"He was hurt, and he suffered a lot of emotional and physical problems because of that," said Green. "There are tremendous mood swings that come from those things."

Brennan's former girlfriend, Shakti Stream, was driving the car at the time of the collision on Queen Kaahumanu Highway. Stream is being sued by Wang for driving in a "careless and negligent manner."

Brennan is an iconic figure in UH football lore, leading the team to its only undefeated regular season in 2007, and a Sugar Bowl appearance against the Georgia Bulldogs in January 2008. That same season he was a Heisman Trophy finalist, coming in third in the voting.

"They were selling his high school helmets in Honolulu for him to sign," said Curran. "It was unprecedented; he almost needed protection when he went places."

However, Brennan experienced difficulty in his transition from the college game to the pros. In 2008, he was drafted in the sixth round of the NFL draft by the Washington Redskins before being released.

Brennan was picked up by the Oakland Raiders in 2010, but again failed to make the team. More recently, he served a short stint in the UFL with the Hartford Colonials, before the team folded. Just last month, the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League released Brennan, who was considered one of the team's high-profile offseason signings.

At least one Pop Warner football team on Oahu, the Kailua Mustangs, plans on speaking with its young players about Brennan's arrest.

Team president Wayne Cazimero said the topic of alcohol and drug use would be broached with parents and coaches during "Positive Coaching and Positive Parenting" seminars in August. Coaches will then sit down with their individual teams.

"We'll just tell the kids about what things not to do, and what they can do," said Cazimero. "How one thing like this happens to you, it can turn your career in the opposite direction."

In 2004, Brennan was convicted of burglary in the second degree and first-degree criminal trespassing after a night of drinking while attending the University of Colorado. He was sentenced to a week in jail and 60 hours of community service. The arrest eventually led him to UH, where former head coach June Jones gave Brennan another shot at becoming a starting quarterback.