Illinois high school football rivalry sells out college football stadium ticket allotment

An Illinois rivalry matchup is stirring up a lot of buzz ahead of a big game at Northwestern's Ryan Field .

Just two weeks after the Wildcats opened play for the first time at their brand-new $862 million facility on Friday, Oct. 2, rivals Evanston (IL) and New Trier (IL) are scheduled to play the first high school game — and just the third football game — at the brand-new stadium .

The early hype has lived up to the game's billing. Tickets sold like hotcakes for the 118th matchup between the Wildkits and the Trevians, with nearly 20,000 tickets being sold as of Monday, Oct. 12.

More tickets were available on Ticketmaster starting at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13. Fans then had to wait in a queue for a chance to purchase tickets. USA TODAY Sports waited in the queue for over 30 minutes before being able to buy tickets.

USA TODAY Sports reached out to Ryan Sports Ventures, New Trier and Evanston for comment. None of them got back as of publication time.

Tickets were first made available beginning Saturday, Oct. 10. Student tickets were going for $10, while general admission cost $15 and premium seating was set at $50.

Northwestern sold out its opener against Penn State on Friday, Oct. 2, with an announced crowd of 35,000 fans.

In May, Northwestern, Pat Ryan Jr. and the two schools announced the annual rivalry game between Evanston and New Trier would be the third game played at the brand-new stadium. New Trier High is just over five miles from the stadium; Evanston High School is located just two miles from the new Ryan Field.