Finishing near the top of the Big 10 standings for the past three years has resulted in record-setting interest in the Michigan State football program. The school announced Friday that it has sold a record number of season tickets for 2012:

Michigan State Athletics Department officials reported a school-record 63,831 football season tickets have been sold for the 2012 season. Season-ticket sales in 2012 account for 85 percent of the Spartan Stadium capacity (75,005). It marks just the sixth time in school history that season-ticket sales have exceeded 60,000 and the first time since 2006.

Overall, football season-ticket sales are up 4,059 (6 percent) from last season (59,772 sold). It also marks the sixth-straight season that more than 13,500 football student-season admissions have been sold.

This is the largest number of season tickets the school has sold since the 2000 season.