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Michigan State SpartansMichigan State

Michigan State's $85,000 Recruiting Swing Began in Grand Rapids

One FOIA gift form covers a six-day, four-state push the booster valued at $85,104.40.

Jan 27, 2025N271PHCessna Citation Sovereign
Airport route
Pontiac, MIKPTK · 2:28 PM ETGrand Rapids, MIKGRR · 2:52 PM ET

The biggest single gift in Michigan State's January recruiting blitz was an $85,104.40 donation from Mike McNamara covering a January 27-February 1 swing the form labels "TX, PA, OH, CA." It opened close to home, in Grand Rapids, before the booster jet turned national.

N271PH — Cessna Citation Sovereign
Aircraft imagePhoto by Clayton Eddy / airport-data.com
Verdict
Booster-funded MSU football recruiting flight (gift-in-kind)
High confidence · inferred
25m
Airborne
~94 nm
Distance · est.
1
Legs
—
Ground

Aircraft

Tail
N271PH
Owner/operator
Labutte LLC
Aircraft
Cessna Citation SovereignC680
Group
Big Ten
Registry
United States

Trip record

Route
KPTK → KGRR
Departure
Jan 27, 2025, 2:28 PM
Arrival
Jan 27, 2025, 2:52 PM
Paired leg
No direct KGRR ↔ KPTK companion leg logged around this trip.
Sources

Michigan State University Spartan Fund gift-in-kind forms (FOIA #MSUF058526); flights via public ADS-B.

Recent aircraft activity

Nearby context from the same aircraft. These flights are movement history, not purpose claims.

2026-05-06Pontiac, MI → Alton/St Louis, IL1h 17m · 376 nm2026-05-04Pontiac, MI → Buffalo, NY → Pontiac, MI10h 16m · 417 nm2026-05-01Pontiac, MI → Miami, FL → Key Largo, FL → Pontiac, MI7h 24m · 2106 nm2026-04-30Pontiac, MI → Pontiac, MI6h 37m · 5 nm2026-04-24Pontiac, MI → Key West, FL → Pontiac, MI10h 21m · 2181 nm

Aircraft attribution

The attribution currently available for this aircraft record.

Registered owner
Labutte LLC
aircraft registry
→
Attributed to
Michigan State Spartans
visiting booster
→
Owner class
known booster
ADS-B data is a public aircraft-movement record. This page separates observed movement from cited context and avoids passenger claims unless a source document supports them.