Nevada football coach Jay Norvell acknowledges “a few anxious moments when Todd Graham took over,” as the head coach at the University of Hawaii in January.

Not just because his former Arizona State boss was joining the Mountain West Conference competition, but the real fear that Graham might poach the Wolf Pack’s up-and-coming offensive assistant, Timmy Chang, to be the Rainbow Warriors’ offensive coordinator.

“Obviously anybody that takes that (UH) program over, if Timmy Chang is available, that you would want to visit with him,” Norvell said Monday as the Wolf Pack prepare for Saturday’s game at Aloha Stadium. “I just did not want to lose him. I just thought that he was so valuable to our program. I’m very happy that we were able to keep him.”

What UH might have offered the former record-setting Warrior quarterback wasn’t disclosed, but staying in Reno has paid off handsomely with a reported $70,427 raise on his 2019 salary to $190,000 annually.

And the unbeaten Wolf Pack haven’t done too badly either with their best start (5-0) in a decade. It is a beginning largely fueled by the nation’s fourth-ranked passing offense (363.8 yards per game) on a team that is averaging 33.2 points a game.

But, then, Graham has given glowing, first-hand testament to Chang’s knowledge and execution of offensive football.

“When we competed against the great Timmy Chang, I stayed up all night in my office (in 2004) — and it did me no good,” Graham said. “I could have spent all week there.”

Graham was Tulsa’s defensive coordinator at the time and while the Golden Hurricane held Chang somewhat in check (21-for-35, 240 yards) in a 2003 UH loss, he torched them for 378 yards and three touchdowns in a 44-16 victory in 2004.

Five weeks later Chang set an NCAA career passing yards record, the eventual mark (17,072) standing for seven years before Houston’s Case Keenum broke it in 2011.

After graduating from UH and a stint playing in the Canadian Football League, the 39-year-old Saint Louis School graduate paid his coaching dues with stops at Southern Methodist, Jackson State and Emory & Henry. Then, he landed at Nevada, where Norvell wanted to install a dynamic “air raid” passing attack.

With the Wolf Pack, where he has coached receivers and tight ends in four seasons, Chang has worked with offensive coordinator Matt Mumme as the key figures in the passing game.

“He (Chang) has also got a huge role on our staff,” Norvell said. “Timmy Chang is a fabulous coach. He is a guy who has so much knowledge of the passing game, offensive football and quarterback play. He’s been a tremendous asset to our program, a great recruiter, but an even better person. There’s not a player on our team who he hasn’t impacted.”

This week part of Chang’s assignment is helping plan the Wolf Pack’s trip and evaluating UH’s defense. Norvell said that means, “Looking at the defense, breaking them down, giving us tendencies and in-game tendencies about where we can make adjustments and he does a fabulous job of that.”

With his career trajectory, you get the feeling that the next time UH talks to Chang about coming home for a position, it will be about making it his show. It worked for Nick Rolovich.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.