$59K unclaimed from two MSU football 50/50 raffle drawings

EAST LANSING — Nearly $60,000 from two separate 50/50 raffles at MSU football games have yet to be claimed.

The winnings from 50/50 raffles held during MSU football home games against Oregon and Central Michigan University have so far gone unclaimed, said Paul Schager, executive associate athletic director for external relations. The unclaimed winnings amount to $32,482.50 and $26,790 respectively.

Winners have 60 days following the raffle to come forward with their winning ticket, he said. The winnings are donated to a charity approved by the Michigan Lottery Commission if they are not claimed in the allotted time, he added.

The deadline for winners to come forward is Nov. 11 for the Oregon game raffle and Nov. 25 for the CMU game. The winning ticket number for the Oregon game is A348344; the winning ticket number for the CMU game is C172065.

The winner from the raffle held during the Sept. 19 game against Air Force walked away with more than $26,000, Schager said, while the winner from last week’s Purdue game netted about $22,000.

The two unclaimed prizes are the first instances where a football raffle winner has not claimed their prize since MSU Athletics took over the raffle in 2013, Schager said. Raffles during men’s and women’s basketball game as well as an MSU hockey game have gone unclaimed in the last two years, although it was only one instance per sport.

The raffles were run by the Downtown Coaches Club until 2011, when the Michigan Lottery Commission suspended the organization from "the right to obtain gaming licenses" for one year over improper spending of profits.

Winners receive half of the total amount collected during a raffle. The remaining amount goes to the MSU Athletic Department and is used for student athlete scholarships as well as compensating campus and local groups who sell raffle tickets, Schager said. The Department of Intercollegiate Athletics supervises the 50/50 raffles.

Raffle tickets for MSU sports games cost $5 for 3 tickets, $10 for 10 tickets and $20 for 40 tickets.

Contact RJ Wolcott at (517) 377-1026 orrwolcott@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter@wolcottr.

Think you’ve got the winning number?

More information on the 50/50 raffle as well as the winning numbers and who to contact if you have a winning ticket can be found at MSUSpartans.com/ot/5050.html