A record number of Washington State University football fans will be in Las Vegas for tonight's game between WSU and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

More than 5,000 tickets have been sold and distributed by the Cougar ticket office for this nationally televised event tonight.

"This is the most number of tickets we've sold for an away game in over a decade," Paul Finn, WSU athletics director of ticket operations, said in a news release. "Las Vegas is obviously a draw, but there is a new excitement about Cougar football."

Bill Moos, director of athletics, said, "There is a great deal of momentum with Cougar football right now. From the renovated Martin Stadium to the near doubling in members of the Cougar Athletic Fund, our fan support has been tremendous and this week's game at UNLV is just another example that Cougar football is on the rise."

A pre-game event at UNLV's Sam Boyd Stadium sponsored by the WSU Alumni Association has registered more than 1,000 fans. The last time a visiting contingent of Coug fans of this magnitude attended an away football game was back in 2003, when WSU was in the Rose Bowl.

"We're thrilled with the number of people coming down," said Tim Pavish, executive director of the WSU Alumni Association. If you're coming down, please pre-register to ensure you have a space."

The only other time WSU has played at UNLV was in 1991.

The game is at 6 p.m. tonight and will be televised nationally on ESPN.