroom,” Rolovich said, smiling.

UMass was making the daunting transition to the Football Bowl Subdivision. A couple of weeks into his work with the Minutemen, Rolovich had yet to sign a contract or coach a practice. But he was instrumental in signing Tajae Sharpe as a wideout. Sharpe had previously committed to another school to play defensive back. Sharpe is now with the Tennessee Titans.

“The Nevada opportunity came, and it was a hard decision,” Rolovich said. “But being close to my hometown (in the Bay Area), my family and all that, and it was significantly more money. And I had two babies at the time.”

Rolovich said he enjoyed meeting the high school coaches on the East Coast recruiting trail, and he loved the chicken wings at Hangar Pub & Grill.

“I didn’t spend enough time there to put any roots down,” Rolovich said. “I met some nice people when I was there. … My feeling of regret was not being there for Tajae Sharpe. I connected with him well, and I knew he was going to be a good player.”

At Nevada, Rolovich and Reynolds, who ascended in the conditioning program, became friends. “We got along,” Reynolds said. “I appreciated his sense of humor. That was most of it. That takes a lot of patience.”

Rolovich also befriended Waters, who was hired to work in the equipment room after pestering Nevada head coach Brian Polian for a football-related job. Cvercko, who worked at Stony Brook after also leaving UMass, joined the Nevada staff in 2014. Reynolds, Waters and Cvercko topped Rolovich’s wish list when he was hired at UH.

“If (Rolovich) stayed at UMass, I probably wouldn’t have gone into football,” Waters said. “He wouldn’t have given me my first (football) job. If he stayed at UMass, I probably would be doing a normal 9-to-5 job now.”

Reynolds had never envisioned working at UH until he met Rolovich at Nevada. “It’s kind of a vicious cycle how everything works,” Reynolds said. “Everyone understands that’s how it is in this profession. It’s all kind of who you know, and everything is just a snowball or domino effect. When one piece moves in, another piece gets moved out. It’s amazing how it’s all worked out. (Rolovich is) a West Coast guy. He would have survived at UMass. But he’s thriving in Hawaii.”