UH football season-ticket sales lagging

The University of Hawaii is hoping a late "push" will stimulate the sale of slow-moving football season tickets.

As of the end of last week, UH officials said 16,163 season tickets had been sold for the 2013 campaign, 4,580 fewer than last year’s season total.

Renewals closed May 31 and new sales are scheduled to begin July 8. UH said it is in the process of contacting customers who have so far failed to renew. Until recent seasons, UH had averaged an 88 to 95 percent renewal rate.

"We’re going to make an all-out push," athletic director Ben Jay said. "We need the support of our fans right now because our sales are lagging. We feel like we have an exciting season coming up, beginning with the opener against USC and (coach Norm Chow’s) second season."

UH opens with USC on Aug. 29 at Aloha Stadium.

UH has topped 20,000 in season-ticket sales every year since 2006, when sales slid to 18,215.

UH hit 27,705 in 2008, the season following the Warriors’ Sugar Bowl appearance, but sales have dropped every year except one since.

Season tickets are key to the athletic program’s financial health, since they average approximately 70 percent of total football ticket revenue over the past six years. Last year, UH took in $2.7 million in football season-ticket revenue, compared with just $602,378 in individual-game sales, officials said.

Overall, including media rights, sponsorships and donations and other revenue streams, UH officials have said in good years football can help account for more than $10 million annually, or nearly a third of the athletic department’s income.  

Jay said he hopes a "more attractive" home schedule that includes USC, Fresno State, San Diego State and Army will increase individual-game sales, which amounted to fewer than 20,000 tickets overall in 2012.

"We feel like a good football season is ahead for us," Jay said.