When Norm Chow took over as football coach at the University of Hawaii, somebody handed him a highlight video of Warriors big plays for use in recruiting.

After viewing it, Chow said he knew it wouldn’t suit his purposes.

"It was a nice tape with a lot of plays being made," Chow acknowledged. "But, I said, ‘We can’t use this.’ The stands, where the students usually sit, were empty."

In an inaugural season as head coach in which he does not already lack for on-the-field challenges, here’s another one Chow has chosen to tackle: building back up the disappearing student fan base.

"We need to get them back," Chow said. "That’s (part) of what college football is all about."

Except at Aloha Stadium of late, of course.

UH averaged about 1,000 students per game in 2011, with especially meager turnouts for Tulane (224), Fresno State (353) and Utah State (456).

What made it particularly disappointing for UH was that it was the first full season of the student athletic fee in which at least 5,000 tickets were made available to students on a weekly basis for home games. Yet, even for the biggest game, the season opener with Colorado, just 43 percent of the ticket allotment was used.

The resulting atmosphere has become a far cry from the loud, frenzied crowds Chow remembers while coming here with Brigham Young in the 1970s and ’80s.

"Back then it was scary coming over here (to play)," Chow said. "One of the scariest things we could do was lose the coin toss because we had to receive the kickoff, usually start inside the 20 (yard line), have them blitz us and the fans go wild."

ATTENDANCE has dropped from those heady days of regular 40,000-plus crowds, of course, but particularly notable have been the vacancies in the sideline student sections.

"I know it (student attendance) is important to him because it is something we talked about way back (in December) when I first offered him the job," athletic director Jim Donovan said. "The fact that he wants to reach out to the students and get them to come to games, I think, is important. He sees them as a (key) group that adds to the total experience for everyone — the athletes and the other fans who come to the game."

Having seen — and heard — what crowds can be like at Wisconsin, Oregon, Utah, Pittsburgh and elsewhere, he apparently has some definite ideas. Chow, who said he has already talked to the band, associate athletic director John McNamara and the marketing department, said he plans a personal appeal when students come back in August.

"I’m going to go up there and invite them back, encourage them to come back.

"We have to put a good product on their field, too," Chow said. "I know that. I get that. But we want to get the place rocking."

Get enough students to help make that possible and it might be one of the biggest victories Chow and the Warriors could claim in 2012.

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