Mardi Gras celebrations are taking place throughout the state the next two weekends. Executive Director of the Lafayette Convention and Visitors Commission Ben Berthelot says the city of Lafayette holds big parades, and rural communities do Mardi Gras their own special way…:
Cut 5 (08) “twenty or thirty minutes”
Central Louisiana’s Mardi Gras gets bigger and bigger every year.

Punxsutawney Phil and Louisiana’s own nutria forecaster Pierre C. Shadeaux are at odds in their predictions this year. Phil saw his shadow and predicted another six weeks of winter, while Shadeaux didn’t in New Iberia today saying expect more spring. LSU Climatologist Barry Keim says Shadeaux’s prediction may be closer on the mark…:
Cut 13 (10) “telling us”

An Offers.com survey says Louisianans are the top spenders this year for Super Bowl parties. Even though the Black and Gold missed the Super Bowl by a hair, big game parties will still be raging across the state. Offers.com spokesperson Carson Yarborough says Louisiana spends nearly 40 percent more per party than the average state…:
Cut 10 (11) “national average”
The Eagles and Patriots will battle on Sunday at 5:30pm on NBC.

The LSU Board of Supervisors is expected to approve today new contracts for LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger and defensive coordinator Dave Aranda. Tiger Rag Associate Editor James Moran says Ensminger’s contract is 800-thousand dollars a year…:
Cut 16 (05) “would be”
He says Aranda’s annual salary will go up to 2.5 million dollars.